Waxahachie – In the battle of unbeaten, the DeSoto Eagles traveled to Waxahachie to take on the Indians and soared to victory, winning 56-35 to improve to (4-0) and (2-0) in district play.
It was a clear night as DeSoto faced a gritty, hard-fought road game in Waxahachie, but the Eagles prevailed at Lumpkins Stadium to remain unbeaten.
Both teams entered the game undefeated as the Indians looked to knock off the reigning Class 6A Division II champion.
For much of the game, the Indians kept it close until the Eagles pulled away in the second half, outscoring the Indians 35 to 14.
DeSoto’s DJ Bailey finished the game, completing 14 of 24 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns, while the Eagles ground game finished with a combined yards of 141 and two touchdowns.
Senior Wide receiver Antonio Pride caught two passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns.
Pride’s longest catch went for 47 yards.
Four-star running back Deondrae “Tiger” Riden Jr. returned to the field after suffering a dislocated elbow in the season opener against Allen.
Riden scored on a 16-yard run to give DeSoto a 35-28 lead with 6:05 left in the third quarter. He finished the game with seven carries for 48 yards.
However, much of the Eagle’s running attack came from senior Marvin Duffey, who finished the game with 131 yards and two touchdowns on just 11 carries.
Waxahachie previously tied the game at 28 on a trick play when wide receiver Trenton Kidd took a handoff from running back Wade Lemons on a fake reverse.
Kidd threw back to Lemons for a 9-yard touchdown pass.
The Eagles continue to show their dominance, depth, and resilience in their quest to remain unbeaten and make it back to the state championship.
DeSoto has a bye week before traveling to Mansfield to take on Mansfield Legacy at Vernon Newsome Stadium on Oct. 6.
Joshua Carter