Blackhawks whip Lions 36-24

"We had to play a very good football team" exhaled Coach Stephen Neal on the heels of the Blackhawks' 36-24 win over seventh-ranked Hamburg Lions in the Arkansas State 4A playoff quarterfinals.

"Our team played well and the bottom line is, we are moving on" Neal said. "Hamburg was a very dangerous team, which all teams usually are when get into the later rounds of the playoffs."

The victory meant Pea Ridge will host Shiloh for a state semi-final game Friday at 7 p.m. The winner Friday will play for the 4A state championship in Little Rock's War Memorial Stadium Dec. 9.

The Blackhawks came up with several defensive stops when they needed to, and they turned to a number of players to help put points on the board as Pea Ridge took an early lead.

After Pea Ridge forced a punt on the Lions' first possession, Hayden Holtgrewe wasted no game putting the 'Hawks on top, returning the punt 83 yards for the game's first score. Holtgrewe gathered the ball on the 'Hawk 17, ran through several tacklers, even spinning one off at the 25-yard line, before picking up a number of blockers at mid-field as he scampered into the clear at the Lion 40. Evan Green's PAT kick was good to lift the score to 7-0 with 9:38 left in the first period.

The stunning run back seemed to motivate the Lions as they put together a threat, using hard running by E.J. Holmes and the passing arm of Stetson Selby to quickly move to the 'Hawks' 21-yard line for a first down. The 'Hawk defenders knocked the ball loose on the next play which the guests managed to cover but only after a 9-yard loss. A short run and incompletion forced Hamburg into a fourth and 16, and when Selby tried to sneak it for a first down, Robby Pickthal was there to drop him 8 yards short of the marker to get the ball back on downs.

Drew Winn then added insult to injury as he spurted 40 yards downfield on first down, the 'Hawks' first offensive play of the game. The run exceeded the number of rushing yards Hamburg had allowed from their first two playoff games total. Jakota Sainsbury then threw a sideline pass to Justin Koon who advanced it 32 yards to the Hamburg 9. Disregarding Hamburg's reputation as a tough defensive line to penetrate, Zaine Holley got the blocking and used his legs to grind out 4 yards on the first carry, then bursting through the right side for the remaining 5 yards for the 'Hawks' second score. The touchdown pushed the lead to 13-0 with 5:02 left.

A good kick and great coverage forced Hamburg to start their next series on their own 9. However, an effective mix of strong runs by Holmes, great runs by Selby, and four straight completed passes to 6'5" receiver Laquan Bryant and Allen Forrest moved the ball to the 'Hawk 9 where the Lions had a second and 4 situation. Holtgrewe blew up the drive when be slid past all blockers to take down the Lion ball carrier for a 5-yard loss. A sneak by Selby didn't get far, forcing Hamburg to attempt a field goal on fourth down. The 24-yarder by Alex Grice was good, putting the visitors on the board on the fourth play of the second quarter. With 10:05 left in the half, the Lions had reduced the 'Hawk advantage to 13-3.

Pea Ridge began their next possession on their own 20 with Winn and Holley moving the ball 72 yards downfield in four plays. Winn got things going with a 9-yard dash, followed by a 5-run up the middle by Holley. After Holley bashed the line again, this time for 9 yards, Winn ran around the right end and shot downfield 41 yards to the Lion 16. An unsportsmanlike act by a Lion after Winn's run moved the ball down to the 8-yard line, where Holtgrewe took a pitch and ran it in the rest of the way. The score made it 19-3 with 7:49 left in the half.

Winn wasn't through being a thorn in the Lion's side as he intercepted Selby's first pass after the kickoff, giving the 'Hawks a first down on their own 22. Pea Ridge came up four yards short for a first down, and the ensuing punt was shanked, traveling only 24 yards to give Hamburg possession on their own 48. The Lions could only complete one of five passes for yardage, but tough running by Holmes and Selby got them a first down on the 'Hawk 12. The first two passes for a score were incomplete, but the third time as a charm as Forrest caught the Selby pass in the end zone. Selby passed to Holmes for the 2-pointer, and the Lions were back in it, only trailing 19-11 with 1:51 left in the half.

Starting at their own 29, the first two plays didn't get anywhere but the third down pass to Ryan Higgins from Sainsbury netted 19 yards to the Lions 47. Two plays later, Sainsbury hit successive passes for 11 and 10 yards to Holtgrewe and Higgins for a first down on the Hamburg 26. A penalty and lost yardage play pushed the 'Hawks back to the 33 but a third down toss from Sainsbury to Higgins set the 'Hawks up for a field goal attempt from the Lion 20. Green split the uprights from 37 yards out to send Pea Ridge into the locker room with a 22-11 halftime lead.

