High school football: Lafayette rallies over Lexington Catholic in final minutes, 34-24

Lafayette's football team hit the lotto Friday night.

The host Generals got a little bit "Lucky" and got a pick-six in the closing minutes to cash in a 34-24 victory over Lexington Catholic.

Lafayette, which had lost to the Knights three years in a row, was in a tough spot when it trailed 24-20 with just over two minutes left.

But it all changed when Generals quarterback Walker Wood flicked a screen pass to Dontavion "Lucky" Jackson.

Jackson, a senior speedster who has committed to WKU, sidestepped a tackler and sprinted 55 yards down the left sideline to the Lexington Catholic 5.

Two plays later, Wood scored his third touchdown of the night to put Lafayette ahead 27-24 with 1:49 left.

Wood credited Jackson for making the big play.

"Lucky is the spiritual leader for this team, and when he gets the ball in open space, it's not good for the other team," Wood said.

Jackson's take on his play: "Just doing what I do to help my team win," he said flatly.

Lexington Catholic still had time to rally, but Evan Shaw dashed those hopes.

Shaw, a senior defensive back and the son of Lafayette Coach Eric Shaw, intercepted Reese Ryan's screen pass and returned it 50 yards for the clinching TD with :54 left.

"I gotta thank my nose guard, Xavier Douglas," Shaw said. "He held up the guy on the screen, and I just broke on the ball."

Eric Shaw was as happy as a coach could be after watching his Generals rally twice on the night. They trailed 11-0 early, and 24-20 late.

Lafayette squeezed in two TDs in the last 2:13 of the first half to take a 13-11 lead.

"I am so proud because these young men continue to fight each week," he said. "They're coming out, having fun and playing the game the way it should be played."

Shaw didn't see that kind of spirit last season when Lafayette went 3-8.

"When we got down last year, we'd hang our heads," he said. "We're not doing that now. So I can say we have officially grown up."

As for watching his son Evan's clutch pick-six in the closing minute, Shaw said, "That was icing on the cake."

Wood, a sophomore, is looking like a special quarterback. He completed 11 of 22 passes for 190 yards and a TD, and also rushed 15 times for 135 yards and three TDs.

But he shrugged off any individual accolades.

"I've got the best o-line in the state," he said. "Our skill guys played great, and our (defense) did a heck of a job. I'm just glad to be part of it."

Quinten Brown had three catches for 91 yards, including a spectacular 60-yard catch-and-run. Jackson had five catches for 70 yards and a TD.

DeVon Quincy, a WKU commit, led the Generals defense with 8.5 tackles. Kareem Smith and Evan Shaw each had six tackles.

Lexington Catholic running back Jaylen Jones had a big night, carrying 22 times for 175 yards and a TD.

Ryan completed 21 of 32 passes for 196 yards and a TD, but was intercepted twice. He was picked off in the end zone by Malik Price in the first half, and by Shaw in the closing minute.

Chase Boling had 10.5 tackles. Andy Hickey had seven tackles and an interception for the Knights' defense.

Lexington Catholic cost itself dearly with ill-timed penalties and turnovers, just as it did in falling to Bowling Green last week.

"Very similar," Coach Mark Perry said. "Lafayette's a good team with a lot of playmakers, and we can't make mistake after mistake like that.

"The thing is we have to learn from it and move on.

"There's life in this football team and we've got a chance to be pretty good. But we can't continue to do these things against good teams."

LAFAYETTE 34, LEXINGTON CATHOLIC 24

Lexington Catholic 3    8  7   6—24

Lafayette 0 13 7 14—34

LC—Donovan Morris 27 field goal. LC—J.J. Ogbogu 14 pass from Reese Ryan (Andy Thompson run). L—Walker Wood 13 run (Colten Duprey kick). L—Lucky Jackson 1 pass from Wood (kick failed). L—Wood 32 run (Duprey kick). LC—Jones 5 run (Morris kick). LC—Ryan 16 run (pass failed). L—Wood 3 run (Duprey kick). L—Evan Shaw 50 interception return (Duprey kick).

Records—LexCath 1-2; Lafayette 2-1

This story was originally published September 5, 2014 at 6:53 PM with the headline "High school football: Lafayette rallies over Lexington Catholic in final minutes, 34-24."