Isaiah Watters (5) scores for Kilgore in a 48-14 win over Needville on Friday in a Class 4A Division I area playoff game at Sheldon ISD Panther Stadium in Houston. (Dennis Jacobs/Kilgore News Herald)

STAFF REPORTS

HOUSTON — The Kilgore Bulldogs opened the scoring in a hurry and never let up, coasting to a 48-14 win over Needville in a Class 4A Division I area playoff game at Sheldon ISD Panther Stadium.

The win moves Kilgore to 10-2 on the season and sends the Bulldogs into the third round of the playoffs for the fifth straight season.

Needville, which saw its season end against Kilgore a year ago in a third-round 35-14 loss, ends the year at 7-5.

Kilgore will move on to face Navasota next week in regionals.

Javon Towns put the Bulldogs on the board just seconds into the game when he returned the game’s opening kickoff 90 yards for a TD.

Isaiah Watters made it 14-0 later in the first quarter with a 22-yard touchdown run, and the Bulldogs went on top 17-0 56 seconds into the second quarter with a 31-yard field goal by Eddie Jimenez.

Needville’s Jamarkus Jack returned a punt 75 yards to get Needville on the board and make it 17-7, but Kayson Brooks took over from there for the Bulldogs.

Brooks scored on a 9-yard run and then hit Jayden Sanders on a 5-yard TD pass with just four seconds left in the half to send Kilgore into the locker room at halftime with a 31-7 lead.

In the third, Brooks scored on a 15-yard run with 9:22 left to make it 38-7, and five minutes later made it 45-7 with a 24-yard pass to a diving LaKeyleon Graves.

Jimenez booted a 35-yard field goal with 10:11 left in the contest to make it a 48-7 game. The field goal was set up by an interception by Sanders.

Needville got back on the board with 6:20 left when Cameron Hall tossed an 8-yard TD pass to Kade Ramirez to make the final 48-14.