The 'Hawks took the second half kick with Winn ripping off a sensational 74-yard return to the Lion 17. Two plays later the 'Hawks were facing a third and 1 when the flags flew to push them back to the 13-yard line. The third down run wasn't enough to forestall a fourth down with the 'Hawks opting for the field goal attempt. The kick was just off, giving the Lions possession on their own 20.

The 'Hawks defense came in hard after the ball and succeeded in knocking it loose from Holmes' hands, bouncing it back to the 5-yard line. Hamburg covered it but after two incomplete passes and another run for lost yardage, they punted to their own 34.

A 4-yard run by Holley and a 4-yard pass from Sainsbury to Higgins gave the 'Hawks a third and 2 on the Lion 26. The penalty bug bit again to move the ball back 5 to the 31, and then the only quarterback sack of Sainsbury occurred for another 6-yard loss. At this point, the 'Hawks punted down to the Lion 18.

The Lions' Meeks got an immediate first down with an 11-yard run, but the next two plays netted 0 yards, forcing another punt. A 33-yard run back by Holtgrewe got the ball back at mid-field on the 'Hawk 49. After the first two plays got no yards, Sainsbury hooked up with Holtgrewe as he broke free to run 46 yards before being taken down on the 6-yard line. Holley rammed the right side, taking three defenders with him as he bolted into the end zone with 3:54 left in the third quarter. Green's accurate kick boosted the score to 29-11.

The Lions started at their own 15 following the kickoff. For the first time in the game, the Lions set off on a long scoring drive, traveling 85 yards on 12 plays. Short runs by Meeks and Holmes helped the drive but Selby's passing got them downfield. Selby threw passes of 12, 11, 30 and 11 yards to move the visitors to the 16-yard line of the 'Hawks. Holmes ran the ball for 8, 2 then 1 yard to get into the end zone on three plays. While the drive brought the score closer at 29-17, the drive consumed nearly 5 minutes, putting pressure on Hamburg going into the fourth quarter.

Higgins posted a good kickoff return to the 'Hawk 33 where he was the target of another Lion's unsportsmanlike conduct. The resulting penalty moved the ball to near mid-field at the 'Hawk 48. Holley picked up a first down on his first rush of the fourth quarter, but a holding call moved the ball 14 yards backward to the 'Hawk 34. An 8-yard pass to Higgins wasn't enough to forestall a punt. The punt was partially blocked by a Lion defender with the pigskin traveling only 8 yards to the 50-yard line.

After the 'Hawks stuffed the first run by the Lions for no gain, a pass to Bryant and a sneak by Selby got Hamburg into 'Hawk territory at the 32. Three straight incompletions with the 'Hawks playing great coverage ended up turning the ball over to Pea Ridge on their own 36.

Two short runs by the 'Hawks led to a first down pass from Sainsbury to Koon but a penalty wiped out the gain and left the 'Hawks facing a third and 13. The 'Hawks countered with a 17-yard pass to Holtgrewe to get a fresh set of downs on the 'Hawk 49. After Holley punished the Lions with a 9-yard run off tackle, the senior tailback shot through the line for 36 yards to the Hamburg 6.

A holding penalty on first down hurt the 'Hawks, pushing the ball back 8 yards to the 14. Holley barreled through the line for 11 yards, and two plays later, he scored standing up from the 1-yard line. With 3:55 on the clock, Green booted the extra point to just about ice the game as the 'Hawks led 36-17.

The Lions wasted no time in making the home folks a bit uneasy, as Selby found Bryant on a deep pass with the big receiver catching it between three defenders to run it in. The kick was good to melt the lead to 36-24 but the Lions would not get the ball back again.

The 'Hawks opted to stay on the ground, using runs by Winn covering 6 and 24 yards to put the game away. Holley ran twice for 9 yards then the 'Hawks just let the clock run down on the Hamburg 14 to end the contest.

Holley scored three touchdowns, racking up 115 yards on 19 carries. Winn led the ground attack with 123 yards on nine attempts. Sainsbury had another good game in the air, completing eight of 16 for 148 yards.

Higgins caught four passes for 45 yards, with Holtgrewe leading the yardage with three catches for 71 yards. Koon had one catch for 32.

On the defensive side of things, Britton Caudill led the tackling with 15 stops, with Tristan Brewer close behind with 14. Robby Pickthal and Mike Maloney each accumulated 10 tackles.

The 'Hawks now move on to the biggest game of the year so far, hosting Shiloh this Friday at 7 p.m. The winner will earn the right to be the visiting team in the 4A State Championship game in Little Rock Dec. 9. The winner Friday will face the winner of Prairie Grove/Warren.

The victory over Hamburg set two new records for the Blackhawks. It was the first time Pea Ridge has ever won 12 games in a season, and it was the first time that the 'Hawks have ever won seven home games in the same year. Both records hope to be broken this Friday.