Marion beats Wynne behind defense

MARION 27, WYNNE 7

MARION — Marion rode a stingy defensive performance and a timely offense to a 27-7 win Friday night over Wynne at Southern Bancorp Stadium.

Marion limited Wynne to just 12 first downs in the game, including five in the first half when the Pats claimed a 13-0 lead after two quarters.

“Overall, a very good defensive effort, if not a great one,” said Marion Coach Lance Clark. “We competed and executed very well in the first half on defense and we played well enough to close out.”

Marion opened that lead on its first drive of the game with a 30-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Ashton Gray to senior tight end Dewayne Williams for a 7-0 advantage with 6:38 left in the first quarter.

Marion then marched 67 yards in 42 seconds with its last drive of the first half. Junior tailback Jalen Smith covered the final 31 yards with a touchdown sprint with 45 seconds left in the first half.

“That was big, especially since we got the ball coming out of halftime,” said Clark. “We hadn’t done much of anything in the first half so to go into halftime with something positive was great.”

Marion methodically marched down the field against Wynne in its first possession of the third quarter. The Pats embarked on a 15-play, 62-yard drive, capped off with a 4-yard touchdown run from Smith, followed by a two-point conversion rush by Gray for a 21-0 lead with 7:32 left in the third.

“It’s so tough to go on a drive that long in high school,” said Clark. “We made a couple plays and did what we needed to do to stay on the field and it was good that we paid it off finally.”

Wynne’s best drive of the evening came afterward as the Yellowjackets marched from their own 21-yard line to the Marion 3-yard line at the end of the third quarter with Marion ahead 21-0.

“Give them credit, they never once quit tonight,” said Clark. “At 21-0, a lot of teams might pack it in, but I didn’t see that. We had to earn everything tonight.”

The Pats twice stuffed the ’Jackets on second- and thirdand-goal situations before junior Cameron Smith blasted over the left side for a Wynne touchdown with 11:08 left in regulation.

Wynne pushed Marion to third-and-9 on the following drive with Smith on the sideline battling an unknown injury, but senior tailback Jamar Foster ran over the right side and sprinted 65 yards to the end zone with 9:13 remaining, though a missed extra point kept the score 27-7.

Smith rushed 21 times for 133 yards and two touchdowns against Wynne, while Gray passed for 118 yards and a score. Gray added 68 yards on the ground. In addition to his touchdown reception, Williams added eight tackles, including two for a loss.

Cameron Smith paced the Wynne’s offense, rushing for 105 yards.