Heber Springs Weston Warden, right, and Liam Buffalo in the homecoming parade. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
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Heber Springs’ Logan Rutledge gets a block and looks downfield for yards against Southside Batesville Thursday night. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
SOUTHSIDE BATESVILLE – Liam Buffalo passed for 231 yards and two touchdowns in helping lead the Heber Springs junior Panthers to their sixth win of the season Thursday night, 22-14.
Logan Rutledge had a career-high eight receptions for 114 yards and a touchdown and finished with 182 all-purpose yards, while Weston Warden had four receptions for 122 yards and a score for the Panthers.
Warden’s score came on Heber Springs’ second possession of the game when he took a pass from Buffalo and raced 55 yards for a touchdown. The score capped off a five-play, 95-yard drive, after the Panther defense held the Southerners on a fourth-down play on the Heber Springs 5-yard line.
Rutledge recovered a fumble on the ensuing onside-kick attempt by Heber Springs, but the Panthers’ drive stalled at the Southside 24.
The Panther defense had another fourth-down stop, this time at the Heber Springs 1, but the Panthers couldn’t muster a drive before punting it back to the Southerners.
Southside Batesville took over on the Panther 49 and four plays later, Cameron Foree connected with Brayden Simpson for a 24-yard touchdown. Foree scored on the 2-point conversion to take an 8-6 lead with 1:23 left in the half.
Two plays later, Heber Springs responded when Buffalo found Rutledge for a 44-yard touchdown pass. Warden caught the 2-point pass from Buffalo to make it 14-8 with 50 seconds left in the half.
In the second half, the two teams traded possessions before Rutledge picked off a Foree pass and returned it 45 yards with 33 seconds to go in the third quarter.
Five plays later, Buffalo rambled 13 yards to for a insurance score for the Panthers. Seth Dudeck’s 2-point pass reception made it 22-8 with 6:51 left.
Southside Batesville responded to the score by using a methodical time-consuming, 12-play, 68-yard drive to close the gap to 22-14 with 1:05 to play.
The Panthers recovered the onside-kick attempts and killed the clock to earn the win.
Heber Springs will close out its season Thursday night at Clinton. A win would give the Panthers the runner-up spot in the 2-4A behind Central Arkansas Christian.
HEBER SPRINGS AT SOUTHSIDE BATESVILLEOCTOBER 21, 2021
Southside Batesville 0 8 0 6 - 14
Heber Springs 6 8 0 8 - 22
FIRST QUARTER
HS - Liam Buffalo to Weston Warden 55-yard pass (pass failed), 4:03
SECOND QUARTER
SS - Cameron Foree to Brayden Simpson 24-yard pass (Foree run), 1:23
HS - Buffalo to Logan Rutledge 44-yard pass (Buffalo to Warden run), :50
FOURTH QUARTER
HS - Buffalo 13-yard run (Buffalo to Seth Dudeck pass), 6:51
SS - Louis Calhoun 4-yard run (run failed), 1:05
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 11, SS 12
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 13/25, SS 33/197
PASSING YARDS: HS 231, SS 70
TOTAL OFFENSE: HS 256, SS 267
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 15-25-0, SS 4-11-1
FUMBLES: HS 0, SS 1
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 5/46, SS 3/15
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 1/18, SS 1/35
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 7/53, Carter Julian 1/4, Weston Warden 1/2, Cooper Holmes 2/(-2), Team 3/(-32). SS, Louis Calhoun 18/100, Caden Rowlett 4/42, Jonathan Powell 3/41, Brodee Vanwinkle 3/13, Andrew Plumber 2/3, Cameron Foree 3/(-2).
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 15/25-231-2/0. SS, Foree 4/11-70-1/1.
RECEVING: HS, Logan Rutledge 8/114, Warden 4/122, Holmes 3/(-5). SS, Rowlett 2/40, Brayden Simpson 1/24, Rowlett 1/6.
KICKOFF RETURNS: HS, Rutledge 1/23
PUNT RETURNS: None
INT RETURNS: HS, Rutledge 1/45
FUMBLE RETURNS: None
PUNTS: HS, Buffalo 1/18. SS, Payton Barnes 1/35
HEBER SPRINGS JUNIOR HIGH SCHEDULE
(All Games Start at 7 p.m.)
