Lake Travis 48, Johnson 21

Lake Travis jumped out to a 27-0 first quarter lead en route to a 48-21 win over Johnson in the Class 6A Division I area playoffs Friday at Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos.

The Cavaliers (10-2) intercepted Jaguars quarterback Ty Hawkins six times — all of those coming in the first half — with four of those interceptions leading to Lake Travis scores.

Johnson (11-1) outgained Lake Travis in total yardage 440 to 353, but the interceptions and Nico Hamilton’s four rushing touchdowns for the Cavaliers were too much for the Jaguars to overcome.

Hawkins and running back Lorenn Johnson both rushed for over 100 yards for Johnson, as the Jaguars totaled 298 yards rushing.

Highlights: Lake Travis got off to a quick start, as Josiah Estes returned the opening kickoff 70 yards for a score to put the Cavaliers up 7-0.

Hawkins’ first two passes of the game were intercepted by the Cavaliers, with the turnovers leading to scoring runs of 3 and 12 yards by Hamilton, putting Lake Travis up 20-0 at 7:31 in the first quarter.

Johnson was able to get a promising drive going on its third possession of the game, driving to the Lake Travis 22 before Hawkins was intercepted by Cavalier defensive back Walker Moore, who returned it 38 yards to the Johnson 40.

Lake Travis took advantage, as Chaston Ditta connected with

Kadyn Leon on a 10-yard touchdown pass for a 27-0 Cavalier lead with 30 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

The Jaguars notched their first score of the game when Hawkins threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Gabriel Simpson, who made a nice diving grab in the end zone, with 7:32 in the second quarter.

Lake Travis was able to close out the first half on a 12-yard scoring run by Ditta and a 3-yard touchdown run by Hamilton, putting the Cavaliers up 41-7 at halftime.

Hawkins scored on a 10-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and Lorenn Johnson scored the last touchdown of the game as he burst down the sideline on a 50-yard run with 5:17 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Game balls: For Lake Travis, Hamilton scored four times, rushing for 159 yards on 22 carries. Ditta was 10-of-14 passing for 106 yards and one score.

Lorenn Johnson rushed for 164 yards on 22 carries and one score, Hawkins added 134 yards on 20 carries and one rushing touchdown in leading the

Jaguars. Simpson caught four passes for 71 yards and a score.

Hawkins, a junior, ended the season with 2,235 passing yards and 25 touchdowns while rushing for 967 yards and 15 rushing touchdowns. Lorenn Johnson, also a junior, finished the season with 1,725 yards and 18 touchdowns.

What it means: The Jaguars finished the year with their best playoff run since 2019, when they also advanced to the second round.

Up next: Lake Travis advances to the regional semifinal playoff game against Brennan on Friday at the Alamodome. Kickoff is at 3 p.m.