HARMONY GROVE - The Rison Wildcats opened the 2025 season in convincing fashion Friday night, defeating Harmony Grove (Ouachita County) 36-19 in a game where Rison controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.Head coach Chris Vereen said he was pleased with his team's physical play but noted areas that still need improvement."After watching film and grading things out, I was very pleased up front with the blocking and how well we moved the football," Vereen said. "But I didn't like the turnovers. There were times we could have put the game away, but we fumbled in a big spot, gave up a fourth-and-long, and then a big pass. Those are things we have to clean up." The 'Cats put the ball on the ground four times, losing it twice.Rison came out strong, marching 72 yards in eight plays on its opening drive. Kyson Fletcher capped it with a 9-yard touchdown run at the 7:34 mark of the first quarter. Dalton Matheson's extra point was no good, leaving the Wildcats with a 6-0 lead.The defense quickly followed with a fourth-down sack to force a turnover on downs. On the very next play, Jeramiah Marshall broke loose for a 61-yard touchdown run. Fletcher added the two-point conversion to push the lead to 14-0.The Hornets struck back quickly with a 58-yard score less than a minute later, cutting the margin to 14-7. But the Wildcats answered with a six-play, 73yard drive capped by a 25-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kyson Walker to Jaquis Rauls. Marshall added the twopoint run for a 22-7 lead early in the second quarter.A fumble by the Wildcats gave Harmony Grove new life, and the Hornets capitalized with a 35yard touchdown pass to cut it to 22-13. Rauls blocked the extra point to keep the margin at nine.Walker responded with his legs, breaking free for a 30-yard touchdown run with 5:05 left before halftime. Marshall converted again, his third two-point run of the night, to make it 30-13 at the break.The ...
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