Aug. 26 – Heber Springs 32, Clinton 28
Sep. 09 – Harding Academy 36, Heber Springs 16
Sep. 16 – Heber Springs 26, Dover 12
Sep. 23 – Heber Springs 34, Lonoke 12 *
Sep. 28 – Heber Springs 42, Stuttgart 32 *
Oct. 07 – Central Arkansas Christian 30, Heber Springs 14 *
Heber Springs’ Weston Warden (2) celebrates with teammate, Logan Rutledge (1), after Rutledge scored a third-quarter touchdown in a 28-6 win over Bald Knob. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
HEBER SPRINGS – Neither rain nor penalties nor the Bald Knob Bulldogs could stop the Heber Springs junior Panthers from earning their fifth win of the season with a 26-8 victory Thursday night at Panther Stadium.
Liam Buffalo rushed for a touchdown, passed for two more, and helped lead the defensive effort with two interceptions as Heber Springs improved to 5-2 on the season.
Buffalo’s two picks were part of defensive effort that held Bald Knob to 72 yards of total offense, with 54 yard of that coming on the final drive of the game against the Panther second-team defense. Freshman Jacob McMullin recorded one sack and spent most of the night in the Bulldog backfield as Heber Springs held Bald Knob to 13 yards rushing on 20 attempts.
Lightning had canceled the seventh-grade contest in the second half and helped lead to a delay of the kickoff by 15 minutes as the two teams played in a steady rain in the first half.
The elements couldn’t stop the Panthers on their first drive. After forcing a three-and-out on defense, Buffalo scampered 57 yards on second down to put the ball on the Bulldog 3. A pair of carries forced the Heber Springs back a yard, before Buffalo would score from the 4 on third down.
Buffalo would finish the night with 104 yard rushing on six attempts, his fourth 100-yard rushing performance of the season. The ninth-grader would connect with Carter Julian for the 2-point conversion to make it 8-0 with 3:02 left in the opening quarter.
Heber Springs would add to it’s advantage on its next possession after a Buffalo picked-off a fourth-down pass attempt by Bald Knob’s Dakota Shoebottom at the Panther 39. Seven plays later, Buffalo would hit Ty West for an 11-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0 with 5:32 left in the half.
Heber Springs was penalized nine times for 83 yards on the night including for 18 yards on a holding penalty on the 2-point conversion attempt.
The Bulldogs had their best drive of the first half on their next possession moving from their own 40 to the Panther 12, aided by a 13-yard run by Shoebottom and a 15-yard penalty against Heber Springs. But Buffalo intercepted another Shoebottom attempt at the Panther 7 and returned it 17 yards.
West had an 11-yard reception on the ensuing drive but the Panthers couldn’t mount a scoring threat as the half ended with Heber Springs up 14-0.
The Panthers took the second-half kickoff and handed the ball off to Weston Warden to reach the Bulldog 10 as the freshman carried five times for 42 yards. Then the penalty flag came out as Heber Springs had four attempts at first-and-goal as two Panther penalties and one Bald Knob penalty forced the unique situation. Warden would score from the 4 make it 20-0 with 3:52 left in the third quarter.
The Heber Springs defensive unit forced Bulldogs to a three-and-out and a loss of 18 yards thanks in part to the McMullin sack.
The Panthers would take over at the Bald Knob 30 and six plays later would make it 26-0 after Buffalo hit Logan Rutledge in the end zone for the score.
The Bulldogs would use a seven-play, 54-yard drive against the second-team defense to get on the scoreboard late in the contest to set the final score at 26-8.
