ARLINGTON, TX — Defensive dominance. That's the only phrase to describe the matchup between Hamilton and Joaquin in the 2A-Div I Championship game at AT&T Stadium on Wednesday night. The two went back and forth all night, but it was the Hamilton Bulldogs that emerged as State Champions for the first time in school history, 21-7.
"We felt good coming in, defensively," Hamilton Head Coach Ryan Marwitz said after the game. "Our defense has done a great job all year. They settled in just like they've done all year. It's someone different every week—that's what these guys did tonight."
After allowing the opening drive touchdown, Joaquin failed to cross the goal line a single time the rest of the night.
Hamilton's defense dominated. The Bulldogs generated three takeaways, all fumble recoveries. Every time Joaquin looked to narrow the deficit with a score, the Bulldogs answered on defense.
Offensively, Hamilton played from behind late into the first quarter. Joaquin's running offense loves to drain the clock, and an opening score was exactly how the Rams wanted the game to go. However, Hamilton found their answers through the air and on the ground. Quarterback Carson Roberts evened the score at seven with a pass to Colter Johnson with 39 seconds remaining in the 1st quarter. Hamilton would not trail the rest of the way.
Runninback Halston Haile added two more scores on the ground—a 5-yard rush in the 2nd quarter to take the lead and an opening drive score in the 3rd quarter to put the game out of reach. Haile finished with 93 yards rushing on 22 carries. He also added seven tackles on defense in the win.
The Rams had several opportunities to answer after the 1st quarter. Unfortunately, Joaquin finished 2-5 on 4th down attempts on the evening, and along with the three turnovers, never managed to claw their way back into the game.
Hamilton finishes 2025 with a 14-2 overall record and etched their names into the history books as state champions.
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