Southlake Carroll dominates Highland Park in Texas high school playoff showdown

Dragons score on first three offensive possessions en route to 45-14 UIL 6A Division II regional semifinal win

ARLINGTON, TEXAS - Davis Penn didn't hesitate when asked if his performance Friday for Southlake Carroll was his best all season.

“Absolutely," said Penn, a sophomore tailback. "I ran with a lot of confidence behind our game plan and good things happened.”

Good things certainly did happen for Penn and the Dragons. And they came in threes.

In their third postseason game of 2023, the Dragons scored on their opening three offensive possessions and Penn reached the end zone three times in Friday's Class 6A Division II Region I semifinal against Highland Park. Southlake Carroll went on to end the Scots' season with a 45-14 win Friday afternoon at Choctaw Stadium in the Class 6A Division II Region I semifinals.

Southlake Carroll generated 499 yards of total offense, 367 of that on the ground. Penn had 210 of those yards on 14 carries along with those three TDs.

“I didn’t even know that, that’s great to hear," Penn said. "I think that’s only the second time I’ve ever done that, so that’s really great to hear, I’m really happy.

“We were firing on all cylinders, great team chemistry within our team and everything just matched up perfectly."

The Dragons also made some defensive stands, forcing a missed Highland Park field goal in the first half and also forcing fumbles as the Scots were on the verge of scoring. One of those fumbles led to Penn's 90-yard sprint to the end zone in the second quarter, which gave SLC a 28-0 lead.

Southlake Carroll (12-1) moves on to next week's Region I championship game against the winner between Trophy Club Byron Nelson and Coppell, which will be played Saturday afternoon, also at Choctaw Stadium. 

The Dragons needed only three plays on their first series to get on the board first as quarterback Graham Knowles connected with tight end Jack Van Dorselaer, who broke a tackle then cut to his left and outraced the secondary for a 33-yard touchdown. Kyle Lemmermann's PAT made it 7-0 just 1:41 into the contest.

Then on the next series, after the Dragons forced Highland Park to punt, SLC blocked the kick, making the recovery at the Scots' 3. One play later, Penn plunged in from 3 yards out, making it 14-0.

Highland Park then advanced inside the Dragons' 20 before the drive stalled, leading to a field goal attempt. But the kick sailed wide to the right.

SLC took over, and produced yet another touchdown. On the opening play of the second quarter, Knowles threw a 26-yard strike in the end zone to sophomore receiver Brock Boyd, extending the lead to 21-0.

Late in the first half, the Scots had another potential scoring drive going but fumbled it away, as defensive back Zack Engelhardt knocked the ball away. Dragon senior defensive end Dustan Mark made the recovery at his own 10.

"(Engelhardt), love that guy; he just punched the ball out and then we got it. … It felt great, they had a little bit of momentum and then that (the fumble) just completely shut it down," said Mark, who will play next season at Ivy League school Princeton.

“I think we really played as one (Friday). We had teammates swarming to the ball, everyone did their job and it worked out great. … All three sides of the ball played great.”

On the very next play following Mark's fumble recovery, Penn took a handoff and sprinted down the left sideline to complete a 90-yard TD. Lemmermann's PAT made it 28-0 with 1:38 left until halftime.

“I don’t think (I got touched)," Penn said. "You’ve really got to think the o-linemen for that one; that’s really what a running back prays for and that was perfect, perfect.”

Highland Park (11-2) finally got on the board with a 30-yard TD pass from quarterback Parker Thompson to Canon Spackman inside the final minute of the opening half. But SLC needed just two plays to find the end zone again, this time junior tailback Riley Wormley darting 61 yards as the Dragons built a 35-7 advantage by intermission.

Penn then had his third TD on the day, a 7-yarder less than four minutes into the second half. He ended up rushing for more than 200 yards.

Later in the third quarter, the Dragons built a 45-7 lead as Lemmermann - a TCU commit - connected on a 42-yard field goal.

Wormley had 125 yards on 10 carries. He transferred from Colleyville Heritage in the offseason and was not eligible to play for the first several weeks of the season before he was able to get into a game.

While Penn's workload was lessened due to the arrival of Wormley, the sophomore instead took a team-oriented approach.

“The mentality was basically the same," Penn said. "I’m even more happy when we have more weapons for the offense.

"It’s all a team game, so I was really happy for him to come back and we work off each other’s energy, we push each other in practice and it’s a great dynamic duo. I think we’re the best running back duo in the state.”

Knowles, a senior, completed 9-of-16 passes for 132 yards and two TDs.

The Scots had their final TD with less than three minutes left, a 14-yard pass from Cade Trotter to Benton Owens. Highland Park finished with 363 total yards, 238 of those through the air.

Thompson, a senior who is headed to the Air Force Academy, was 14-of-32 passing for 189 yards and his first-half TD.

-- Buck Ringgold | buck@scorebooklive.com | @sblivetx

Photo by Brian McLean.

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