WHITEHOUSE—Facing fourth-and-inches and under a minute to play, Whitehouse senior quarterback Flint Herrington produced the play of the game. 

The Wildcats senior quarterback took the snap and kept it himself up the middle. He not only got the first down, but kept going all the way into the end zone for a 19-yard touchdown to give Whitehouse a 35-28 win over Hallsville Friday on Senior Night at Wildcat Stadium. 

Whitehouse (7-3, 5-2 in District 9-5A Div. II) needed a victory to give itself a chance to host a playoff game. The Wildcats also needed Lindale to lose. 

Lindale defeated Jacksonville in its game, meaning Whitehouse finished third in the district and now goes on the road next week in bi-district at A&M Consolidated. 

Hallsville completed its second season under Joe Drennon at 4-6 (1-6 in 9-5A D-II), a three-win improvement on last year. 

The Bobcats had a chance to play spoiler after forcing two turnovers in the fourth quarter. The first was a fumble and the second an interception and return by defensive end Garrett Hulen, who rumbled down to the Whitehouse 10. With the Bobcats set up first-and-goal in a tie game with 6:22 left, the Wildcats defense held firm and forced a field-goal attempt. 

Hallsville kicker Tristan Driggers will never know whether his 32-yard attempt would have had the distance because it was blocked by Whitehouse’s Darius Trimble. 

That sparked the game-winning drive. Herrington overcame fourth-and-one with a 5-yard gain to move the Wildcats deeper into Hallsville territory. Then on fourth-and-inches, Herrington kept again on a read-option for a 19-yard touchdown. 

Hallsville had one final chance to answer, thanks to Driggers pulling down a deep pass from Semaj Boyd on fourth-and-19. That moved Hallsville to the Whitehouse 17 with seven seconds remaining. Boyd rolled out and threw his pass into the end zone, but it fell incomplete to end the game. 

Herrington passed for 286 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 45 yards, highlighted by the game-winning 19-yarder. Fellow senior Jaden Haskins rushed for 129 yards and a score with Kendrion Johnson, also a senior, producing a 46-yard catch and run touchdown as part of a 118-yard evening on six catches. 

Cameron Cantrell, who also enjoyed a win in his final game at Wildcat Stadium, snagged a 45-yard touchdown pass. 

Hallsville senior quarterback Semaj Boyd, also in his final game, rushed for 115 yards and scored two touchdowns. Boyd also passed for 148 yards in the loss. 

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