BALD KNOB AT HEBER SPRINGSOCTOBER 14, 2021
Bald Knob 0 0 0 8 - 8
Heber Springs 8 6 6 6 - 26
FIRST QUARTER
HS - Liam Buffalo 4-yard run (Buffalo to Carter Julian pass), 3:02
SECOND QUARTER
HS - Buffalo to Ty West 4-yard pass (pass failed), 5:32
THIRD QUARTER
HS - Weston Warden 4-yard run (pass failed), 3:52
FOURTH QUARTER
HS - Buffalo to Logan Rutledge 3-yard pass (pass failed), 6:30
BK - Jerry Tidwell 4-yard run (Dakota Shoebottom run), 2:14
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 12, BK 6
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 25/191, BK 20/13
PASSING YARDS: HS 65, BK 59
TOTAL OFFENSE: HS 256, BK 72
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 6-12-0, BK 4-6-2
FUMBLES: HS 0, BK 0
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 9/83, BK 3/17
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 0, BK 1/18
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 6/104, Weston Warden 11/56, Cooper Holmes 3/21, Seth Dudeck 1/13, Logan Rutledge 2/5, Carter Julian 1/(-3), Team 1/(-5). Hunter Burleson 8/6, Garrett Swindle 2/4, Jerry Tidwell 4/4, Dakota Shoebottom 6/(-1).
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 6/12-65-2/0. BK, Shoebottom 4/6-59-0/2
RECEVING: HS, West 3/32, Rutledge 2/18, Warden 1/15. BK, Garrett Swindle 3/48, Mika Comer 1/11.
KICKOFF RETURNS: BK, Jaeden Kuhn 1/0.
PUNT RETURNS: None
INT RETURNS: Buffalo 2/17
FUMBLE RETURNS: None
PUNTS: BK, Swindle 1/18
HEBER SPRINGS JUNIOR HIGH SCHEDULE
(All Games Start at 7 p.m.)
Aug. 26 – Heber Springs 32, Clinton 28
Sep. 09 – Harding Academy 36, Heber Springs 16
Sep. 16 – Heber Springs 26, Dover 12
Sep. 23 – Heber Springs 34, Lonoke 12 *
Sep. 28 – Heber Springs 42, Stuttgart 32 *
Oct. 07 – Central Arkansas Christian 30, Heber Springs 14 *
Heber Springs offensive lineman Cade James attempts to hold off Central Arkansas Christian’s Jesse Sharp as Panther quarterback Liam Buffalo looks for running room. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
RECORD: 4-2
FIRST DOWNS: HS 76, OPP 61
FUMBLES: HS 2, OPP 2
TURNOVERS: HS 3, OPP 5
RUSHING (ATT/YDS/AVG/TD): HS 123/886/7.2/12, Opp 161/950/5.9/10
PASSING (COMP/ATT-YARDS-TD/INT): HS 51/89-762-10/1, Opp 27/55-343-2/3
INDIVIDUAL
RUSHING (Att/Yds/Tds): Liam Buffalo 69/630/11, Weston Warden 34/189/1, Lucas Carcia 6/49, Carter Julian 2/16, Logan Rutledge 5/14, Cooper Holmes 3/10
Heber Springs defensive lineman Luke Elliott attempts to get around Central Arkansas Christian’s Peyton Baker in junior high football action Thursday night in North Little Rock. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
NORTH LITTLE ROCK – In a battle of 2-4A conference unbeatens, it was the Central Arkansas Christian Mustangs that came out on top with a 30-14 victory Thursday night at Mustang Mountain.
Central Arkansas Christian’s Renalson Sullivan rushed 13 times for 143 yards with a touchdown while his teammate, Grayson Wilson, rushed eight times for 120 yards and two touchdowns.
CAC (4-0 in 2-4A and 6-0 overall) averaged almost 14 yards per carry and finished the night with 279 yards rushing on 23 attempts. Heber Springs (3-1, 4-2) averaged almost six yards per rush as Liam Buffalo led the way for the Panthers with 69 yards on 14 carries.
Heber Springs opened the contest by driving to the CAC 42 on five plays, but sack stalled the drive forcing a punt with 4:30 left in the first quarter.
The Mustangs killed the rest of the first quarter with a drive that started at the CAC 23. Wilson capped off the drive with an 8-yard run with 6:48 left in the half. Wilson also added the 2-point conversion.
The Panthers mounted a drive before the end of the first half, but Buffalo was stopped inches short of the end zone on fourth down.
The two teams traded possessions in the second half before Samuelson ripped off a 61-yard scoring run with 2:52 to play in the third quarter.
