The Parish Episcopal offense flashed its firepower and the defense flexed its muscle during a final nondistrict tuneup on Friday.
The Panthers scored on seven of their first eight possessions and rolled to a 55-22 victory over Austin LBJ at Snyder Stadium.
Johnathon Phillips tallied four of Parish Episcopal’s seven rushing touchdowns. Marcus Hanish ran for 125 yards and two scores and also reached the end zone on a screen pass from freshman quarterback Logan Lucero.
The Panthers (3-1) played their most complete game of the season to gain momentum heading into their TAPPS district opener next week at Frisco Legacy.
Phillips was involved in all facets of the Parish offense, finishing with 71 yards rushing, 58 receiving, and 20 passing. His first two scores came in a two-minute span in the first quarter that gave Parish the lead for good.
The Panthers had to rally after a 100-yard return of the opening kickoff by Louis Hickman Jr. gave the Jaguars an early 7-0 advantage.
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From there, the Parish offense was rolling, with the only blemish coming on a tipped interception that LBJ’s Josiah Covington returned to the Parish 4-yard line. But the Jaguars (2-1) had to settle for a field goal.
That’s due primarily to the stifling Parish defense, which limited LBJ to 17 total yards in the first half. The Jaguars didn’t have a first down, or a completed pass for positive yardage, until the final play before halftime.
An interception and long return by Parish’s Terry Hilliard early in the third quarter led to a Hanish score that stretched the margin to 48-10.
LBJ reserve quarterback Tre Riley had two touchdown passes late, including a 24-yard strike to Antione Baker and a 74-yarder to Hickman on a fourth-down play. However, LBJ struggled to sustain drives and had 128 penalty yards.
Lucero connected on 12 of 23 passes for 172 yards. Jaxon McKinney added a fourth-quarter touchdown on a 33-yard scamper.
The Panthers avenged a heartbreaking defeat from a year ago to LBJ, which is the only UIL public school on the Parish schedule. The Jaguars compete in Class 4A Division I.
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