The Pea Ridge Blackhawk football team got an early lead but couldn't hold on against a surging Arkadelphia Badger squad as the locals fell 51-26 in a 4A State semi-final game at Blackhawk Stadium Friday.
The 'Hawks led the favored Badgers 10-0 before a 28-point scoring explosion in the second quarter gave the visitors a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Pea Ridge had the distinction of being the only school in the state to advance to semi-final action in each of the past three seasons. The 'Hawks' playoff record of 10-3 was surpassed by only defending state champion Warren which has a 11-1 mark with a game to go.
A somber head coach Stephen Neal extolled the fine play of the Blackhawk seniors who concluded their high school career with the loss.
"Pea Ridge is an incredible place with the community involvement and support so evident, "Neal remarked.
The 'Hawks got the ball to begin the game but couldn't move the ball against the Badgers and had to punt. Blackhawks Robby Pickthal and Carson Rhine corralled the punt returner and the Badgers responded with a personal foul against the 'Hawks. Arkadelphia was flagged five times for unsportsmanlike conduct during the course of the game, more than the 'Hawks have accumulated over the past two seasons combined.
The Badgers 6', 195-pound quarterback Cannon Turner got the visitors into 'Hawk territory with a long rush and then a sensational pass and catch to receiver Alec Lewis on the Pea Ridge 40. They got no closer, however, and a fake punt on fourth down was sniffed out by the 'Hawk defenders with the ball getting downed in Arkadelphia territory at the 42, a 14-yard loss.
A quick pass from Jakota Sainsbury to Hayden Holtgrewe picked up 4 yards, followed by a short run by Drew Winn, and then a 22-yard strike to Holtgrewe for a first down on the Badger 14. After Winn picked up 2 yards on first down, the senior tailback burst up the middle and carried a host of tacklers into the end zone for the final 12 yards. With 4:49 left in the first period, Evan Brewer's successful PAT kick put the 'Hawks on top 7-0.
The Badgers' Dillon Scott took the kickoff and had a great run-back to the Arkadelphia 44. Badger tailback Zion Hatley rushed three times for 20 yards to the 'Hawk 40. The 'Hawk defense then stiffened forcing the Badgers into another fourth down situation, this time on the 'Hawk 37. Their attempt to keep their drive going went awry when the ball was jarred loose from a Badger ball carrier with Gavin Warden covering the pigskin on the 'Hawk 45.
Winn bashed the visitors line for 21, 2 then 3 yards to the Badger 29. Pickthal picked up a first down with a 9-yard scamper up the middle to the 20. Three plays netted by 5 yards so Pea Ridge opted for a 32-yard field goal which was driven through the uprights by sophomore Luis Reyes.
The score lifted the 'Hawk lead to 10-0 with 11:52 left in the half.
The 'Hawks' 10-point lead lasted 20 seconds when Hatley fielded the kickoff, found a seam and used his speed to get past the Pea Ridge cover to run into the end zone with 11:32 left. Arkadelphia's heralded kicker Gabe Goodman kicked the PAT to narrow the lead to 10-7.
Stung by the run-back, the 'Hawks got to work with Winn running for 4 then 21 more to the Blackhawk 45. A penalty set the 'Hawks back 5 yards, and on the next play, the Badgers were flagged for pass interference, giving Pea Ridge a first down on the Arkadelphia 40. Disaster bit the 'Hawks again as the ball was fumbled away, giving the guests good field position deep in 'Hawk territory. However, the Badgers committed their second personal foul after the play was over, moving the ball back to the 'Hawk 42.
Hatley picked up 18 yards for the Badgers to the 'Hawk 24, with Turner rushing three straight times for 4, 8 and 12 yards to score the go ahead touchdown for the visitors. The kick by Goodman was good and Arkadelphia led 14-10 with 9:17 left in the half.
The 'Hawks were hit with a motion penalty on their first play and they could not make up the difference in three plays and were forced to punt. Dyon Hunter caught the kick at mid-field and outmaneuvered the Blackhawks to score again with 8:29 to go in the half. Goodman's kick pushed the Badger lead to 21-10.
With Goodman kicking off to the end zone on every kick, the 'Hawks could not get a runback going and had to start from their own 20 for the fourth time. Three plays netted but 4 yards and the 'Hawks had to punt again.
Starting from the 'Hawk 47, the visitors drove the distance in six plays, with Hatley taking it on from the 4 with 3:50 left in the half. Goodman's PAT made it 28-10.
Holtgrewe decided to run the kick off back from inside the end zone, and he made it 25 yards up field. For the third time, the Badgers committed a personal foul with a late hit on Holtgrewe advancing the ball to the 'Hawk 40. Winn ran for 4 on first down, then burst loose down the sideline for 21 yards on the next play to get a first down on the Badger 35. The second run gave Winn the single season record for rushing yards, eclipsing the old record held by Joey Wiltgen.
A 12-yard pas from Sainbury to Holtgrewe earned a first down to the 23-yard line. Two runs by Winn picked up 11 yards and a new set of downs on the Arkadelphia 12. Pickthal picked up 4 yards to the 8, setting up the 'Hawks' scoring play. Sainsbury had a lot of his passes tipped by the active Badger defenders, and his next pass was tipped but the alert Holtgrewe snatched it out of the air to score the 'Hawks' second touchdown. Sainsbury then hooked up with Brayden Ralph to complete the 2-point conversion, narrowing the gap to 28-18 with 1:06 left.