After a three-and-out by Heber Springs, Wilson would score on a 28-yard run to cap off a five-play, 54-yard drive with 6:54 left in the game. The 2-point conversion failed leaving CAC in control at 22-0.
The Panthers stayed alive on their next possession with a quick scoring play as Buffalo would score on a 10-yard run and then add the 2-point conversion to make it 22-8 with 6:06 left. The highlight of the drive was a 48-yard pass from Buffalo to Weston Warden.
The Mustangs would respond with six-play drive to seal the win as eighth-grader Kevin Williams, the son of a former NFL player of the same name, scored on a 16-yard run. Wilson connected to Jordan Kasinger for the 2-point conversion with 2:46 to play.
Heber Springs added a late score as Buffalo connected with Warden for a 2-yard touchdown pass with 15 seconds left. Warden, who finished with four receptions for 69 yards, carried the ball four times for 44 yards on the drive.
HEBER SPRINGS AT CENTRAL ARKANSAS CHRISTIANOCTOBER 7, 2021
Heber Springs 0 0 0 14 - 14
Lonoke 0 8 8 14 - 30
SECOND QUARTER
CAC - Grayson Wilson 8-yard run (Wilson run), 6:48
THIRD QUARTER
CAC - Renalson Sullivan 61-yard run (Wilson run), 2:52
FOURTH QUARTER
CAC - Wilson 28-yard run (pass failed), 6:54
HS - Liam Buffalo 10-yard run (Buffalo run), 6:06
CAC - Kevin Williams 11-yard run (Wilson to Jordan Kasinger pass), 2:46
HS - Buffalo to Weston Warden 2-yard pass (pass failed), :15
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 12, CAC 11
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 20/119, CAC 23/279
PASSING YARDS: HS 77, CAC 40
TOTAL OFFENSE: HS 196, CAC 319
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 7-16-0, CAC 2-7-0
FUMBLES: HS 0, CAC 0
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 2/10, CAC 4/35
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 3/30.3, CAC 0
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 14/69, Weston Warden 4/44, Carter Julian 1/9, Logan Rutledge 1/(-3). CAC, Grayson Wilson 13/143, Renalson Sullivan 8/120, Kevin Williams 1/11, Cooper Bahnks 1/4.
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 7/16-77-1/0. CAC, Wilson 2/7-40-0/0.
RECEVING: HS, Warden 4/69, Rutledge 1/7, Seth Dudeck 1/1, Julian 1/0. CAC, Cooper Bahnks 1/22, Jace Wooten 1/18.
KICKOFF RETURNS: HS, Rutledge 1/17.
PUNT RETURNS: None
INT RETURNS: None
FUMBLE RETURNS: None
PUNTS: HS, Buffalo 3/91
HEBER SPRINGS JUNIOR HIGH SCHEDULE
(All Games Start at 7 p.m.)
Aug. 26 – Heber Springs 32, Clinton 28
Sep. 09 – Harding Academy 36, Heber Springs 16
Sep. 16 – Heber Springs 26, Dover 12
Sep. 23 – Heber Springs 34, Lonoke 12 *
Sep. 28 – Heber Springs 42, Stuttgart 32 *
Oct. 07 – Central Arkansas Christian 30, Heber Springs 14 *
Heber Springs’ Liam Buffalo races toward a second-half touchdown in Tuesday night at Panther Stadium. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
In a dueling battling of quarterbacks Tuesday night, Heber Springs’ Liam Buffalo was just a little better as the Panthers claimed a 42-32 victory over Stuttgart in 2-4A junior high action at Panther Stadium.
Heber Springs improved to 4-1 on the season, and 2-0 in conference play, with the win in game that was scheduled for a Tuesday night instead of the normal Thursday night due to the two senior high teams playing Thursday for a statewide television.
Buffalo passed for 207 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 147 yards on 16 carries and added three more scores. Stuttgart ninth-grader DeVontae Clark rushed for 272 yards on 14 carries with five touchdowns.
While Buffalo finished with 347 yards of total offense to Clark’s 291 yards, it was the Stuttgart freshman that struck first racing 90 yards to put the Ricebirds up 6-0 with 5:15 left in the first half.
