Canyon beats Andrews in shootout
The unbeaten Canyon Eagles had to be wondering how they would adapt offensively without quarterback Derrek Clements when they hosted Andrews in their final nondistrict game of the season Friday night at Happy State Bank Stadium.
They got all the answers they needed and had to like them.
Canyon got ground-bound against Andrews and made it work. The Eagles ran for 288 yards in beating the Mustangs 44-30 to improve to 6-0 heading into District 3-4A Division I play.
Clements went out with a serious shoulder injury in the previous week’s win at Greenwood, making his status uncertain for the rest of the season. To compensate, the Eagles went with a ground-heavy attack, and it paid dividends.
It might not have been a surprise that Sam Johnson led the way with 116 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries, as he’s been Canyon’s leading ballcarrier this season. But the real discovery was Javin Cash.
Running out of the wildcat formation at quarterback, Cash ran for 128 yards on 16 carries. That’s in addition to his work at linebacker, where he had 16 tackles, forced a fumble and ran a fumble back 41 yards for a touchdown. Cash also had an interception.
Andrews fell to 3-2 on the season.
West Plains rallies past Hereford
West Plains made sure it finished its predistrict schedule on a roll, as the Wolves scored their third straight victory by rallying from behind to beat Hereford 35-28 on the road.
The Wolves are now 3-3 after losing their first three games in program history.
Hereford (0-6) has shown signs of improvement the last two games after giving up at least 50 points in each of the first four games of the season. The Whitefaces took their first lead of the season when Kalub Ramirez hit Eric Alvarez on a 7-yard scoring pass in the third quarter to make it 28-21.
But Jordi Hernandez showed why he’s become a reliable ballcarrier for the Wolves. He scored on a 3-yard run to tie it in the third quarter and a 1-yard run for the winning points in the fourth quarter, as he finished with a game-high 201 yards and three touchdowns on 32 carries.
Freshman quarterback Reid Macon continued to impress for West Plains, completing 13-of-21 passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns to Jensen Phillips, who had three catches for 122 yards.
Hereford’s Ramirez completed 21-of-29 for 259 yards and three touchdowns. Nick Torres had four catches for 103 yards and a touchdown, and Tony Salazar ran for 149 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries.
Pampa edges rival Borger in wild finish
The 93rd meeting didn’t disappoint.
One of the Panhandle’s most storied rivalry games had one of its most memorable finishes ever at Pampa.
With 25 seconds remaining in the game, Michael Campos hit Bryce Lynn with an 18-yard touchdown pass to lift the Harvesters to a 43-40 victory over Borger in perhaps the evening’s most exciting game.
The Campos to Lynn connection was productive, as Lynn had seven catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns. But for the second week in a row, the big offensive story for Pampa (4-2) was the performance of the running game.
Freshman Max Neff continued to perform well beyond his years, running for 335 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries. Neff has run for 1,207 yards this season.
For good measure, Campos ran for 149 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries.
Borger (2-4) also had a pair of 100-yard rushers, as Logan Gray ran for 124 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries, and Avery Adame ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. Kaeden Jennings completed 12-of-17 passes for 214 yards and two touchdowns to Tyler Brooks.
Stratford stays unbeaten
Defending Class 2A Division II state champion Stratford stayed undefeated on the season, going on the road to edge Class 4A Perryton 28-21.
Stratford quarterback Bryce Braden ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries and also threw a touchdown pass. Braden’s 1-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter gave the Elks (5-0) a 28-14 lead and the cushion they needed for victory.
The Elks have now won 17 straight games dating back to last season.
Perryton’s Julian Cervantes threw two touchdown passes to Tad Pshigoda. The Rangers fell to 1-5 as they lost their fifth straight after winning their season opener.
Dumas routs El Paso Austin
Dumas made a big statement Thursday night to prepare for district play only six days after a tough loss.
The Demons faced El Paso Austin in a neutral site game in Odessa and dominated in every phase of the game imaginable, crushing Austin 47-0. Dumas now has a 4-2 record heading into next Friday’s District 3-4A Division I opener at Randall.
If there were any ill effects from a 38-20 loss to Bushland the week earlier, the Demons didn’t show them. They got all the scoring they needed only 1 ½ minutes into the game when Emmanuel Ibanez hit Oliver Ortiz on a 43-yard scoring pass for a 6-0 lead.
That was the first of three touchdown passes for Ibanez, who completed 10-of-12 passes for 131 yards. Ibanez also went over 100 yards rushing, with 136 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries.
Dumas also excelled on defense, giving up only 126 yards of offense to Austin (2-4).
Aurelio Medrano led Dumas making 18 tackles, seven of those solo, with two tackles for a loss. Defensive back Parker Dunnam added nine tackles with two for a loss.
