Cats defeat Wolverines, 48-40, to reach semifinals

The Conway Wampus Cats are in the 7A state semifinals — by George. Michael George, well rested after sitting out last week with an ankle injury, rushed for 281 yards on 39 carries and three touchdowns Thursday night to lead the Cats (9-3) to a 48-40 victory over Bentonville West at Bentonville. Conway, which defeated Bentonville and Bentonville West this season, will play either North Little Rock or Fort Smith Northside in next week’s semifinal on the home field of the highest seeded team. It assures a Central Conference team will play for the state title. “I was just trying to get our team a good lead and keep going,” said George. SEE ALSO Conway’s George runs rampant against competition Football roundup: Three county teams advance “There were times there were nothing there, then there were times it was absolutely amazing,” said Conway coach Clint Ashcraft. “When he gets through the first wave of blockers, he’s hard to stop.” Possibly the biggest play of the game occurred late in the fourth quarter with Conway nursing a 41-30 lead and the Wolverines at first and goal at the CHS 2. Jordan Doby broke through for a sack of West quarterback Will Jarrett. That forced a field goal. Sparked by a another burst by George, the Cats upped the lead to 48-33 on a 4-yard run by Alex Hreha with 2:49 left. The Wolverines drove to a TD pass from Jarrett to Jonas Higson with 1:13 left. The Cats recovered an onside kick and ran out the clock. After Wolverine quarterback Will Jarrett connected with Jayden Prince for two touchdowns for a 14-0 lead early, the Wampus Cats grasped the momentum with outstanding secondary cover and quarterback pressure on the way to a 35-3 run for a 35-17 halftime lead. “We switched our defense and went to a pressure package and play Cover 3 (three deep backs) in the secondary,” Ashcraft said. “That’s what the kinds are comfortable in and like to play.” ‘George began with a 57-yard touchdown run and then got Conway in position, then Brannon Clark capped the drive with a 1-yard run to draw the Cats within 17-14. Then, the game turned significantly when Jackson Freeman dislodged the ball from the scrambling Jarrett and Will Kennedy picked up the ball for a 16-yard scoop-and score to give Conway a 21-17 lead. A pass from Alex Hreha to Nick Richmond set up George’s 13-yard run on a pitch for a 28-17 lead. Hreha and Richmond connected for a 33-yard touchdown with four seconds left in the half to give Conway a 35-17 cushion. That deflated quickly the second half. Jarrett hit Stefan Banda with a 27-yard TD pass on the Wolverines’ first drive. A recovered fumble led to another Jarrett to Banda scoring pass. A attempt for the two-point conversion to pull West within 35-30 midway through the third quarter. George out CHS up by 11 again with a 10-yard TD run.

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CATS DEFEAT WOLVERINES, 48-40, TO REACH SEMIFINALS

DAVID MCCOLLUM LOG CABIN STAFF WRITER

thecabin.net | 11/16/2017