The guests' attempt to answer the score was frustrated by Carson Rhine and then Pickthal who sacked the quarterback on two of their three plays before intermission.
With a 10-point lead, the Badgers were content to launch a time consuming march, eating up half the third quarter with 13 plays before finally being forced to punt to the 'Hawk 11.
Passes to Holtgrewe and Jordan Witcher went for 6 then 8 yards for a first down on the Hawk 25. Three plays later, the 'Hawks faced a fourth and 2 from their own 31. Though deep in their own territory, the 'Hawks chose to go for a first down rather than concede the game to their guests. Sainsbury flipped a pass towards a wide open Blackhawk running down field but, once again, a Badger defender got there to just tip it away and reclaim possession. After a short gain by Turner, the 'Hawks were hit with an 18-yard personal foul penalty to move the ball to the Blackhawk 13. Two plays later, the Badgers were in the end zone with Hatley scoring again. Goodman's kick made it 35-18 with 11:18 left in the game.
On the next two plays, Holtgrewe then Winn were met with personal fouls by the Badger defense. With the ball now on the Arkadelphia 43, the 'Hawks sent Witcher racing down the east sideline to run under a deep pass from Sainsbury. The Badger defender grabbed Witcher's arm and prevented a catch on the 10-yard line. The next pass was tipped again, this time resulting in an interception. The 'Hawks' defense didn't allow the guests to cash in, though, forcing a 3 and out. Goodman's punt was masterful, rolling down the field until coming to a stop, two or 3 inches from the goal line. A penalty against the 'Hawks on first down resulted in perhaps the shortest penalty in history, with the half the distance to the goal measurement likely just over an inch.
Beginning from the one-inch line, the 'Hawks then launched their longest drive in history, covering the 99.7 yards in 13 plays. After a short run by Winn to get away from the goal line, Sainsbury hit five of his next six passes to go deep into Arkadelphia territory.
A 17-yarder to Witcher gave the 'Hawks some breathing room, then a 22-yard catch and run by Wright got the 'Hawks to near mid-field. Two passes to Holtgrewe netted 16 yards, and another 8-yarder to Witcher set the 'Hawks on the Badger 36. The guests committed pass interference again, with the penalty moving the ball to the 21.
The drive looked to go off the rails when Sainsbury was sacked for a 14-yard loss, but the Badgers committed still another personal foul to erase the yardage loss with a 15-yard advancement to the 20. Winn then snagged a pass for 9 yards to the 11 and another first down. After the 'Hawks lost 3 yards on first down, Sainsbury hooked with Holtgrewe for the 11th time in the game, this time for 14 yards and another score. Winn ran the conversion in to get the 'Hawks to back within two scores, trailing 41-26 with 5:24 left in the game.
To douse any hopes of a comeback, Arkadelphia turned to Hatley and Turner to move the ball down the field. While they couldn't get into the end zone, they did move the ball close enough for a 32-yard field goal off the toe of Goodman. The 3-pointer lifted the Badger lead to 44-26 with 3:39 showing.
The 'Hawks got the ball back to the 12 after the kickoff, but could not move the ball in three plays. Choosing to go for it on fourth down on their own 7, rather than give up, the 'Hawks' receiver couldn't quite hang on to the pass that would have gotten the first down. With a first down on the 'Hawk 7, it took the Badgers two plays to score again. The PAT kick made it 51-26.
Witcher brought the crowd to its feet when he gathered the kickoff inside the 5, sidestepped tacklers, broke for the east sidelines before outracing a host of defenders to run into the end zone. However, a flag was thrown a some point during the run and the score was waved off. Moments later, the clock ran out on the game and the 'Hawks' 2017 season.
Pea Ridge finished the season with a sparking 12-2 record, bringing the Class of 2018's career ledger to 37-7, second only to state champion Warren over the same time span.
Winn's record setting evening saw him gather 115 yards on 26 carries, giving him 2,285 for the season and 3,671 for his career. His last touchdown gave him 194 points for the season, tops in the 4A-1 and second best in the state.
Sainsbury finished 15 for 31 for 144 yards and two touchdowns. His 2,419 yards passing this season put him atop the 4A-1 and like Winn, second among all quarterbacks in the state.
Holtgrewe caught an amazing 11 passes 101 yards to give him a season's total 1,271 yards, best in the 4A-1. He was second among all receivers in the 4A classification. Witcher caught three passes for 32 yards and was a standout on defense.
Defensively, Tristan Brewer had a monster night, racking up 16 tackles to not only lead the 4A-1 conference season's totals, but also grab the top spot among all defenders in the state. Brewer piled up 157 tackles through the course of the season.
Other defensive standouts were Mike Mahoney who tabulated nine stops, with Rhine close behind with eight tackles. Adam Trammel and Witcher both had seven tackles defensively to contribute mightily.
The 'Hawks never threw in the towel and competed fiercely until the final horn. As a testament to the great support and encouragement offered by the Pea Ridge school and community, no local fans exited the stadium until the game was officially over.
Sports on 12/06/2017