If anyone thought this edition of Lincoln Christian and Heritage Hall would be any different, they were certainly wrong.

In the third meeting across the last 12 months, Friday night's semifinal followed the same script as the first two.

No. 1 Lincoln (13-0) got down by two touchdowns early, but once again, stormed back, as the Bulldogs scored 42 unanswered points to run away from No. 2 Heritage Hall in a 42-14 win.

The Bulldogs, who scored 41 unanswered to win by 20 in last year's 3A championship, as well as 21 unanswered in a regular season win at Heritage Hall earlier this season, didn't panic early after trailing 14-0 in the 1st.

The offense got going to the tune of 413 rushing yards, while the defense settled in and allowed just 140 yards in the final three quarters, as Lincoln dominated the final 36 minutes to pick up its 6th-in-a-row over Heritage Hall.

"We really weren't thrilled to get down two scores again to Heritage Hall but we are able to rely on our experience from the last two games and stay calm and poised," said Lincoln head coach Jerry Ricke. "Our coaches and players did not panic because we knew it was a four quarter game."

It was the Bulldogs 27th straight win, as Lincoln will look to complete the repeat quest this Thursday in the Class 3A final.

The Bulldogs leaned on senior Dawson Fullingim, who had a career game on the ground, carrying 21 times for 226 yards and three touchdowns.

Meanwhile, Lincoln defensive coordinator Jeff Comfort and his unit held Heritage Hall's playmakers in check, especially in the final three quarters.

Chargers running back Barrett Travis, who had 530 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in the first two rounds of the playoffs, finished with just 99 rushing yards and averaged less than five yards per attempt.

"I was really impressed with how we adjusted to some of the new things Heritage Hall was showing us," Ricke said. "They did a good job adding in some new wrinkles to their run game and it took us a few drives to settle in. Once we got the lead, our defense could pin their ears back and get after their quarterback."

Heritage Hall (11-2) went up 14-0 on a pass from quarterback Hudson Ferris to receiver Porter England with 29 seconds to go in the 1st quarter.

But it was all Lincoln from that point.

The Bulldogs responded with an 8-play, 71-yard drive to cut into the lead, thanks to 45 yards from Fullingim, including the 15-yard score to make it 14-6 with 9:33 to go in the half.

After senior linebacker Creed Nail and sophomore defensive lineman Rain Ragland sacked Ferris near midfield, Heritage Hall tried a trick play but the Lincoln defense was ready.

Ferris threw it out to Chargers' receiver Terrance Johnson in the flat, who then threw a deep ball downfield that was picked by Lincoln freshman CJ Wright, as the safety tracked it from the middle of the field and caught it going out of bounds.

The change in possession was followed quickly by a change in score, as Lincoln marched down the field, going 68 yards in eight plays, all via the run.

Lincoln quarterback Carter Ricke converted a 3rd and 7 into a 21-yard score, as the junior went up the middle untouched for the Bulldogs second score of the night.

Ricke found senior receiver Kylan Schultheis in the front corner of the end zone on the 2-point conversion, tying the game at 14-14 with 4:24 left in the half.

"After we got down two scores, our offense was able to use the run game to get in a rhythm," Ricke said. "We felt good about the run game going in, and we were able to establish it and help calm our team down."

Lincoln got the ball back after a 3-and-out with 3:29 to go in the 2nd quarter and the Bulldogs went back to work.

Fullingim ran for 20 yards to get inside of the Heritage Hall 35 before Braeden Baker moved it near the red zone with 1:42 to go.

After several plays, a penalty and a fumble recovered by Ragland, the Bulldogs had one play from the 11 with seven seconds to go.

Ricke tossed a ball to receiver Jack Milligan in the corner of the end zone and after it was tipped by two Chargers defenders, the senior caught it laying down, good for his 10th score of the season.

The touchdown gave Lincoln a 21-14 lead at halftime.

But things were just getting started for the Bulldogs.

After a punt to open the second half by Lincoln, the defense came through with a big stop.

Heritage Hall moved it inside the Lincoln 30, before Ragland got to Ferris again, his second sack of the game to back the Chargers up.

Lincoln forced an incompletion before Ferris found England on 4th down, but the Bulldogs' Hudson Farris made a great tackle to stop the receiver short.

Fullingim ran for 31 yards on the opening play of the drive to move across midfield and Lincoln kept it on the ground for the rest of the drive. 

