Ozark defense holds off Dardanelle comeback attempt

OZARK 21, DARDANELLE 13

OZARK — Dardanelle had one last opportunity to score, but Ozark’s defense stepped up once again Friday night.

Eli Munnerlyn came away with a key sack to help the Hillbillies take a 21-13 victory over the Sand Lizards in a 4A-4 Conference showdown at Hillbilly Stadium.

“The defense played tough,” Ozark coach Jeremie Burns said. “You can’t say enough about how they played. They made some stops early and then made some late in the second half.

They played well.”

The Sand Lizards took over at their 42 looking to tie the game, but the drive was halted with Munnerlyn’s sack, which forced a turnover on downs.

Ozark (4-2, 3-0) held just a one-point lead heading into the second half but was able to add to the lead in the third quarter. Dawson Dietz found Ethan Foster for a 25-yard touchdown pass to take a 2113 lead with about 9 minutes left in the third quarter.

Dardanelle, which had scored 87 points in its previous two conference games, was held without a first down in its initial two drives of a scoreless second half. Ozark held Dardanelle to just 23 offensive yards on 22 second-half plays.

“There is a lot of season left still,” Burns said. “But it gives you a lot of confidence playing well against those guys. We played them tough. I think we’ll pick up some momentum off this.”

The Sand Lizards’ best opportunity to score in the second half was ruled a sack on a pass attempt that could’ve been a touchdown. Dardanelle coach Phil Vega said he didn’t agree with the ruling.

“We had a couple busts on defense and they got touchdowns off that in the first half,” Vega said. “In the second half, we felt we needed to beat Ozark and then some. I felt we had a touchdown on a play, but it wasn’t ruled that and that was unfortunate for us.”

Ozark was led by sophomore running back Tyler Sanders, who finished with 13 carries for 141 yards with two first-half touchdowns.

“He has been big for us on offense and defense,” Burns said of Sanders. “He is leading us in tackles and leading us in rushing as well. He had some big runs with huge holes. I’m proud of that offensive line.”

Dietz finished 10 of 14 passing for 161 yards with a score for Ozark, while Foster finished with four catches for 57 yards with a touchdown as well for the Hillbillies.

Dardanelle was led by quarterback Jordan Metcalf completing 5 of 16 passes for 103 yards with a touchdown pass.

“We have overreached this year,” Vega said. “We are not done yet. We are going to work and get better. We’ll see what happens next week.”

Ozark was able to take a 14-13 lead into the break with touchdown runs of 55 and 63 yards by Sanders. On the following drive, Dardanelle got a touchdown on a deflected pass by an Ozark defender on a third-down play. Metcalf found Blake Chambers for a 60-yard score with about five minutes left before the break to cut the advantage to 14-13.

Ozark had an opportunity to score on its final drive of the first half, but an interception by Dardanelle’s Brandon Bunton ended that chance just before the break.

Dardanelle was able to get inside the red zone twice in the first half but only came away with six points with field goals from 27 and 30 yards away from Jacinto Diaz.

“We knew this would be a battle,” Burns said. “Our players made the plays needed throughout the game. I’m proud of our guys.”