Mart ends Chilton’s spectacular 2023 season
The Chilton Pirates fell to the Mart Panthers in the Semifinal round of the playoffs on Friday night.
The Pirates traveled to Crusader Stadium at Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton on Dec. 8 for the Semifinals. They took on the Mart Panthers and were defeated, falling 38-24 to bring their amazing season to an end.
Chilton received the ball to start the game. The Pirates struck first with an explosive 68-yard touchdown run by Dha’Corian Evans (15) to take an early 7-0 lead. The Chilton defense played strong on their first possesion by forcing a three and out. The Pirates got great field position after a dropped snap on the Mart punt attempt. Chilton was unable to capitalize as they faced fourth and 5 and failed on the fourth down conversion.
Mart drove down the field and scored on a 6-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7. The Pirates tried to respond on offense with a 17-yard catch by Markeydrick Taylor (4), but couldn’t go much further and was forced to punt. The Chilton offense returned back to field quickly after recovering a fumble by Mart. The Pirate offense could not take advantage of the fumble and was forced to punt. The first quarter ended with the game tied at 7.
Mart tried to march down the field with a big 30-yard pass, but Chliton buckled down on defense and forced Mart to punt. The Pirates retook the lead with a huge 61-yard touchdown pass from Isaiah Redd (11) to Isaac Redd (10) for a 14-7 lead. Mart drove down the field on their next possession and answered with a 4-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 14.
Chilton marched down the field on offense, but faced a fourth and 10. Chilton went for the fourth down conversion and succeeded with a 21-yard catch by Markeydrick Taylor. Mart stopped them in the red zone, but the Pirates still came away with points on a clutch 36-yard field goal by Isaac Redd to retake the lead 17-14.
The Panthers came back on offense and drove down the field in a hurry with a 74-yard pass. Mart tried a 33-yard field goal with less than a minute left in the first half but came up empty and Chilton went into halftime ahead 17-14. Chilton kicked off to Mart to start the second half. The Chilton offense returned back to field quickly after recovering a fumble by Mart. The Pirates offense capitalized on the turnover with a 40-yard touchdown pass from Isaiah Redd to Markeydrick Taylor to take a 24-14 lead.
Unfortunately, the Panthers responded by scoring 24 unanswered points throughout the game to beat Chilton 38-24 and end their season. Isaiah Redd had a great game, throwing for 313 yards and two touchdowns and an interception along with rushing for 61 yards. Dha’Corian Evans was fantastic, rushing for 114 yards and a touchdown. Markeydrick Taylor was phenomenal, catching nine passes for 200 yards and a touchdown. Isaac Redd was also spectacular, catching five passes for 149 yards and a touchdown.
Congratulations to the Chilton Pirates on a spectacular season. Their season included making it five rounds into the playoffs and finishing the season ranking top 10 in the state for 2A Division 2. They had a remarkable playoff run. It was so dominant, they came into this game outscoring their previous opponents 229-34 which is truly incredible.