After both teams traded three-minute drives to open the game, the Chargers found themselves ahead 3-0 after a Beau Butler field goal.

However, the Panthers' linebacker Jon Grimmett pounced on a Conner Quintero screen pass and returned the interception inside the 5-yard line after fumbling out of bounds just before crossing the goal line. After Baylor commit Caden Knight was flagged for hurdling over the line into the end zone, the home team faced a third and goal from the 9 yard line. Panthers' quarterback Tanner Perry found Grimmett on a streak pattern for a 7-3 advantage with about 2 minutes to go in the quarter.

The Hall turned to sophomore quarterback Teagan Lawson, who connected on a deep pass to Jerrod Williams, Jr., near the red zone. However, the Panther defense shut down three run attempts and time ticked away on the first frame with the Chargers facing fourth down. Butler nailed a 34-yard field goal to open the second quarter and cut the lead to one point.

The Charger defense stiffened and forced another Panther punt, but the snap soared over the punter's head and, after tracking down the ball near his own goal line, he managed to punt it back to the original line of scrimmage.

Head coach Brett Bogert '05 decided to pull a trick out of his bag and caught the Pauls Valley defense napping on a reverse flea-flicker from Barrett Travis to Terrance Johnson to Teagan Lawson to a wide open Rhett Davis for the touchdown. Lawson rolled to his right and connected with Cal Welker, but came up a yard short on the two point conversion, resulting in a 12-7 second quarter lead.

The Panthers clawed back immediately, though. Perry found Grimmett over the middle and the big tight end stiff-armed a defender and outraced everyone down the sideline for a score. The dangerous duo connected on the two-point conversion pass for a 15-12 advantage.

Despite being plagued by a couple of penalties on their next drive, the Charger offense continued to grind toward the end zone. Lawson connected with Porter England, then kept one on a scramble out of the pocket for a long gain. Barrett Travis followed pulling guards on a sweep for a big gain. Then Lawson connected with England to get inside the Pauls Valley five yard line, before Travis dragged a pile of Panthers across the goal line for the answer score and an unconventional 19-15 lead.

On the next Pauls Valley drive, Perry found senior wide receiver Maddox Prince on a deep pass to the Charger 15 yard line. With the clock under two minutes until half, the Charger defense pressured Perry into a desperation pass that fell to the turf and turned it back over on downs. Happy to escape to the locker room with a halftime lead, the Chargers ran out the remaining time.

The Panthers got the ball first, but Crawford Browne sacked Perry on third and short to prevent any kind of drive. On another punt snap miscue, Walker Wedel hunted down the punter for a safety and a 21-15 lead and the ball back for The Hall's offense. Lawson hooked up with Welker on back-to-back short passes to keep the drive alive, and Travis powered the Chargers into the red zone and eventually crossed the goal line to stretch the Charger lead to 28-15. midway through the third.

Pauls Valley took to the air again on a deep ball, but England sniffed it out and wrestled the ball away from the intended receiver for an interception at the Charger 25 yard line. A few plays later, a short punt gave the ball back to the home team on the 50 yard line.

The Panthers went back to the rushing attack, and a long run by Knight was augmented by a face mask penalty on the Chargers to set up an answer score that cut the lead to 28-22 heading into the last quarter.

On the first play of the fourth, Travis took the hand off toward the right edge, cut back to the middle and found a seam to score a 40 yard touchdown. The two-point pass attempt was knocked down by the Panther secondary, but the Charger lead was extended to 34-22 with just under 12 minutes to play.

On fourth down and three, The Hall's defensive line stuffed Knight's rushing attempt to turn the Panthers over on downs. 

Lawson scrambled out of the pocket and converted a third down on a pass to England that kept the next drive alive. Travis continued to carve up the Panther defense as the clock continued to wind. With the clock dwindling down to under 6 minutes, Lawson found a wide open Carter Knowles for a 41-22 lead and, finally, some breathing room.

The Panthers would not go down without a fight though. Knight took the next kickoff almost 70 yards before being pushed out of bounds by a hustling Emeka Okeugo from the backside of kick coverage. Chased out of the pocket on third and long, Perry looped back around and found a crossing Prince in the end zone for six points.

The lead was 41-29 as the Chargers prepared for the ensuing onside kickoff. After securing the kick, The Hall's offense set out to run the ball and the clock. With the time approaching 2 minutes, a bobbled snap resulted in a turnover and the Panthers had a glimmer of hope.

They pounced on the opportunity, moving the ball in 10-yard chunks and taking advantage of the sideline's clock-stopping capability. Knight swept around the left side for a score with 37 seconds left in the game. An extra point cut the lead to five, as the Chargers lined up for another onside attempt. This one was secured by Terrance Johnson, who grabbed the kick and dropped to the ground.

With no more timeouts, the Panthers could only watch Lawson take a knee in victory formation as the Chargers escaped Pauls Valley with a 41-36 victory.

Lawson led the passing attack, connecting on 11 of 17 attempts for 163 yards and two touchdowns. Five Charger receivers caught more than one pass, with Williams leading in yardage (84), Welker in receptions (4), and tight ends Davis and Knowles scoring touchdowns. Travis was nearly unstoppable on the ground, racking up 203 yards on 31 carries, three of those for scores. 

David Griffin led The Hall on defense, tallying 8 tackles and one for loss. Graham Murphy added 7 tackles of his own, including a blocked kick. Walker Wedel registered 5 tackles, including two for loss and the safety.

The win put Heritage Hall in the driver's seat down the homestretch of the District title race as they returned home for a Senior Night showdown against Purcell.