Heber Springs responded less than 30 seconds later when Buffalo connected with Weston Warden for a 53-yard touchdown with 4:47 left in the second quarter.
Clark and Buffalo traded touchdown runs (12 yards for Clark and 4 yards Buffalo) in the half but Stuttgart led 14-12 at the break as Clark converted the 2-point conversion after his scoring run.
Heber Springs took the second-half kickoff and marched 66 yards on seven plays as Buffalo scored on run from the 1. Warden had his second consecutive 100-yard receiving night catching five passes for 159 yards, including receptions of 31 and 21 yards on the drive.
The Panthers 18-14 advantage at the 3:30 mark of the third quarter didn’t last as Clark raced 56 yards on the second play of the drive to give the Ricebirds a 20-18 lead.
Heber Springs quickly pushed the ball down the field on first-down runs by Warden and Buffalo and two Seth Dudeck pass receptions. The first for 13 yards and the last an 11-yard scoring strike. Buffalo hit Warden for the 2-point conversion and the Panthers led 26-20 with 39.7 seconds left in the third quarter.
The Panther defense would force Stuttgart to a three-and-out before adding another score on a 50-yard touchdown run by Buffalo. After a successful 2-point conversion by Buffalo, Clark would responded 22 seconds later to make it 34-26 with 4:42 left in the game.
After a 23-yard kickoff return by Logan Rutledge, Buffalo connected with Carter Julian for no gain before finding Warden for a 43-yard touchdown pass. Rutledge ran in the 2-point conversion to make it 42-26 with just over four minutes left.
Stuttgart’s Jawyan Terry returned the ensuing kickoff 28 yards and would have scored but was brought down by Emmitt Dwyer. However, three consecutive runs by Clark would make it a 10-point game at 42-32 with 3:09 left.
Heber Springs would pick up a pair of first downs to end the contest.
Warden finished with 202 all-purpose yards for the Panthers.
STUTTGART AT LONOKESEPTEMBER 28, 2021
Stuttgart 0 14 6 12 - 32
Heber Springs 0 12 14 16 - 42
SECOND QUARTER
S - DeVontae Clark 90-yard run (pass failed), 5:15
HS - Liam Buffalo to Weston Warden 53-yard pass (run failed), 4:47
S - Clark 12-yard run (Clark run), 2:09
HS - Buffalo 4-yard run (run failed), :22
THIRD QUARTER
HS - Buffalo 1-yard run (run failed), 4:32
S - Clark 56-yard run (pass failed), 3:50
HS - Buffalo to Seth Dudeck 11-yard pass (Buffalo to Warden pass), :39.7
FOURTH QUARTER
HS - Buffalo 50-yard run (Buffalo run), 5:04
S - Clark 57-yard run (pass failed), 4:42
HS - Buffalo to Warden 43-yard pass (Logan Rutledge run), 4:12
S - Clark 4-yard run (run failed), 3:09
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 18, S 8
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 25/190, S 22/292
PASSING YARDS: HS 207, S 45
TOTAL OFFENSE: HS 397, S 337
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 9-16-0, S 3-5-0
FUMBLES: HS 1, L 0
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 5/25, S 8/94
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 1/50, S 3/34.7
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 16/147, Weston Warden 9/43. Stuttgart, DeVontae Clark 14/272, Jawyan Terry 7/20, Damariya Lee 1/0.
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 9/16-207-3/0. Stuttgart, Clark 2/4-9-0/0, Hayden Prine 1/1-36-0/0
RECEVING: HS, Warden 5/159, Seth Dudeck 3/48, Carter Julian 1/0. Stuttgart, Quaterion Johnson 2/9, Peyton Thompson 1/36
KICKOFF RETURNS: HS, Logan Rutledge 2/27. S, Terry 1/28, Johnson 2/20, Orion Talley 1/11.
PUNT RETURNS: None
INT RETURNS: None
FUMBLE RETURNS: None
PUNTS: HS, Buffalo 1/50. Stutgart, Prine 3/104
Heber Springs’ Weston Warden looks to get up field after taking a screen pass from Liam Buffalo Thursday night in Lonoke. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
LONOKE – Heber Springs overcame a sluggish start to claim a 34-12 conference-opening victory over Lonoke Thursday night.
