Tamrick Pace Returns from Injury to Lead Brownsboro to 34-20 Win Over Palestine

BROWNSBORO – Brownsboro quarterback Tamrick Pace passed for three touchdowns and ran another as part of a 27-point Brownsboro run as the Bears pulled away for a 34-20 win over Palestine in a District 9-4A-I game on Friday at Bear Stadium.

The win clinched place in district for Brownsboro (5-5, 3-2), which will face Jasper at 2 p.m. Saturday at Abe Martin Stadium in Lufkin. Palestine finished the season at 1-9 overall and 0-5 in district.

Pace, who missed Brownsboro's last two games with a leg injury, attempted just six passes, but completed four for a season-high 178 yards, the first a 68-yard strike to Jamal Bell with 1:10 left in the second quarter to give Brownsboro a 14-13 lead.

Pace's second touchdown pass went for 52 yards to Xavier Richardson with 1:43 left in the third quarter to give the Bears a 27-13 lead. He concluded his successful comeback with a 28-yard scoring pass to Bell on a fourth-and-6 play with 5:51 remaining. Bell had three receptions for 126 yards.

Pace had rushed for at least 200 yards in each of his last three starts, but the majority of times he ran the ball on Friday it was with a limp. He did break free for a 54-yard gain in the third quarter and scored on a 2-yard touchdown run with 5:45 left in the frame to give Brownsboro a 21-13 lead. Kevon Thompson did the majority of Brownsboro's damage on the ground, rushing for 193 yards for his first 100-yard game of this season.

“Tamrick has passed well this year. It's just that he's run so well it's overshadowed his passing,” Brownsboro coach Jason Hooker said. “He did what he had to do to get back into a groove and we're proud of him.”

Palestine had control of the game for most of the first half with a primary modus operandi of pounding the ball between the tackles and it was effective.

The Wildcats caught a break to start its opening drive as Bell returned to opening kickoff 73 yards, but Wyatt Rinehart fumbled on the next play and Dusty Roberts recovered the fumble at the Palestine 7-yard line. This started a 14-play 93-yard drive that took 7:13 off the clock before a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Devonte Mims.

Brownsboro evened up the game at 7-7 on a 5-yard touchdown run by Rinehart with 7:08 left in the first half. Palestine countered with a 74-yard drive capped by a 16-yard touchdown run by Mims with 1:34 left in the second quarter, although Allan Vasquez missed the ensuing extra-point kick to keep the Wildcats' lead at 13-7.

Mims was Palestine's quarterback much of the first half, using running plays out of the Wildcat formation for 113 yards on 17 carries. In the third quarter however the Wildcats failed to get a first down and had just 17 total yards. A pivotal play was Mims being dropped for a 1-yard loss on a fourth-and-1 play at the Brownsboro 45-yard line with 3:15 left in the third quarter by Brownsboro's Izik Brown. Hooker said his team was able to free up linebackers such as Caleb Seale, Kenneth Woods and Darren Elder. Seale led Brownsboro with seven tackles.

Mims finished with 122 yards rushing and scored all three of Palestine's touchdowns, including a two-yard touchdown pass from Claude Rodgers. Irric Deyon finished with 80 yards rushing for Palestine. Roderick Deyon led Palestine with nine tackles and a sack while Edward Reese had eight tackles for the Wildcats.