OCS crushes Little Axe in 3A district opener

EDMOND — Surrounded by a group of fans and huddled with his team, Oklahoma Christian School coach Derek Turner quickly mouthed his postgame reaction.

“No letdown,” he blurted out.

There was none.

A week after an emotional six-point win over Kingfisher for the district crown, Turner’s concerns were quickly put to rest. OCS scored five times in the first 16 minutes to run away with a 66-8 win over Little Axe in the opening round of the 3A playoffs.

“Our kids, we really worked on that this week about not doing that and staying aggressive and getting after it, and they did a really, really good job of that,” Turner said.

The fast start was a product of the Saints’ (9-2) offensive line and running back Mason Arnold, who carried it 12 times for 127 yards and four touchdowns to pace a 361-yard ground attack.

Arnold scored three times in the first 10 minutes, including a 33-yard run on fourth-and-1 that nearly drew the ire of his coaches.

The play for Arnold, who has 18 rushing scores on the year, was designed to go inside. Instead, he cut it back outside.

“In the box, we were hearing, ‘Hit the hole! Hit the hole! Hit the hole! … Oh, ok. Touchdown!’” said Turner, referring to his assistants in the coaching booth.

OCS, which hosts Seminole next week, had seven scoring drives of four plays or less while relying on its defense for prime field position. Three of its first four drives started in Little Axe territory and ended in touchdowns.

“They’ve been locking it down all year,” Arnold said.