Liam Buffalo threw his first interception this season in more than 50 attempts, but that would be the only blemish for the ninth-grader on the night as he was 11 of 14 passing for 201 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 95 yards and three touchdowns on seven attempts.
Weston Warden caught five passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns including a 23-yarder with 7:34 to play in the first half to tie the game at 6-6, and an 85-yarder on a screen pass that he took the distance to give the Panthers (3-1, 1-0) a 12-6 lead with 1:13 left in the half – a lead the Panthers wouldn’t give up.
Lonoke (0-2, 0-1) struck first as Marquez Jackson took the opening kickoff 82 yards for a score to give the Jackrabbits an early 6-0 advantage.
The Panthers first drive was stalled thanks in part to a pair of 10-yard penalties and an interception by Lonoke’s Tanner Starks.
Lonoke appeared to be driving for another score reaching the Heber Springs 28, but on third-and-3, Jacob McMullin threw Lonoke quarterback J.T. Stuart for a seven-yard loss to end the Jackrabbit momentum as a fourth-down pass play came up short.
The Panthers would then drive 74 yards on 10 plays to tie things up on the Buffalo to Warden 23-yard scoring pass.
Heber Springs held Lonoke on their next possession thanks in part to tackles for loss by Luke Elliott and Buffalo.
After a 33-yard punt by Stuart, Buffalo connected with Warden, who did the rest for the 85-yard score.
McMullin, who recovered three onside kick attempts on the night, covered the onside attempt at the Panther 48. Buffalo would race 52 yards for the score with 7:11 left in the third quarter. Buffalo would connect with Logan Rutledge for the 2-point conversion to make it 20-6.
On the ensuing kickoff, Jackson would strike again return the kickoff for 74 yards to make it 20-12.
Heber Springs would use a seven-play, 57-yard drive to respond as Buffalo capped the drive with a 13-yard scoring run to make it 26-12.
The Panthers added a fourth-quarter touchdown on a 5-yard run by Buffalo and a 2-point conversion by Buffalo to set the final score.
Heber Springs returns to action Tuesday night at Panther Stadium against Stuttgart.
HEBER SPRINGS AT LONOKESEPTEMBER 23, 2021
Heber Springs 0 12 14 6 - 32
Lonoke 6 0 6 0 - 12
FIRST QUARTER
L - Marquez Jackson 82-yard kickoff return (run failed), 7:47
SECOND QUARTER
HS - Liam Buffalo to Weston Warden 23-yard pass (pass failed), 7:34
HS - Buffalo to Warden 85-yard pass (run failed), 1:13
THIRD QUARTER
HS - Buffalo 52-yard run (Buffalo to Logan Rutledge pass), 7:11
L - Jackson 74-yard kickoff return (run failed), 6:59
HS - Buffalo 13-yard run (run failed), 3:45
FOURTH QUARTER
HS - Buffalo 5-yard run (Buffalo run), 7:14
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 15, L 5
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 21/161, L 21/33
PASSING YARDS: HS 201, L 34
TOTAL OFFENSE: HS 362, L 67
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 11-14-1, L 4-11-1
FUMBLES: HS 0, L 0
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 6/40, L 0/0
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 0, L 1/33
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 7/95, Lucas Garcia 6/49, Logan Rutledge 1/13, Carter Julian 1/7, Weston Warden 5/2, Team 1/(-5). Lonoke, D'Mar Eason 4/17, Marquez Jackson 5/14, J.T. Stuart 7/13, Will Payne 1/2, Alex Whiting 2/2, Dexter Rollason 1/(-4), Team 1/(-11).
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 11/14-201-2/1, Stuart 4/11-34-0/1
RECEVING: HS, Warden 5/124, Ty West 2/22, Julian 2/20, Seth Dudeck 1/27, Rutledge 1/8. L, Tanner Starks 1/22, Cameron Hooten 1/9, Jaden Mays 1/5, Payne 1/(-2).
