Midlothian Heritage rallies in second half to eliminate Crandall in area round

Midlothian Heritage erased a 28-19 third-quarter deficit by outscoring Crandall, 26-9, to walk away with a 45-38 victory in a Class 5A Division 2 area round game Friday at the Gopher-Warrior Bowl.

With 2:35 to play, Heritage’s Tae Jackson intercepted a pass and returned it 39 yards for a touchdown that put the Jaguars up 45-38. Crandall had one last chance to tie but Deondre Bowman’s interception allowed Heritage to run out the clock.

Heritage (11-1) takes on the winner of Saturday’s game between Dallas South Oak Cliff (8-3) and Lucas Lovejoy (8-3), which is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Globe Life Field.

Crandall’s season ends at 9-3.

Jackson opened the fourth quarter with a 2-yard scoring run that cut the lead to 28-26. To go along with his touchdown scoring interception return, Jackson caught four passes for 91 yards and a score.

Crandall responded quickly with a 75-yard touchdown run from Andrew Anderson that gave the Pirates a 35-26 lead. For the night, Anderson carried 17 times for 163 yards and a score.

Heritage closed to within 35-32 when Kaden Brown hit Stetson Sarratt for a 1-yard score. But Crandall blocked the point-after attempt and Samuel Omosigho returned it to extend the Pirates’ lead. Brown threw for 267 yards and three touchdowns.

The Jaguars took a 38-37 lead with 3:44 to play when Mason O’Neal scored from 23 yards out. O’Neal finished with 146 yards and a score on 26 attempts.

Pirates’ quarterback Luke Moffett carried 15 times for 51 yards and three touchdowns and added 183 passing yards and a score Omosigho caught two passes for 85 yards.

Heritage turned a Crandall fumble into the first points of the game as the Jaguars drove 92 yards on eight plays. Brown capped the march with a 26-yard touchdown pass to Jackson. The Jaguars went up 14-0 on a 65-yard pass from Brown to Xavier Moten.

Crandall cut the lead to 14-7 when Moffitt scored on a 10-yard run. Dylan Riggins put Heritage up 17-7 thanks to a 38-yard field goal. But things soured in the second quarter as Crandall roared back to take a 21-17 advantage into halftime.

First, Moffitt hit Omasigho for a 72-yard touchdown with 2:19 to play in the second quarter. Then after a Jaguars’ fumble at their 46, the Pirates sailed down the field to take their first lead of the game on a 1-yard run by Moffitt with 19 seconds remaining before halftime.