RISON - What a difference a week can make.
After suffering their only loss of the season the previous week at McGehee, the Rison Wildcats cleaned up some of the mistakes they made against the Owls and were able to overcome an early deficit to post a 55-40 homecoming win over the Drew Central Pirates last Friday night at George Walker Field of Champions.
The ‘Cats had six fumbles against the Owls, losing three. Against Drew Central, the offense never put the ball on the ground though the Pirates did recover an onside kick to start the game. The Wildcats also had only two penalties for 25 yards.
Despite being winless on the season, the Pirates looked inspired when they came up with the huge onside kick recovery to start the game. Drew Central used 10 plays in a hurry-up mode to cover the 49 yards before sophomore running back Cameron Sanders took it from three yards out. The ‘Cats stopped the two-point attempt to make it 6-0 with 8:20 left in the first quarter.
Rison recovered another onside attempt by the Pirates the ensuing kickoff. Taking over at their own 46, the Wildcats needed six plays to complete a 54-yard scoring drive. The big play came on a 26-yard run by Kyson Walker, who eventually scored on a one-yard run. Aidan Bitely’s point-after gave the ‘Cats a 7-6 lead with 5:58 left in the opening period.
A hold on the Pirates’ first play of it ensuing series put Drew Central behind the sticks and the Pirates were forced to punt after three plays. Penalties would be an issue for the Pirates throughout the game as they were flagged 15 times for 112 yards.
Taking over at the Rison 39 after the punt, quarterback Logan McGarity ripped off a 29-yard run on the first play of the series and ended up scoring three plays later on a 3-yard run. Bitely’s kick was no good, making it 13-6.
Drew Central was forced to punt again on its next possession after being penalized four times for 30 yards.
Starting from the Pirate 43, Walker scored his second touchdown of the game five plays lat…