Matt Smith — Matt's Photography.
The Southlake Carroll Dragons narrowly defeated Rockwall-Heath Thursday night after trailing the home team for most of the game.
Junior quarterback Kaden Anderson threw for 354 yards while Landon Samson continued to do what he does best to the tune of 153 yards. The duo connected for two touchdowns.
But most of Southlake Carroll’s statistics come from the last half of the game. Rockwall-Heath kept the Dragons to just 10 points going into the third quarter.
Although it wasn’t until after the first half, junior running back Owen Allen still managed to put up big numbers, rushing for two touchdowns while senior wide receiver RJ Maryland also made some big plays.
With the exception of senior defensive lineman Barrett Baker blocking Rockwall-Heath’s first field goal attempt in the second quarter, it wasn’t until the fourth quarter when the Dragon defense really woke up.
After a third quarter that saw both teams score at least two touchdowns, Southlake Carroll finally managed to stop a touchdown attempt by Rockwall-Heath and then proceeded to block their second field goal attempt of the night.
Allen’s second touchdown came in the fourth quarter and proved to be the game-winner, giving the Dragons a one-point edge over the Hawks 36-35. But an unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt kept the Dragon defense on their toes.
Following that run by Southlake Carroll, Rockwall-Heath made their way up the field in hopes of regaining the lead. But after the Dragon defense dashed their hopes of a touchdown, the Hawks resorted to their third field goal attempt of the night.
Senior defensive lineman Calder Bray — our Dragon Pride Player Of The Week, presented by AC Pros — blocked the would-be game-winning field goal.
After this very narrow win, Southlake Carroll now sets their sights on Prosper, who currently ranks No. 27 in Division 6A and No. 45 in the state, according to MaxPreps.com. In comparison, Southlake Carroll is currently ranked at No. 5 in Division 6A and No. 6 in the state.
Another away game, next week’s match-up will be the first Friday game of the season and take place at Prosper ISD Stadium at 7 p.m.