The Jesuit Dallas Rangers saw a historic 2015 season come to a close in the area round of the University Interscholastic League (UIL) Football State Championships, falling to Rockwall, 38-27, on Friday evening at Kimbrough Stadium in Murphy, Texas.

Meeting for the third consecutive year in the area round, the Rangers and Yellow Jackets battled back and forth, trading momentum until Rockwall running back Caleb Broach scored a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter to provide the winning margin.

Junior quarterback Jacob Palisch finished the season with 373 all-purpose yards, including three touchdown passes to Connor Lanpher.  In total, Palisch set season-highs in rushes (24), pass completions (24) and passing yards (272) while Lanpher's 155 yards was also a season-best.  Senior Rusty Landon snagged a season-high nine passes for 65 yards, and senior Adam Holtz carried the ball seven times for 51 yards.

Senior John Michael Priddy made eight solo tackles on the night, finishing with nine overall while junior Billy Daly scored six stops.  Seniors Austin Koehler and Dane Bender finished with five and four tackles, respectively, each tallying at least one tackle for loss while junior Jack Metz made three individual stops en route to a four-tackle performance.  Senior John Wengierski knocked a pair of field goals through the uprights, additionally converting on all three extra point attempts.

The Rangers (10-2) stopped Rockwall (9-3) on a fourth and one inside Jesuit Dallas territory in the first quarter, then embarked upon an 11-play, 62-yard drive that culminated with a Palisch pass to Landon up the middle seam.  Landon was able to find a running lane between two defenders to score from 10 yards out, giving Jesuit Dallas an early, 7-0 lead.

Rockwall struck back quickly with a 70-yard touchdown on its next offensive play, tying the game with under three minutes remaining in the corner.  The Rangers then returned the favor with a 38-yard pass from Palisch to Lanpher on their next drive.  Palisch, who was able to utilize the play action pass to his advantage throughout the evening, caught Rockwall planning for the run and threw a perfect pass towards the waiting hands of Lanpher in the middle of the field, who then powered his way into the end zone for the second time.

The second quarter belonged to the Yellow Jackets, who shut out the Rangers while scoring nine points to enter the break with a 16-14 lead.  Broach broke the goal line from one yard out to start the second half, pushing Rockwall's unanswered point streak at 15 with 9:58 remaining in the third.

Palisch and Lanpher connected for the third time with 7:47 left in the third, when Palisch aired the ball down the sideline, catching Lanpher in stride from 44 yards out.  It was the second longest reception for Lanpher this season, and his longest touchdown catch of the year.

The Rangers cut the Yellow Jacket lead to one point after a 20-yard field by Wengierski, but a 50-yard touchdown run by Broach and two-point conversion pushed the lead back to Rockwall's favor.  Wengierski struck again from 35 yards out with 5:42 on the clock, but the combination of Broach, Rockwall's ability to pin the Rangers deep in their own territory on special teams and the Yellow Jacket pass defense proved to be the difference in the fourth.  A nine-yard run by Broach, this third of the game and 11th of the playoffs, all but sealed the win for Rockwall.

Jesuit Dallas closes the season with a 10-2 record, tying the most wins under the reign of head coach Brandon Hickman.  In addition, the Rangers won their third consecutive UIL Bi-District Football Championship after closing the district slate unbeaten, earning the first outright UIL District 9-6A title in program history.