Fort Worth Christian comes out on top against Dallas Christian in undefeated battle
Luke Anderson rushed for 239 yards and three touchdowns to lead Fort Worth Christian over visiting Dallas Christian, 35-24 in a non-district match up of unbeaten teams at Barrow Field Friday night.
The Cardinals (5-0) also had several key defensive stops to help FWC break open a close game at halftime and celebrate its homecoming.
Anderson, a senior, carried 17 times and his touchdowns of 14, 62, and 40 yards all came in the second half.
FWC, No. 2 in the area private school rankings, led 14-10 at halftime. Late in the first half, Dallas Christian, entering the contest at 5-0 and ranked second in the state according to Dave Campbell’s poll for private schools, twice threatened to tie it in the second quarter.
The first time, the Chargers advanced from its 42 yard line to the Fort Worth Christian 24 in six plays. But from there, Charger quarterback Luke Carney’s pass near the front left pylon was intercepted by Caleb Franklin to nullify the scoring threat.
Montana State commit Jacob Trimble also had a pair of interceptions for Fort Worth Christian. The second time was when Dallas Christian next had the ball. After forcing a three-and-out, the Chargers had first-and-goal at the Cardinal 4. Zach Hernandez got two to the 2. But from there, the Cardinals’ Alex Mann nailed Hernandez in the backfield for a 3-yard loss.
The senior then sacked Carney for a 10-yard loss. From there, Jack Lowery’s 32-yard field goal was good for the halftime margin. Carney was dropped for losses six times in the course of the evening. Alex Haralson contributed with three sacks and Bryce Bradley assisted all three times.
The Chargers took the second half kickoff and again were knocking at the door with a first down at the Cardinal 9-yard line. Hernandez again gained two yards, Carney’s pass went incomplete, and Will Nettles gained another two yards to the 5 on third down.
Lowery’s 22-yard field goal attempt was wide so the score stayed the same as FWC kept its lead at four.
That’s when momentum swung back to FWC. The Cardinal offense took over and drove 80 yards in eight plays with Anderson getting the last 14 for his first score and a 28-10 lead.
Midway in the first quarter, Jordan Green took an 18-yard pass from Cardinal quarterback Hogan Nelson to strike first blood, 7-0. The previous play was a 69-yard off-tackle run by Anderson into the open field before he was dragged down from behind.
DC tied it at 7 after the ensuing kickoff when Carney found a streaking Nettles on a post pattern behind the secondary at about the 12-yard line to complete the 50-yard scoring play.
FWC took the lead for good, 14-7, two possessions later when Nelson again found Green at the goal line sandwiched between a pair of defenders for a 17-yard scoring strike. The Cardinals gambled, converting a fourth-and-4 at the DC 43.
Nelson threw to Green near the first down marker at the sidelines for eight yards to keep the drive alive. Nelson went 12 of 24 with one interception for 139 yards and two touchdowns both to Green.
The Chargers were led by Nettles who had nine receptions for a game-high 151 yards and two touchdowns. Hernandez was the leading rusher for DC with 99 yards on 17 carries.
This story was originally published October 1, 2022 at 12:11 AM.