With just seconds remaining and Holy Trinity Catholic driving for what potentially could have been a game-tying score, Paschall picked off a pass tipped by teammate Jon-Mark Crothers at his 4-yard line and returned it 76 yards for a touchdown as the Lions posted a 44-30 victory over the Celtics.
"It was a play that Jon-Mark set up," said Paschall, who had four touchdowns and rushed 20 times for 242 yards. "I caught the ball and just gave it everything I had."
Paschall's dash down the CTCS sideline and Taylor Truitt's extra-points kick left just one second on the clock, which was killed when Holy Trinity covered a bouncing kickoff.
Paschall's interception ended a drive ignited by Sam Daheim's recovery of a CTCS fumble on the Holy Trinity 23. The Celtics had traveled to the Lions' 5 in seven snaps and had 13 seconds remaining.
"Honestly, we were pretty nervous," Paschall said of the Celtics' final drive. "We expected a good fight and they pushed us hard."
Central Texas Christian coach Jeremy Wentrcek had a mixed review for his team in its district opener.
"The kids demonstrated heart and character," Wentrcek said. "We've been focusing on playing mistake-free football, but our mistakes put us in position where we had to make the big plays to win."
Friday night's outcome left both teams at 3-3 for the season, but Holy Trinity fell to 0-3 in district competition.
The game was a pairing of contrasting styles. CTCS stayed on the ground on 34 of its 46 plays for 285 of its 370 yards. Holy Trinity put the ball in the air on 38 of its 55 plays, with Jacob Daheim completing 23 of 34 passes for 237 yards. Christian Wiedenfeld rushed 10 times for 118 yards.
CTCS led 14-8 after the first quarter as Paschall scored on runs of 25 and 66 yards before Wiedenfeld scored his first of three touchdowns on a 9-yard run.
The Celtics briefly went ahead 16-14 in the second quarter when Jacob Daheim passed 28 yards to Dakota Stonebrook, and Chris Watson kicked his second extra points.
However, a 6-yard run by Paschall put CTCS back on top before the half at 22-16 as Truitt added his second conversion.
In the third quarter, Wiedenfeld deadlocked the game with a 22-yard touchdown reception from Jacob Daheim. CTCS went back ahead later in the period on a 15-yard pass from Truitt to J.J. Robertson and was up 30-22 after three periods.
CTCS jacked its lead to 38-22 on a 20-yard pass from Truitt to Andrew Townsend. Two plays, later Wiedenfeld dashed 65 yards through the Lions' defense to cut the margin to 38-30 and set the stage for the final flurry of action.
In its next start, CTCS will play at Dallas Covenant Christian at 2 p.m. Saturday. Holy Trinity will close its district schedule at home next Friday night against Marble Falls Faith.
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