In a battle of top-10 teams, the Hamilton Bulldogs held off a late De Leon surge to secure a 27–26 win and the district championship Friday night at Kooken Field.
After trading early touchdowns, De Leon took a 12–7 halftime lead, but Hamilton struck back in the third with a rushing score from Halston Haile. The Bearcats briefly regained control before the Bulldogs mounted a fierce fourth-quarter comeback. Touchdowns from Colter Johnson and Haile’s second rushing TD gave Hamilton the lead for good.
A clutch interception by Colton DeLaGarza in the final seconds sealed the victory. The Bulldogs improved to 8–2 and clinched the #1 playoff seed, while De Leon moved to 7–3 as the #2 seed.