Prairie Grove's "good as advertised" defense was the difference in the Tigers' 42-21 conquest of Pea Ridge last Friday. The loss ended the 'Hawks' 13-game road game victory streak and gave Pea Ridge their first loss of the season.
It took the homecoming Tigers just about 100 yards of offense to score five of the six touchdowns. The farthest drive that Prairie Grove had to go on offense for 35 points was less than 50 yards and two TDs were interception returns.
Pea Ridge^7^7^0^7^—^21
Prairie Grove^14^7^14^7^—^42
First Quarter
Prairie Grove — Cooper 8-yard pass from Laird (Fidler kick), 3:24.
Prairie Grove — Sam 15-yard run (Fidler kick), :24.
Pea Ridge — Torres 92-yard kickoff return (Green kick), :06.
Second Quarter
Pea Ridge — Holley 2-yard run (Green kick), 9:53.
Prairie Grove — Disney 25-yard interception return (Fidler kick), 1:52.
Third Quarter
Prairie Grove — Laird 10-yard run (Kick failed), 8:54.
Prairie Grove — Disney 48-yard interception return (Laird run), 7:20.
Fourth Quarter
Prairie Grove — Johnson 19-yard run (Fidler kick), 5:04.
Pea Ridge — Winn 47-yard run (Green kick), 3:59.
In fact, even though the 'Hawks had double the yardage that Prairie Grove had accumulated by halftime, they trailed 21-14.
The game started well for Pea Ridge, taking the opening kickoff and picking up two first downs while driving to midfield. Zaine Holley rushed for 18 yards on four totes with Jakota Sainsbury tossing a 5-yarder to Hayden Holtgrewe to spark the march.
But, as what has been a Blackhawk problem at times this season, a penalty against the 'Hawks derailed the drive. With Pea Ridge having to go to the air, it gave an edge to Prairie Grove's defenders who have been formidable on pass defense this season.
Blackhawk defenders stepped up and allowed the Tigers but 3 yards on three plays on their first possession to get the ball back rather quickly.
The Pea Ridge offense picked up where it left off with Holley picking up 10 yards on three carries that complemented a big 21-yard pass from Sainsbury to Drew Winn that gave the 'Hawks a first down on the Tiger 29. Holley edged them a bit closer on first down with a 2-yard run but the penalty bug bit them again, being pushed back to the 32 to face a second and 13.
On an obvious passing situation, the Tigers came up with an interception, returning it all the way down the field to the 'Hawk 20. Though giving up a 12-yard run by the Tigers' running back, the 'Hawks broke up a first down pass then Britton Caudill dropped a Tiger receiver for a yard loss on second down to force a third and 9. The The Tigers' Zeke Laird then dropped a 9-yard pass to Demarkus Cooper for the score. The kick failed to leave the score 6-0 with 8:30 left in the first.
The 'Hawks mishandled the kickoff which led to them having to start from their own 12. Holley got 4 yards on the first carry but a 1-yard loss for another 'Hawk running back and a third down incompletion forced a 'Hawk punt.
A good run back by the Tigers gave the hosts excellent field position on the 'Hawk 37. An 18-yard second down pass placed the Tigers on the 'Hawk 19 and two plays later, Kyle Sams broke off a 16-yard run to paydirt. They ran in the PAT to boost their lead to 14-0 with 24 seconds left in the quarter.
The next kickoff was again mishandled by the 'Hawks but return man Jacob Torres picked up the loose pigskin and bolted left near the 'Hawks' goal line, then threaded his way upfield, picking up numerous blocks by his teammates to make his way to the Tiger end zone. Evan Green converted the extra point to close the gap to 14-7 with 16 seconds left in the first.
That set the stage for a big play for Drew Winn who sprinted down the field to recover the 'Hawk kickoff on the Tiger 17, the third time this year that a Blackhawk has recovered a kickoff that wasn't a short kick.
Holley picked up 3 yards twice on the first two plays, then bulled his way through the line carrying tacklers forward for 4 yards and a first down on the Tiger 7. After Winn rushed for 3 then 2 yards, Holley took it in from the 2 with 9:53 left in the half. The PAT was good and the score was knotted at 14-14.
Sensing the momentum had swung the 'Hawks' way, the Tigers went to work, picking up 12 yards on runs by Orr and Johnson. A possible TD pass from Laird was foiled when Duncan Truesdell stopped it. A 12-yard pass on the next down moved the Tigers to the 'Hawk 40 and Johnson moved it 10 more yards to the 30 on the next play. This is where the 'Hawk defense came up big, stripping the ball from Prairie Grove with Seth Trammel coming up with it along with others on the scene.
On first down, the 'Hawks picked up 25 yards on a pass to Winn but the yellow flags flew. A holding call pushed the 'Hawks back to the 27. A 6-yard run by Holley and a 4-yard pass from Sainsbury to Winn got the 'Hawks back to the original line of scrimmage on third down. Holtgrewe was running a slant route across the middle when a Tiger linebacker grabbed him and spun him around with the pass falling incomplete. No referee saw the infraction to the 'Hawks, who were forced to punt.
Holtgrewe foiled the Tigers when he swiped a Laird pass two plays later to stop a Prairie Grove threat on the 'Hawk 17. Holley ran for 3 to the 20 but the yellow flags were flying again on second down. A holding call pushed the 'Hawks back to the 10. After an incomplete pass, Holley was making headway before a face mask tackle brought him down after 5 yards. No referee saw the foul so the 'Hawks had to punt. A Tiger broke through to bloke the punt and the homeboys had a first down.
The 'Hawks were determined to keep the score tied with Truesdell stopping the ball carrier for no gain on first down. A second down pass was incomplete and the third down pass was knocked away by Winn. The fourth down pass went nowhere when Ortiz sacked the quarterback for a 7-yard loss with a little over 2 minutes left in the half.
The penalties kept coming for the 'Hawks with a 10-yarder for holding pushing them back to the 11. Two plays later Isaac Disney picked off an errant pass and ran it back to score to break the tie. The kick was good to leave the Tigers ahead 21-14.
Winn ran three times for 10 yards with Holley getting 8 on two runs but the half ended with Pea Ridge on the Tiger 48.
Prairie Grove started the second half with a short field, making the most of it by driving 49 yards for their fourth score. Laird scored on a 5-yard keeper with 9 minutes left in the third. The PAT kick was good for a 28-14 lead.
Two minutes later, the Tigers looked like they were going to put the game away when Disney intercepted a 'Hawk pass at midfield, running it back for the score. The kick was good and the Tigers had a 35-14 lead with 7:14 to go in the third. Prairie Grove then tacked on a 19-yard run by Johnson in the fourth quarter to ice the game with a 42-14 lead, following a PAT kick which was good.
With 4 minutes left, the 'Hawks scored for the final time, a 47-yard run by Winn. The kick was true to set the final score at 42-21.
Holley had 94 yards rushing on 28 carries with Winn garnering 77 on nine forays. Holtgrewe caught four passes for 20 yards with Winn getting 27 yards on three catches. Caudill also had a catch for 11 yards. Sainsbury was eight for 20 for 58 yards in the passing attack.
Sports on 10/19/2016