Anahuac falls to Fairfield in valiant effort

WILLIS– For a half of football on Friday night, the Anahuac Panthers were giving state-ranked Fairfield Eagles fits in the opening round of the Class 3A Division I state playoffs.

The Eagles then cranked things up in the second half to beat the Panthers 62-21.

The Panthers jumped out to a 7-0 lead and then moved in front 14-7 late in the second quarter on touchdown runs by quarterback Braydon Sutch and running back Jaytwan Dowdye.

The Eagles tied the score at 14-14 thanks to a 53-yard touchdown pass by Kohl Collins with about two minutes left in the first half.

Just before the half came to a close, it was Fairfield taking the lead for good with Kyden Rodriguez scoring from 5 yards out to lead 21-14 at the break.

The Eagles extended their lead to 35-14 in the third quarter with a pair of touchdowns. Anahuac cut the deficit to 35-21 on a Sutch to Oscar Garza 26-yard touchdown pass.

Fairfield would get the score back on a Collins to Connor Colvert 70-yard score to make it 41-21 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Eagles added three more scores in the fourth quarter for the win.

Anahuac finished with 296 yards of total offense.

Dowdye rushed for 123 yards on 25 carries while Garza added 20 yards on nine carries. Sutch finished with 132 yards passing. Aiden King had a 54-yard reception and Garza finished with two receptions for 35 yards.