Kennedale rusher leads the way in quarterfinal win against Van

Kennedale trailed Van by 14 at halftime of their Class 4A Division I state quarterfinal Friday, but the Wildcats scored the next 27 points en route to a 34-28 defeat of the Vandals at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco. Wildcats running back D.J. Kirven scored four of his five touchdowns during the 27-0 spree. Kennedale meets Abilene Wylie (12-1) in the state semifinals at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls. Wylie, No. 9 in the final Associated Press state poll, beat Levelland, 49-14, on Friday.

Key players: Kirven rushed for 168 yards on 21 carries, with touchdown runs of 25, 6, 5, 10 and 9 yards. Running back Braelin Brown added 73 yards on 16 carries in the win..

Key stat: Van made the final score 34-28 on a touchdown with 18 seconds left, but Kennedale recovered the onside kick attempt and ran out the clock.

Records: Kennedale 11-3, Van 12-2.

This story was originally published December 3, 2016 at 12:57 AM with the headline "Kennedale rusher leads the way in quarterfinal win against Van."