Wall knocks off Newton in 3A DII UIL Football State Championship
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ARLINGTON, Texas — The Wall Hawks made the most of their golden opportunity Friday night at AT&T Stadium.
Wall capitalized on its first trip to the UIL Football State Championship game since 2013, as the Hawks soared to the top of the Texas high school football world.
The Hawks used their prolific passing attack, a pair of key defensive takeaways and a pivotal special teams touchdown to earn a hard-fought 25-24 win over the Newton Eagles in the Class 3A Division II UIL State Championship game.
With the victory, Wall secures its first state title in school history as well as its first perfect 16-0 finish in program history.
The Hawks struck first on their opening drive of the contest after a trick-play pass set up senior Jacob Braden for a 2-yard rushing touchdown that gave Wall an early edge 84 seconds into the first quarter.
The Eagles clawed their way back in front courtesy of a 1-yard touchdown run by junior running back Kendray Porter Jr. — who holds Division I offers from Texas Tech, Houston and UTSA.
Wall, however, sparked a massive rally with a critical special teams play. With Newton backed up deep in its own territory, senior outside linebacker Gavin Sisson rushed around the edge to block an Eagles punt.
Senior defensive end Dylan Sellers scooped up the loose ball, weaved his way past several would-be tacklers and raced 28 yards to the end zone for a special teams touchdown that gave the Hawks the lead back for good.
Wall rattled off three straight touchdowns after senior quarterback Landon York connected with senior wideout Reid Robertson on 47-yard and 5-yard touchdown passes that gave the Hawks a 25-8 halftime advantage.
From there, Wall leaned on its defense to hold off a furious comeback by Newton.
Senior defensive back Kellan Oliver snagged a pivotal interception to stop an Eagles scoring drive
The Eagles came screeching back in the second half thanks to their power running game led by Porter's huge night on the ground.
Porter hauled in a critical 37-yard touchdown pass in double coverage on fourth-and-16 that helped Newton cut Wall’s lead to just one point with 1:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.
The Hawks recovered the ensuing onside kick before running out the remainder of the game clock to lock up their first UIL football state championship.
York headlined Wall’s strong first half offensively and wrapped up the state title game with 151 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on 9-of-25 passing to go along with 14 rushing yards.
Robertson, who was voted Offensive MVP of the 3A DII state title game, led the Hawks in receiving with 102 yards and two touchdown catches on five receptions.
Braden and Sisson — who was named Defensive MVP — led the way for the Hawks defensively, finishing with 27 combined tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss between them.
Newton, which held onto the ball for 30:46 of game time, was led Porter, who ended the night with a game-high 165 yards rushing on 33 carries and three catches for 48 yards receiving and a touchdown.
This article originally appeared on San Angelo Standard-Times: Wall knocks off Newton in 3A DII UIL Football State Championship
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