SOPHOMORES SCORE FOUR TOUCHDOWNS

The Booneville Bearcats scored touchdowns on six straight first half possessions and added a defensive touchdown and led Cedarville 49-6 at the intermission.

That would also be the final as the Bearcats (8-2, 7-0) wrapped up a perfect Conference 3A-1 run. Cedarville finished its season 1-9 and 1-6.

But it was the Pirates who got in the first shot.

A 66-yard catch and run on a screen pass got the Pirates to the Bearcat 1-yard line and a touchdown on the next play had Cedarville up 6-0.

Jace Washburn made a stop on a two-point conversion pass attempt.

The Bearcats went in front 7-6 on a 3-yard run by Dax Goff and the first of seven straight Juan Moreno point after kicks.

Conner Lentz had a 56-yard run to set up Goff’s first of two touchdowns which went onto the board.

Goff went 60 yards for a score on the next Bearcat offensive play but a holding flag took it away.

Goff then went for 49 yards on the next play and Lentz later scored from the 6 to make it 14-6 with 7:32 to play in the opening quarter.

A facemask penalty followed by an offside infraction – the Bearcats had 80 yards on eight flags in the first half – helped Cedarville to move into Bearcat territory where another screen pass looked to move the chains, but the ball was fumbled.

Washburn was there to pick it up and he went 72 yards for a touchdown to make it 21-6.

It is the second fumble return touchdown of the year and at 72 yards it is the second longest return of a fumble in school history.

Before the quarter ended a sack by Clayton Green and Hunter Warren forced a Pirate punt and the Bearcats had reached the Pirate 23 when the teams traded ends.

Lentz scored on a run of 12 yards two plays into the second quarter and it was 28-6.

That gave Lentz, who had 74 yards on his three carries, his first multiple touchdown game and marked the first time he scored at all since scoring touchdowns in each of the first four games of the season.

The Bearcats forced another punt and then scored again. This time it was Warren (shown) bolting 42 yards for the touchdown to make it 35-6.

Warren ran for 71 yards on five carries.

It was on the next Bearcat drive when Goff had two touchdowns negated, one by a block in the back and another by a personal foul, but a third trip to the end zone did show up on the scoreboard.

The scoring run was 14 yards and it was 42-6 with 4:13 to go in the first half.

Goff was finished for the night with 164 yards on 11 carries and he is just 43 yards away from 5,000 for his Bearcat career.

A possession later the Bearcats were at their 20 when Chase Shelton got loose and Dakota Mattson’s down field block cleared the final obstacle for an 80 yard touchdown run to make it 49-6.

That gave the three Bearcat sophomore running backs a combined four touchdowns and 225 yards and the Bearcats had already amassed 402 yards of offense.

The entire second half was played between the Cedarville 29- and Bearcat 39-yard lines and, with the clock running, saw only 81 combined yards.

The Pirates actually had a negative 1 yard on the ground in the half, which made it minus 26 yards rushing for the game, though they did throw for 168.

As the top seed from the 3A-1, the Bearcats will be at home to open the playoffs against 3A-6 five seeded Drew Central, and can earn another home game with a win over the Pirates.

A second home game would be against the winner of the Fouke (3rd, 3A-5) at Osceola (3rd, 3A-3) game.