BY BRIAN GOSSET
X – @Gosset41
JOSHUA – It wasn’t the prettiest of games, but Midlothian – despite a bad start and three first-half turnovers – shut out Joshua in the final three quarters to pick up a win in the District 7-5A D1 opener, 26-10 on Friday night at Owl Stadium. The Panthers and Owls both sport a 4-1 record.
Midlothian (4-1, 1-0) will play Cleburne in Week 6.
Joshua will travel to Tyler in Week 6.
The Panthers lost two fumbles during their first four plays from scrimmage. On the first play from scrimmage, they lost the ball following a 4-yard rush and Joshua jumped on it near midfield. The Owls capitalized on the turnover by marching 49 yards in eight plays – capped by a 1-yard score by QB Cesar Beltran. Running back Eli Martinez rushed three times for 41 yards on the drive – with a 23-yard burst down the left sideline to put the ball at the 11.
Two plays later and Cash Criner rushed for seven yards to the 1 until Beltran got the QB sneak.
Midlothian got the ball back for its second possession and three plays in, the Panthers lost their second fumble as Joshua’s Peyton Noble recovered at the Midlothian 42. Again, Joshua turned the fumble into points, but not without a little help. The Owls punt team lined up on fourth-and-10 at the 43 and couldn’t get the punt off as the Panthers made the tackle for a big loss. But the officials ruled it a roughing the punter penalty to give Joshua a fresh set of downs to the Midlothian 28.
The Owls were able to reach the 10 before settling for a 28-yard field goal by Nick Smith that extended their lead to 10-0 with 1:05 left in the opening quarter. But that would be all the points scored for Joshua on Friday as the Panthers got 26 points in the final 26 minutes and 45 seconds.
The Panthers’ defense stepped up with a three-and-out and forced a Joshua punt deep inside Owls’ territory. The Panthers blocked the punt attempt and the ball bounced outside the end zone for a safety that made it 10-2 midway through the second quarter. Following a free kick, Midlothian then went 40 yards in seven plays and ate up over four minutes when it got a 1-yard TD run from running back Michael Archie.
Archie rushed five times for 28 yards on the drive with a long of 18 to give the Panthers a first down at the Joshua 18. His touchdown run came on fourth-and-goal. The Panthers failed on a conversion as the lead was cut to 10-8 with 2:45 left in the half.
Both offenses had one more drive before halftime, but couldn’t score.
However, Midlothian did block its second punt as Jared Pope got to the ball just in time.
Joshua took the first possession of the third quarter, but it ended on a Midlothian interception from Zechariah Washington near the 50. The Panthers answered with a 54-yard, 10-play drive ending in a 4-yard TD run by Kayden Gibson, who also ran in the two-point conversion to give Midlothian its first lead at 16-10 midway through the frame.
Joshua was gifted with two Midlothian facemask penalties – one of the kickoff return – and got the ball to the Midlothian 17 with sights on the go-ahead touchdown. But a touchdown pass was dropped on third-and-long and then a 6-yard loss on fourth down gave the Panthers the ball on downs.
Midlothian responded on the ensuing drive with 15 plays before Wesley McCool’s 24-yard field goal gave the Panthers a cushion at 19-10 with 6:02 left in the final quarter. A miscue on the return by Joshua put the ball at the 1 before the Owls had to punt in their own end zone. The Panthers added a touchdown with under a minute left to seal the district win.
The Panthers denied Joshua from adding to its best start in more than 20 years.
The Owls were looking for their first 5-win season since 1996, which is also the last time they finished with a winning record and playoff appearance. Joshua has had a losing record in 27-straight seasons.
