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Panthers pick up first win against Mesquite Horn Jaguars

Panthers pick up first win against Mesquite Horn Jaguars
Junior running back William Jackson breaks away from a host of Mesquite Horn defenders duirng the second half of play in the Panthers 36-33 win. (Ariana Canchola photo)

Friday the Panthers entered the night in search of their first win of the young 2012 season while Mesquite was looking to continue their success and attempt to move to 3-0. The defense had a tough task in containing the Jaguar offense, led by running back Treyvon Marsh and quarterback Destri White.

Both players came into the game ranked among the top 50 in the state for passing and rushing yards. For the Panthers to be successful they needed the offense to step up and have an impact on the game after only scoring 10 points in their first two games. They answered the call putting up 36 points in the 36-33 win over the Jaguars.

Both teams played an extremely exciting game making it go down to the wire, keeping all of the fans on the edge of their seats. With the Jaguars marching up the field with just under 30 seconds left in the game, the Panther defense came up big with an interception to close their first win of the season with an exclamation point.

Quarterback Aaron Piper ended the game as the leading passer and rusher with 87 yards passing, 124 yards rushing, and two touchdowns. Junior running back William Jackson rushed for 60 yards on 9 attempts with one touchdown while senior Jaquan Cole rushed for 42 yards on 10 attempts with a touchdown.

The Jaguars struck first with Destri White taking the ball in from the 11 with 8:41 left in the first quarter making it 7-0. Near the end of the first quarter the Panthers began a drive on their own 27 yard line and after an exciting 38 yard run by Deandre Smith, Aaron Piper punches the ball in to even the score out 7-7 with 1:22 left in the first quarter.

Mesquite scored two unanswered touchdowns early in the second quarter but Piper broke a 70-yard run for a touchdown to get the Panthers closer prior to Mesquite with 7:07 left in the first half at 21-13. Derrell Haynes scored a touchdown with 1:19 left in the half and Piper ran the ball in for the two point conversion making the score 21-21 at halftime.

The Panthers came out strong in the second half Jackson took a kickoff from the 30 and ran it back for the touchdown giving the Panthers their first lead at 28-21.

Mesquite came back to score two more touch downs going for the two point conversion both times, and the Duncanville defense came up HUGE stopping the conversion both times.

In the fourth quarter Duncanville scored their final points on a 20 yard run by Cole and Aaron Piper was successful on the two point conversion to put Duncanville up 36-33 with 9:32 left in the game.

It was Duncanville’s defense that came up strong in the fourth quarter when senior Keenan Blair forced a fumble on the 2 yard line keeping the jaguars from getting the go ahead touchdown with minutes remaining in the game. The fumble was recovered by the Panthers in the end zone bringing the ball out to the 20. Although the offense turned the ball back to the Jaguars with just under a minute left in the game, a big Panthers interception near the 50 sealed the deal for the Panthers as the clock retired on the run back.

The offense and defense produced a much needed performance to get their first win of the season. Friday the Panthers start district against Midlothian who is 3-0. The Panthers play at 7:30 at MISD Multi-Purpose Stadium in Midlothian where it will be two Panther teams looking for a 1-0 start to district play.

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