Rockwall edges Mesquite Horn in District 10-6A battle for first place (Photos)
MESQUITE, Texas — In a pivotal district clash on the road Friday night, Rockwall's strong rushing attack and sharp play defensively proved to be decisive factors in a back-and-forth battle.
The Yellowjackets combined for four touchdown runs and scored on a safety and a pick six defensively to seal a 37-34 comeback win against Mesquite Horn at Mesquite Memorial Stadium.
Rockwall, which remains tied for first place in District 10-6A with the win, rallied with a touchdown run by senior quarterback Lake Bennett and a 31-yard interception return touchdown by Tosta Emory to seal the victory.
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The Yellowjackets originally jumped out to an 16-7 early advantage after two rushing touchdowns during the first quarter and a safety just 50 seconds into the second.
Bennett's second of three rushing TDs came shortly thereafter, when the Jackets quarterback scored on a QB sneak on second and goal to make it 23-6 Rockwall midway through the second quarter.
Bennett completed 12 of 18 passes for 276 yards and ran for 68 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries, while Ashten Emory led the Yellowjackets' ground game with 98 yards and a first-quarter touchdown on 20 carries.
The Jaguars cut Rockwall's halftime lead to 23-13 on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Raheem Beck to Jeremiah Batiste with 48 seconds left in the first half.
Horn then took its first lead of the game with back-to-back touchdowns during the third quarter, starting with a 65-yard touchdown run by Kevontae White.
The Jags seized a 27-23 advantage less than 4 minutes into the third quarter when Beck connected with Batiste again on a 46-yard touchdown pass.
Horn added one more score on a 1-yard QB sneak touchdown by Beck to make it 37-34 Rockwall with less than 2 minutes to go, but the team was unable to launch another scoring drive.
Beck finished with 161 yards and two touchdowns on 12-of-16 passing in addition to scrambling 14 times for 48 yards and a rushing score.
White ended the night with a game-high 120 rushing yards and a touchdown run on 15 carries.
Rockwall (5-1, 2-0) will look to keep pace in the District 10-6A championship race when the Yellowjackets return to action against Royse City (3-2, 1-0) at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7 at Wilkerson-Sanders Memorial Stadium in Rockwall.
Mesquite Horn (4-2, 1-1), meanwhile, will have chance to claw its way back into the 10-6A title picture when the Jaguars face rival Mesquite (3-2, 2-0) at the same time Friday, Oct. 7, at Mesquite Memorial Stadium.
Check out SBLive's exclusive photo gallery from the game:
PHOTO GALLERY — ROCKWALL 37, MESQUITE HORN 34
All photos by Robbie Rakestraw
