Arlington Lamar’s furious comeback falls just short against Midland Lee in area round

Trailing 55-49 with 12 seconds to play and facing a fourth and 2 at the Midland Lee 12, Arlington Lamar quarterback Jack Dawson’s pass to Trevon West was knocked down at the goal line, giving the Rebels a thrilling win in a Class 6A Division I area-round game at Cravens Field.

At halftime, Midland Lee (11-1) seemed to have the game in hand leading 35-7 behind four touchdown passes and a TD run by quarterback Mikey Serrano.

But the Vikings (10-2) didn’t give in.

Lamar outscored the Rebels 28-7 in the third quarter to close to within 42-35 following a 6-yard pass from Dawson to Cam Brady with 30 seconds left in the quarter. It was Dawson’s fourth touchdown pass of the quarter.

The Vikings then tied the game at 42 with 10:50 to play in the game on a 37-yard touchdown pass from Dawson to West.

But Midland Lee responded with two scores to push the Rebels’ advantage to 55-42 with a 3:16 to play.

Serrano’s fifth touchdown pass of the game, a 5-yard strike to Christian Romero gave Midland Lee a 49-42 lead. Then Serrano scored on a 17-yard run for a 55-42 lead. It was Serrano’s third rushing score of the game.

Serrano, a junior who holds all of Lee’s career passing records, completed 31 of 42 passes for 369 yards and five scores. He also ran 19 times for 133 yards and three touchdowns.

Lee’s receiving corps turned in a big day. Evan McMaryion caught seven passes for 114 yards. Loic Fouonji had nine catches for 92 yards and two scores, while Christian Romero nabbed eight passes for 94 yards and a touchdown.

With 1:13 to play, Dawson scored on a 1-yard run as the Vikings closed to within 55-49. The score was set up by a 41-yard catch by West. On the day, West caught seven passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns. Dawson, who had 100 yards passing at halftime, completed 25 of 45 for 408 yards and six scores.

Lamar had two other receivers pass the century mark in yardage. Kameron Weil caught six passes for 116 yards, including an 88-yard score, and Le’Andre Roberts has six receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown.

On the ensuing kickoff, Roberts recovered the ball at the Lee 44 with 1:09 to play. Five plays later, Dawson’s pass to West was slapped down to end the Vikings’ hopes.

The two teams combined for 1,110 yards of offense. Midland Lee finished with 605 yards on a 79 plays, while Lamar accounted for 505 yards on 68 plays.

Midland Lee will take on Southlake Carroll (12-0) at 5 p.m. Saturday at Abilene’s Shotwell Stadium in the regional quarterfinals.

This story was originally published November 23, 2019 at 8:56 PM.