Baker scored from 11 yards out six plays later, as the sophomore made it 28-14 with 4:42 to go in the 3rd.

The Bulldogs forced another 3-and-out on the ensuing possession, before Lincoln would extend the lead again.

Ricke flipped to Wright on a jet sweep for nine yards to start the drive, followed by a 12-yard gain from Baker and a 14-yard run by Fullingim to move inside the Chargers' 25.

The senior finished the drive three plays later, running through a huge hole created by the Lincoln offensive line for a 19-yard score, pushing the edge to 35-14 with under a minute left in the 3rd.

"I'm really proud of the guys that paved the way for our running backs," Ricke said of his offensive line, which paved the way for 8.8 yards per carry on the night. "They have kind of been the underdog group but they came through in the biggest moment of the season to date. I thought our physicality was a huge factor in wearing them down."

The Chargers were forced to go for it twice deep in their own territory as the clock ticked down in the 4th, failing both times.

After the second turnover on downs, Fullingim had one more score in him, as the senior completed the hat trick with a 10 yard touchdown, making it 42-14 with 5:02 to go.

"I'm just super proud of Dawson," Ricke said. "He is such an unselfish player and a great leader. He doesn't care who gets the credit, he just wants his team to win. Last night, he was able to be the guy and set the tone for our run game. He runs so hard and with such grit and determination and I thought that trickled down to the rest of the team."

The final nail in the coffin came with just over four minutes left, when Bulldog sophomore Lincoln Torres hit Ferris hard, knocking the ball loose on 4th down for the team's 6th sack of the night.

Heritage Hall marched right down the field on the opening drive of the game but the Chargers were turned away.

The Bulldogs held on four straight plays from the 1-yard line, stuffing Travis and Farris to force a turnover on downs and swing momentum back to the Lincoln side.

However, just two plays later, Heritage Hall would get it back.

Baker broke free for a 29 yard gain but had the ball knocked free while breaking a tackle, and the Chargers took over at the Lincoln 25.

Travis carried it on the next three plays, including a 2-yard score to put the Chargers up 7-0 with 5:00 to go in the 1st.

Heritage Hall's second score came after another turnover forced on the following possession.

After Lincoln had moved it inside the Heritage Hall 30, Ricke was picked off by Johnson on 3rd down.

The Chargers' defensive back returned it 35 yards back to the Lincoln 30, setting up the eventual touchdown pass from Ferris to England.

Along with Fullingim's big night, Baker finished with 113 yards on 18 carries, while Wright had four attempts for 28 yards and Ricke ran four times for 46 yards.

Ricke was an efficient 9-of-12 for 80 yards, as the Bulldogs used a run heavy approach, led by power sets and Wildcat formations.

"We like to use Wildcat formations to help even the numbers game," Ricke said. "I thought that Braeden, Dawson, and CJ handled the role of calling the plays well. We are always looking to gain advantages in different areas and I thought these formations helped us out with that."

Nail had an outstanding game, leading the Bulldogs with 12 tackles. Ragland had seven stops, including four for loss, and two sacks.

Farris had six tackles, as well as a big 36-yard reception on offense.

Senior linebacker Mason Torres, Wright and Baker each had five tackles for Lincoln in the win.

Fullingim also finished with five tackles, including three for loss, to go along with two sacks on a career night.

Lincoln held Heritage Hall to 0-of-11 on 3rd down and 1-of-6 on 4th down.

The Chargers had just 249 yards on 56 plays, while Lincoln averaged almost nine yards per play in the win.

The Bulldogs will face No. 3 Sulphur (12-1) in the finals on Thursday night at 7 p.m. at Chad Richison Stadium on the campus of UCO.

"It definitely helps to have the big game experience our guys have," Ricke said. "We have played in some pressure-filled moments and I think that always helps in these games. Obviously, our experience playing at UCO in these games should help, but we know we have our hands full with an extremely talented Sulphur team."

After Thursday, the Bulldogs will have played in five of the last six 3A title games, as Lincoln looks for its 4th championship in program history.

Lincoln beat Sulphur 45-7 last year in the quarterfinals at Dennis Byrd Stadium.

"I told them this morning that we only have six days left as the 2024 version of the Lincoln Bulldogs and to enjoy every one of them," Ricke said. "We must prepare our bodies, as well as our minds for the week. I'm just super excited for this group and we are all looking forward to the huge task that Sulphur presents."

Photos by Lee Talley