Salado Eagles pulled off a last-minute win over the visiting Navarro Panthers 28-21, forcing three straight incomplete passes by Payton Helford in the final 47 seconds to notch their first District 13-4A Div. 2 victory under coach Ricky Beaty.

With a narrow 22-21 lead, the Eagles drove the ball 77 yard in 12 plays, scoring on a 1-yard dive by Lincoln Hossfeld to go up 28-21. The Eagles went for two, but Hossfeld was stopped short with 1:54 left in the game.

The Eagles kicked deep against the slot-T Panthers hoping to hang on for the win. The Panthers took over at their own 27 yard line. Workhorse running back Kohen Blount ran up the middle for 3 yards and a time out was called, evidently by Salado though the call on the field was Navarro for their second time out.

Blount pushed it to the 35-yard line and Helford got a first down with just over a minute left in the game.

Brody Schiller broke up a pass along the sideline and Cade Fenoglio almost picked off a pass with Luke Bauser pressuring Helford to force a third and 10. Brodie Landon sacked Helford to force a fourth and 16 at the Navarro 32 when Navarro called time out with 47 seconds left.

The Panthers came out of the time out and Helford connected with Brown for 31 yards to get into Salado territory.

Helford carried for 3 yards, the last the Panthers would get as Salado forced him to throw three desperation incomplete passes to secure the win.

The game was competitive from the first whistle. 

The Eagles elected to receive the opening kick and drove to the Panther 31, but Navarro recovered a Jackson Turk fumble at their 36.

The Panthers then took 29 plays and 10 minutes to drive the 64 yards to score on a 1-yard dive by Blount with 1:07 left in the first. Brown kicked the PAT for a 7-0 Panther lead.

The Eagles answered on the next series, driving 74 yards in 16 plays, scoring on an 18-yard pass from Hossfeld to Turk with 5:52 left in the half, eating up seven minutes of clock.  Townes Sather tied the score at 7-7 with his kick.

Schiller intercepted a Helford pass with 40 seconds left in the half to give the Eagles the ball at the Panther 26.

On the next play, Hossfeld hit Korbin Konarik in the very back of the end zone for a TD.  Hossfeld connected with Landen Noske for the two-point conversion and a 15-7 halftime lead.

Navarro forced the Eagles to turnover the ball on downs at the Panther 41, then drove for a touchdown 10 plays later, scoring on a fourth-and-15 on a rare pass from Helford to Brown for 27 yards. Dylan Trotti pushed in the two-point try to tie the game at 15-15 at 6:17 in the third.

Bauser fell on an onside kick to give the Eagles the ball at the Panther 48. Nine plays later, Hossfeld ran through the middle of the Navarro defense for the touchdown. Sather made the score 22-15 with 2:03 left in the third.

The Eagle defense forced Navarro to a three-and-out series, but Braddick Gallini fell on a muffed punt by Turk at the Salado 25. Six plays later, Helford dove in from the 1. The PAT failed and Salado held a narrow 22-21 lead with 8:45 left in the game.

The Eagles went up on the 1-yard dive by Hossfeld and held on for the win.