RISON - From start to finish, a determined Lake Village team refused to go away last Friday night at George Walker Field of Champions. So, it wasn’t until a touchdown and an interception with a few minutes left in the game that Rison was able to exhale, as the Wildcats turned back the Beavers’ upset bid, 49-34, in the 6-3A Conference battle.
The victory improved Rison to 4-0 in the conference race and 70 overall, yet more importantly allowed the Wildcats to stay a game ahead of Harmony Grove in the league standings, after the Hornets stung the life out of Fordyce on the same night. Meanwhile, the talented and dangerous Lake Village squad slipped to 2-2 and 2-4, a forfeit to Drew Central after winning on the field put the Beavers' playoff chances in jeopardy.
Once again, another third quarter “lull” by the Wildcats resulted in a comfortable 35-14 advantage turning into a precarious 35-27 lead to start the fourth period. But sandwiched around one last touchdown by the Beavers, the ‘Cats were able to tack up two more TDs of their own in the final period to exit the field with a hard-earned decision.
While Rison generated over 500 yards of offense on 32 minutes of possession time, the busy Beavers used 4 plays of 73, 40, 51 and 61 yards to produce 225 of their 354 yards. The ‘Cat defense did manage to limit the Beavers’ big back Aquavious Dunbar to only 31 yards on 10 carries. But Dunbar did snag a 61-yard TD pass late in the fourth period that pulled Lake Village within 42-34.
Even though Rison scored touchdowns on 7 of its 11 possessions, two lost fumbles on the Wildcats’ end of the field and the inability to punch across a TD after reaching the Lake Village 1 as the first half ended, helped keep the Beavers motivated throughout game. Combined with the Beavers’ big night on offense, and his own team's lack of an “edge,” left Rison head coach Clay Totty far from satisfied.
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