Shattuck wins another state title, beats Regent Prep
Bralyn Hill was in pain. The pain wasn’t anything new for Shattuck’s starting running back during Thursday’s state title game. But Hill had been playing on a torn right ACL since a late September victory vs. Carnegie.
Yet in the decisive moments of the Class B State championship, Hill was in the spotlight making the critical plays, both on offense and defense.
Shattuck defeated Regent Prep 42-26 at Western Heights High School on Thursday to win consecutive Class B state championships and its third title in four seasons.
But for Shattuck, a team that in 2018 never trailed during the a second half, Regent Prep was on the verge of giving it its first deficit as the Tulsa school drove into the red zone late in the third quarter.
The drive abruptly ended when Hill stepped in front of Regent Prep quarterback Braden Gilbert’s pass, returning it 55 yards. Shattuck quickly scored, abruptly halting Regent Prep’s second-half momentum and giving Shattuck a 28-26 lead.
“The quarterback from Regent Prep is good and is an amazing athlete,” Hill said. “But when he is throwing the ball, he looks exactly where he is throwing it. I knew where that ball was going.”
Hill’s carries were limited throughout most of the game, with quarterback Gatlin Goodson and fellow running back Samuel Long taking most of the carries. However, Goodson injured his ankle on defense early in the fourth quarter, which forced coach Troy Bullard to limit his usage on designed rollouts runs for the remainder of the game.
With Shattuck leading 40-26 with 6:13 remaining and Goodson hobbled, Hill received sixstraight carries in a drive that killed all but the final minute off the clock.
Hill was rewarded for his efforts with a twoyard score to end the drive, the final carry of his high school career.
“I want to say it was a struggle playing through the injury, but when you are doing something for people you love and care about, it’s pretty easy to do what you need to do,” Hill said.
In a playoff where Shattuck and Regent Prep’s offenses dominated the four games leading up to the championship, Thursday’s Class B championship was a defensive battle in terms of eight-man football standards.
Shattuck led 20-14 at halftime and had its defense set the tone immediately. Regent Prep had first-and-goal on its opening drive before Shattuck’s Brendan Girton intercepted Gilbert.
Regent Prep answered back with its own interception shortly after Shattuck crossed midfield on its first drive. Jack Wright intercepted Goodsen on that drive, and Wright bookended the half with another interception with Shattuck in the redzone on the final play of the half.
Goodsen was intercepted three times in the first half and failed to complete a pass, but he was the best offensive player with the way he used his legs. He scored all three first-half Shattuck touchdowns and finished with 28 carries for 162 yards.
“We have lots of guys with heart,” Shattuck coach Troy Bullard said. “They play hard and have played through injuries all year long.”
Governor-elect Kevin Stitt, who has five children attending Regent Prep, was in attendance with his family to watch Thursday’s championship game.