SEMINOLE — The Pauls Valley Panthers had their best outing of the season on the gridiron Friday at Mike Snyder Field in Seminole against the Chieftains.
The Panthers put together their best offensive performance of the year, racking up a season-high 112 yards rushing and a season-high 127 yards passing for 239 total yards. Pauls Valley also scored a season-best 22 points but suffered a late heartbreak when Seminole scored with just over a minute left to secure a 24-22 win.
“I think the kids surprised themselves with how well we played in the first half,” Mason Anthony said. “We got to be able to come out and play that way in the second half. Our goal has been to put four quarters together. We go into the third quarter, and that’s where we feel like things started to slip.”
Penalties defined the early game, including a holding call on an 80-yard Seminole punt return on the Panthers’ first punt.
Pauls Valley then forced a three-and-out, getting the ball back at the Seminole 37-yard line. A 25-yard pass to Corbyn Jones gave the Panthers a first-and-goal at the Seminole 7. Brody Brown got the call from there, punching it in from 7 yards out for the touchdown and an 8-0 lead.
After forcing the Chieftains’ second punt of the game, Pauls Valley started its next possession at its own 35. A 26-yard pass from Braylin Keller to Bryan Keller pushed the Panthers across midfield and inside the 40-yard line. Three straight runs ended the first quarter. A penalty backed the Panthers up to the 45-yard line to start the second quarter. After an incomplete pass on second down, Braylin Keller moved down the line on an opening play. He found open space, scrambling 45 yards for a touchdown to give the Panthers their largest lead of the season, 14-0.
Pauls Valley had a chance to add to its firsthalf total after a bad snap on fourth down gave the Panthers the ball at the Seminole 28-yard line. However, the Panthers couldn’t get anything going against the Chieftain defense, turning the ball over on downs at the 22. The two teams exchanged possessions to end the first half with the Panthers leading 14-0.
“We left points on the field in the first half, and those are the things that we’ve been working on this week,” Anthony said. “We are getting closer and closer and closer and hopefully get that first win this week.”
Pauls Valley went threeand-out to start the second half and had to punt from its own end zone. Max Carson’s punt flew out to the 34-yard line, where Seminole began its first third-quarter drive.
Seminole moved quickly down the field, and Trenton Johnson capped off the short 7-play drive with a 3-yard touchdown run, cutting the Pauls Valley lead to 14-6.
On the ensuing kickoff, Christian Stockman found a crease in the Seminole kick coverage, returning it 70 yards for an apparent Pauls Valley touchdown. However, a penalty negated the big run, taking points off the board as Pauls Valley took possession at the 22-yard line instead. The Panthers picked up a first down but were ultimately forced to punt, and Seminole took possession at its own 18-yard line.
Seminole quickly moved down the field. Lawson Bordeaux ran for 37 yards to move the Chieftains into Panther territory. A 15-yard pass interference penalty gave Seminole a first down at the 29-yard line. Marshall sprinted in from there as the Chieftains cut the lead to 14-12.
Two minutes later, Seminole was in the end zone again—this time via the air, as Bordeaux hit Cashawn Thompson with a short pass that went 72 yards for an 18-14 lead.
The two teams traded punts in the fourth quarter before Pauls Valley got the ball back at its own 27-yard line with under seven minutes left.
Keller and Keller connected on an 11-yard pass for a first down. After a short run by Stockman, Pauls Valley offensive coordinator Bergman went to his bag of tricks. Braylin Keller hit Carson on an out pattern, and Carson pitched the ball to Brody Brown, who went untouched for 60 yards on a hook-and-lateral for a touchdown, giving Pauls Valley back the lead at 22-18.
Seminole got the ball back with just over five minutes left at its own 26-yard line. A 42-yard pass from Bordeaux to Dariane Loya got the drive started, moving the ball to the Panther 32-yard line. A 14-yard run by Marshall moved the ball inside the 20. Seminole moved the ball inside the 10 on a couple of passes, and a run by Bordeaux gave Seminole a first down at the 5. Marshall found the end zone on his second touch after the first down, scoring from a yard out for a 24-22 lead.
Pauls Valley had just over a minute to move down the field, but a Kenneth Johnson III interception ended the Panthers’ drive and hopes for a 1-0 start in district play.
Pauls Valley will host Madill Friday night for its homecoming celebration.