KICKOFF RETURNS: L, Jackson 2/156, T.J. Terry 1/7.
PUNT RETURNS: None
INT RETURNS: HS, Caleb Carr 1/29. L, Starks 1/18
FUMBLE RETURNS: None
PUNTS: L, Stuart 1/33.
Heber Springs’ Seth Dudeck attempts to avoid a Dover defender Thursday night at Panther Stadium. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
Heber Springs’ Weston Warden finished with 126 all-purpose yards and a pair of touchdowns as the junior Panthers wrapped up nonconference play with a 26-12 victory over Dover Thursday night at Panther Stadium.
Ninth-grader Liam Buffalo rushed nine times for 102 yards and a 43-yard touchdown that opened the scoring with 5:24 to play in the first half.
Buffalo’s run came after the Panther defense forced a three-and-out on Dover’s first possession.
On the Pirates second possession, Dover picked up a pair of first downs and reached the Panther 43, but a Buffalo recovered a Pirate fumble at the 50-yard line.
Heber Springs was flagged eight times for 52 yards on the night, including three on the Panthers next drive that stalled on their own 46.
Dover pushed the ball out to midfield, but Heber Springs’ defense stiffened forcing a punt attempt, but a high snap sailed over the punters head and Jacob McMullin recovered the loose football at the Dover 26.
Four plays later, Buffalo connected with Carter Julian for a 4-yard touchdown and a 2-point conversion with 3:13 left in the half.
Dover responded with a seven-play, 55-yard drive to get on the board with 37.5 seconds left in the half.
Heber Springs came out of the half and scored on a 12-play, 69-yard drive that Warden capped off with a 2-yard touchdown reception from Buffalo to make it 20-6 with 4:20 left in the third quarter.
The score would remain that way until late in the contest when Warden picked off a Talvin Leavell pass attempt and raced 83 yards for a score with just under a minute to play.
On the ensuing kickoff, Masters would race 85-yards to set the final score at 26-12.
Heber Springs will open conference play next week at Lonoke.
DOVER AT HEBER SPRINGSSEPTEMBER 16, 2021
Dover 0 6 0 6 - 12
Heber Springs 6 8 6 6 - 26
FIRST QUARTER
HS - Liam Buffalo 43-yard run (pass failed), 5:24
SECOND QUARTER
HS - Buffalo to Carter Julian 4-yard pass (Buffalo to Julian), 3:13
D - Drew Masters 2-yard run (run failed), 37.5
THIRD QUARTER
HS - Buffalo to Weston Warden 14-yard pass (pass failed), 4:20
FOURTH QUARTER
HS - Warden 83-yard interception return (pass failed), 57.6
D - Masters 85-yard kickoff return (run failed), 43.8
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 9, D 13
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 14/108, D 33/116
PASSING YARDS: HS 72, D 31
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 9-16-0, D 4-8-1
FUMBLES: HS 1, D 2
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 8-52, D 5-40
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 2-14.5, D 1-19
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 9/102, Weston Warden 4/20, Team 1/(-4). Dover, Drew Masters 21/86, Talvin Leavell 7/29, Ty George 3/36, Timmy Callans 1/(-7), Team 1/(-28)
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 9/16-72-2/0. D, Talvin Leavell 4/8-31-0/1
RECEVING: HS, Carter Julian 3/16, Warden 2/21, Seth Dudeck 2/15, Logan Rutledge 2/20
KICKOFF RETURNS: D, Masters 1/85, George 2/29, Chayner Owen 1/3
PUNT RETURNS: None
INT RETURNS: HS, Warden 1/85
FUMBLE RETURNS: D, Team 1/8
PUNTS: HS, Buffalo 1/29, Team 1/0. D, Leavell 1/19
Heber Springs’ Carter Julian turns up field after catching a Liam Buffalo pass during the Junior Panthers 26-12 win over Dover Thursday night at Panther Stadium. Julian caught three passes, including one for a touchdown, as Heber Springs improved to 2-1 on the season. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
Heber Springs’ Weston Warden fights for yards Thursday against Harding Academy. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO
SEARCY – The Heber Springs junior Panthers started strong and finished strong against Harding Academy on Thursday it was just the in-between that gave them problems as the Wildcats claimed a 36-16 win.
