Belton rues missed chances in 21-10 setback to Midway

BELTON — Belton had its chances against former district rival Hewitt Midway on Friday, but too many of them came up dry, allowing the visiting Panthers to hold off the comeback-minded Tigers in a closely-contested non-district affair at Tiger Field. Midway running back Lathan Whisenton had 15 carries for 139 yards, including scoring runs of 1, 3 and 34 yards to lift the Panthers to a 21-10 victory in a game that resumed a rivalry that had been on pause since 2019. Belton (3-1) — which outgained the Panthers by 32 yards — stopped Midway (3-1) on its five possessions that didn’t end with Whisenton touchdowns and advanced inside the Midway 5-yard line three times but produced only three points on those trips. Gavin Ross notched the Tigers’ lone touchdown when he went up and gathered Will Shepard’s 25-yard loft to the end zone after Midway was flagged for offsides before the snap. It capped a 70-yard drive that Belton used to open the second half, cutting the gap to 14-10 with 9:14 showing in the third quarter. Anthony Garcia then jumped a pass from the Panthers’ Cort Strickland intended for Jacoby Hamilton on the ensuing drive to set up his team in Midway territory, but Belton was forced to punt after gaining one first down. The Tigers were turned away on downs after reaching the Midway 2 on their next drive and advanced to the Midway 4 on their following possession, which ended when Carl Simmons intercepted a Shepard pass on first-and-goal about halfway through the final period. “I told them we needed five stops and we got five. We had chances in the red zone and we just didn’t capitalize. We held them to 21. I mean, that’s not terrible. We scored and we had chances to score more points, and that’ll be where we’ll feel haunted in our sleep tonight, but we’ll get that fixed,” Belton head coach Josh Mann said. “The thing is it’s all fixable. That’s what I love. Effort was great. We bowed our necks against a D1 running back and a great offensive line and were right there with a 6A (program).” Belton outgained Midway 346-314 while doing most of its damage on the ground. Nash Jordan carried 17 times for 80 yards while Javid Planz followed with 77 yards rushing on 12 totes. Brody Lee had 53 yards rushing, all of which came in the second half. The Panthers held Belton standout receiver Ross to his lowest output yet at seven grabs for 55 yards as the Tigers had 112 yards through the air compared to Midway’s 102. Both defenses limited big plays in the first half, when Midway started each quarter with touchdowns to build a 14-3 advantage by the break. Belton controlled the ball for most of the final 9 ½ minutes of the second quarter as it looked to cut into a 14-point hole but didn’t find the end zone despite getting to the Midway 2 late in the half. Whisenton dived in from 3 yards out to cap an 80-yard drive that provided the Panthers with a 14-0 edge with 9:32 left before the break. The Notre Dame commitment also crossed the goal line on a 1-yard dive on the game’s opening possession, during which Midway moved the chains five times in eight plays. Belton then mounted a 17-play procession that included third-down conversions from Planz on a 16-yard carry and Jordan on a 3-yard rumble as well as an 8-yard scramble from Shepard on fourth-and-7. A 3-yard tote from Planz set up fourth-and-goal, and the Tigers lined up to go for it but elected to kick after a false start pushed them back 5 yards. Morgan Pascoe’s 24-yard field goal got Belton on the board with 1:55 left, after which the Tigers got back the ball following a quick three-and-out by Midway. But with only 52 seconds, they couldn’t add to their ledger. “It sucks losing but I’d rather lose here to a 6A team that beat Aledo a couple weeks ago and went toe-to-toe with Cedar Park and find out how we’re going to rebound and recover,” Mann said. “The coaches needed a little bit of humble pie and the players needed a little bit of humble pie. And it doesn’t taste real good but sometimes you have to take your vitamins and eat your salad, so we’re going to eat a little bit of it and get better.”

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BELTON RUES MISSED CHANCES IN 21-10 SETBACK TO MIDWAY

JON BROOKS

Temple Daily Telegram | 9/19/2026

PHOTO CREDIT: Caleb Marek