Tolar defeats Marlin in Texas high school football Class 2A Division I regional finals
Tolar got a touchdown to start the second quarter of Thursday night's Class 2A Division I Region II championship game.
The Rattlers then got a touchdown on the final second of the quarter, enabling them to extend a lead. Tolar broke the game open in the second half, going on to a 42-19 win against Marlin at Midlothian ISD Stadium.
With Thursday's win, Tolar (13-1) will advance to the 2A Division I semifinals. The Rattlers - who won their region for the first time since 1975 - will face the winner of the Region I championship between Stratford and Hawley, which will be played Friday in Lubbock.
Tolar opened the scoring Thursday four seconds into the second quarter, on a 2-yard TD run from quarterback Isaac Blessing; then added the PAT for a 7-0 lead.
It remained 7-0 until late in the first half. The Bulldogs (11-3) took advantage of a mishandled punt by the Rattlers, taking over at the Tolar 12-yard line.
That led to a 1-yard TD run by Mario Hopwood inside the final minute before halftime, a drive which was also aided by a personal foul penalty called on Tolar. But the snap was fumbled on the PAT, keeping the Rattlers in front, 7-6.
Tolar then broke off a long kickoff return to inside the Marlin 35. The Rattlers moved to the 19 in the closing seconds, but instead of attempting a field goal, they decided to go for the touchdown.
That gamble paid off, as Matthew Behrens caught a 19-yard pass in the end zone from Blessing with one second remaining in the first half. Tolar added the PAT for a 14-6 lead.
Blessing then got the second-half scoring started with a 47-yard TD run, extending the Rattler lead to 21-6 less than four minutes into the third.
But on the ensuing kickoff, Caden Judie brought it back 90 yards to the house, enabling the Bulldogs to close within a single possession once more, 21-13.
The Rattlers answered right back on their next drive, and once again, Blessing finished things off. He scored from 2 yards out for the hat trick, and Tolar regained a 15-point advantage, 28-13, midway through the third.
Tolar made it 35-13 moments later on a 19-yard TD run from Peyton Brown, which was set up by Brooks Stone's fumble recovery. Brown added another TD run - covering 24 yards - with less than eight minutes left for a 42-13 margin as he ended up rushing for more than 115 yards.
Marlin got its last TD with less than three minutes left on a short reception from Je'Mere Hartsfield.
-- Buck Ringgold | buck@scorebooklive.com | @sblivetx
