By MATT VINES, Journal Sports
Holding on to a one-score lead on the road Friday night, Huntington chewed up more than six minutes of fourth-quarter clock as the Raiders appeared they would seal the deal with a touchdown.
But a Benton goal line stand gave the Tigers one last breath with 1:55 to go.
The Raiders (2-1) defense returned the favor, stopping Benton’s final drive near midfield when Jacolvay Cooper forced a fumble to halt the Tigers’ impressive rally, capping a 27-21 Huntington win.
Huntington moved to 2-0 in its debut season in District 1-5A.
After Benton (0-3, 0-2 District 1-5A) scored the opening touchdown, Huntington dumped 27 straight points on the Tigers to lead by 20.
“Our offensive line settled down and playing well, and we got our running backs rolling,” said Huntington coach Stephen Dennis. “At the end, we’ve got to find a way to get those two yards and seal that game up, but our defense did a great job responding to get a stop to win the game.”
Huntington gained 443 yards and all four touchdowns on the ground, a week after running for 414 yards in a surprising win over defending 1-5A champion Captain Shreve. Now the Raiders look like a contender as they head into a Week 4 contest against Haughton.
Airline 56, Union Parish 28: Airline coach Justin Scogin wanted to take the fight to a physical Union Parish squad, and the Vikings did just that.
Airline (3-0) built a 35-7 halftime lead and kept the visiting Farmers (0-3) at bay in the second half, sending the defending state champs sulking home to Farmerville.
A Jordan Lawrence interception return for a touchdown set the stage early (9-0) before Kenneth Darby caught the first of his two touchdowns to snatch a 15-7 edge in the first quarter.
“I thought the (Ben Jump) field goal on the first possession really jump started things, and then the touchdown to (Darby) got them a little nervous and opened it wide open,” Scogin said. “(Quarterback Ben Taylor) really made some veteran reads and throws tonight.”
Taylor threw four touchdown passes in all, the other two scoring catches coming via Ayden Baker and Jarvis Davis.
Union Parish chopped into the lead a little in the second half, including a Chance Meeking 93-yard kickoff return for a score that sliced Airline’s lead to 42-20.
But the Vikings finished the deal and didn’t allow the Farmers to come any closer. Airline hosts Evangel next week.
Parkway 48, Haughton 7: The unbeaten Panthers opened a 34-0 halftime advantage as CJ Dudley scored three times, and Carmaro Mayo raced 81 yards for a TD on a kickoff in the first game on the new artificial turf field between the pines at the Bucs’ Harold E. Harlan Stadium.
Parkway, which got a 29-yard interception return touchdown by Christian Harris, rose to 3-0 overall while winning its 1-5A opener. Haughton (1-2, 0-2) scored on a 32-yard Taylor Weathersby-Boston Brockhaus throw.
Captain Shreve 40, Natchitoches Central 20: Behind a 287-yard, four-touchdown breakout performance by Gators’ running back Jamarcea Plater, the Gators jumped on the Chiefs early and didn’t allow NCHS to be much of a threat afterwards.
Plater ran for TDs of 42, 3, 19 and 19 yards among his 19 carries, averaging 15.1 yards per rush. Captain Shreve (2-1, 1-1 District 1-5A) led 33-7 at halftime and cruised.
“We had some great individual efforts offensively in the first half from multiple guys,” said Captain Shreve coach Jeremy Wilburn. “I was very proud of their relentlessness in the first two quarters.
“Defensively, we took a step this week in practice being gap sound and maintaining our edges. It showed tonight as we frustrated them offensively.”
Plater and offensive tackle LJ Prudhomme rushed for touchdowns of 42 and 6 yards, respectively, but Natchitoches Central hung around with a 42-yard Owen Smith touchdown pass to slice the Gators’ edge to 13-7.
Captain Shreve scored on the ensuing drive (5 yards from quarterback Brodie Savage to Devers) and kept at least a two-score margin the rest of the way.
The Chiefs fell to 1-2 and 0-2 in District 1-5A. Smith, in his second year with the Chiefs after departing Calvary Baptist, threw for 313 yards (24-36-0) and a pair of touchdowns while Dillon Braxton snagged 150 yards worth on nine catches, including the 42-yard TD.
Contact Matt at sports@journalservicesllc.com