Heber Springs (1-1) dominated the first quarter and a half of action limiting Harding Academy to 11 total yards and no first downs during the first 12 minutes of action.
In the meantime, the Panthers racked up 131 yards and seven first downs during that same stretch to take an 8-0 lead. After Emmitt Dwyer’s interception, Liam Buffalo would score from 17 yards out two plays later and after Buffalo completed the 2-point pass to Ty West, Heber Springs led 8-0 with 48.3 seconds left in the first quarter.
After the Panther defense held Harding Academy to a three-and-out, Heber Springs appeared to moving into position for another score after picking up a pair of first downs runs by Buffalo, but a sack and two penalties put the Panthers in a third-and-30 situation. Buffalo connected with Weston Warden for 20 yards, but a fourth-down pass fell incomplete.
Harding Academy took over with 4:05 to play and scored on a seven-play, 54-yard drive that Owen Miller capped off with a 7-yard touchdown run with 1:27 left in the half.
After a quick three-and-out by the Panthers, Harding Academy got the ball back with 54 seconds left in the half and didn’t waste any time as Miller connected with Trenton Miller for a 61-yard touchdown pass to give the Wildcats a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Heber Springs wouldn’t get on the scoreboard again until late in the contest when Buffalo connected with Carter Julian for a 21-yard completion to start a drive with 4:24 left and the duo completed finished the 83-yard drive with a 12-yard scoring strike. Buffalo hit Julian again for the 2-point conversion with 1:23 to play.
Harding Academy outgained Heber Springs in total offense, 246-217, but the Panthers finished with 12 first downs to the Wildcats 7.
Buffalo paced Heber Springs by going 11-and-18 for 113 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 74 yards on 15 carries for a score.
Heber Springs will host Dover Thursday night at Panther Stadium. The seventh-grade team will start things off at 5:30 p.m. followed by the junior high game at 7 p.m.
HEBER SPRINGS AT HARDING ACADEMY
SEPTEMBER 9, 2021
Heber Springs 8 0 0 8 - 16
Harding Academy 0 16 8 12 - 36
FIRST QUARTER
HS - Liam Buffalo 17-yard run (Buffalo to Ty West pass), 48.3
SECOND QUARTER
HA - Owen Miller 7-yard run (Miller to Endy McGalliard pass), 1:27
HA - Miller to Trenton Hall 61-yard pass (Miller to McGalliard pass), 41.4
THIRD QUARTER
HA - Hall 19-yard run (pass failed), 6:50
HA - Cam Pryer 26-yard run (run failed), 4:24
FOURTH QUARTER
HS - Buffalo to Carter Julian 12-yard pass (Buffalo to Julian pass), 1:23
TEAM STATISTICSFIRST DOWNS: HS 12, HA 9
RUSHES-YARDS: HS 29/104, HA 20/140
PASSING YARDS: HS 113, HA 106
COMP-ATT-INT: HS 11-18-0, HA 5-10-1
FUMBLES: HS 0, HA 0
PENALITIES-YARDS: HS 6-40, HA 3-15
PUNTS-AVERAGE: HS 3-31.7, HA 2-39.5
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: HS, Liam Buffalo 15/74, Weston Warden 9/15, Cooper Holmes 3/10, Logan Rutledge 2/5. HA, Trenton Hall 9/61, Owen Miller 8/49, Cam Pryer 1/26, Jack Roberts 2/4.
PASSING: HS, Buffalo 11/18-113-1/0. HA, Owen Miller 5/10-206-2/1
RECEVING: HS, Carter Julian 4/48, Warden 4/38, Holmes 2/24, Rutledge 1/3. HA, Trenton Hall 1/61, Endy McGalliard 2/38, Cam Pryer 1/5, Oz Baker 1/3.
KICKOFF RETURNS: HS, Holmes 3/25, Rutledge 1/15, Emitt Dwyer 1/11.
PUNT RETURNS: HS, Dwyer 1/9
PUNTS: HS, Buffalo 3/95/31.7. HA, Miller 2/79/39.5
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