Haltom explodes in second-half victory over FW Paschal to stay undefeated in district
Haltom took advantage of three Fort Worth Paschal miscues in a five-minute span of the third quarter to break open a close game and coast to a 51-7 victory over the Panthers in a key District 3-6A football game on Thursday night at Globe Life Park.
Haltom (4-2 overall, 4-0 in district) led 13-7 at the intermission, but a blocked punt by Jihere Smith of Haltom was scooped up by Bryson Hicks and returned one yard for a touchdown at the 8:59 mark of the third quarter to start the onslaught.
Haltom’s Johnny Smith-Rider ripped the ball away from a Panther running back three plays later and defensive back Aaron Ellis alertly picked up the loose ball and returned it to the Paschal 39.
That drive stalled at the Paschal 3 and Hunter Villavicencio came on and booted his third field goal of the night. The 20-yarder gave Haltom a 23-7 lead.
Ellis’ 28-yard interception return for a TD on Paschal’s next series came less than a minute later and the Buffalos led 30-7 with 3:58 left in the third period.
The game was close at the half, on the scoreboard and on the stat sheet as Paschal was fighting for its playoff life. With district losses to North Crowley and Weatherford, the Panthers fate might have been sealed with a loss to Haltom.
Paschal (2-5, 1-3) picked up 207 total yards with 190 coming through the air in the first two quarters. Haltom had 231 with 168 of its yards passing.
The game started on the wrong note for Paschal as the opening kickoff was fumbled and Hicks fell on it for Haltom at the Panthers’ 27-yard line.
The drive stalled and Villavicencio came on and booted a 23-yard field goal to give Haltom a 3-0 lead with 10:12 left in the first quarter.
Paschal answered late in the opening frame.
Quarterback Connor Culp hit Grant Jackson for a 49-yard gain. Then two plays later, Culp and William Marshall connected on a 29-yard touchdown pass and the Panthers went up 7-3 at the 1:28 mark.
A 28-yard field goal by Villavicencio cut the lead to 7-6, but following a Paschal punt Haltom exploded.
Quarterback Angel Moreno hit Jace Washington with a perfect strike cutting across the middle. Washington turned on the jets and outraced the Panthers’ secondary for a 91-yard TD to give Haltom a 13-7 lead with 8:24 left before halftime.
Washington led Haltom with eight receptions for 198 yards with Moreno having a stellar night completing 10 of 17 passes for 258 yards.
The Haltom defense was especially solid in the second half. In addition to the turnovers that led to scores, the Buffalos held Paschal to 23 total yards after the break and only two first downs with one coming on a defensive holding penalty.
Following the third-quarter scoring spree, Paschal got a big dose of Haltom running backs A.J. Reynolds and Keenen Railey.
Reynolds finished with 162 rushing yards on 22 carries. The sophomore scored on runs of 44 and 20 yards late in the third quarter and early in the fourth to put the Buffalos up 44-7. Railey rushed 13 times for 57 yards.
Villavicencio, who also plays wide receiver, capped the scoring with a 54-yard scoring pass from Moreno with 6:46 left in the game.
This story was originally published November 13, 2020 at 12:16 AM.