Jasper Clinches District 20-3A’s Top Division II Playoff Seed in 27-21 Win at Center

CENTER -- Terrence Cuney ran for two touchdowns, the second of which came in the fourth quarter to lift Jasper to a 27-21 win at Center on Friday in the game that decided second place in District 20-3A.

The win also gives Jasper (8-2, 3-1) District 20-3A's No. 1 seed in the Class 3A Division II Region III playoff bracket. Jasper plays Groesbeck in a 3A Division II Region III bi-district playoff next week at a site and time to be determined.

Center (8-2, 2-2) plays District 19-3A champion Fairfield at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Lindale. Center beat Fairfield 26-23 in overtime in September.

Cuney's three-yard touchdown run with 2:06 remaining in the second quarter tied the score 14-14. Teammate Donavan Middleton gave Jasper a 21-14 lead on a 10-yard touchdown run halfway through the third.

Center's DeJalen Preston tied the game 21-21 on a two-yard touchdown run with 1:13 left in the third, but Cuney answered with a 15-yard fourth-quarter touchdown to lift the Bulldogs to the six-point win.

Center gained a 6-0 first-quarter lead on Luis Garcia's field goals of 19 and 26 yards. Jasper quarterback Steven Walker hit DeMarcus Collins for a 64-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter for a 7-6 advantage.

Center regained the lead on K.J. Garrett's 19-yard touchdown run and got a two-point conversion hookup from Dalton Horton to Sakedron Horn for a 14-7 lead only 23 seconds later.