Conway 55, Bentonville 41
Conway’s Manny Smith (left) looks for running room as Bentonville’s Kendrick Sualau pursues during Conway’s victory Friday in Bentonville.
CONWAY 55, BENTONVILLE 41
BENTONVILLE — Ashton Waller could have been satisfied with a forced fumble on Bentonville’s last offensive play Friday night.
But the senior middle linebacker saw a scoring opportunity he just couldn’t resist. Waller picked up the loose ball he caused and ran 44 yards for a touchdown to seal Conway’s 55-41 victory at Tiger Stadium.
“I saw our safety come down and make a play on whoever had the ball,” Waller said. “The ball was just rolling there, and I could have dived on it. But I knew we needed another stop, another score to win the game.”
Waller’s fumble recovery was Bentonville’s third turnover in the fourth quarter and sixth of the game, while Conway (1-1) turned two of those into defensive touchdowns and scored one play after another turnover. The Wampus Cats entered the fourth quarter with a 35-28 deficit but eventually scored 27 points over the final 12 minutes.
Quadrell Wilson’s 20-yard touchdown run on fourth down tied the game with 9:42 remaining, then he hit Elijah Smith with an 11-yard touchdown pass 16 seconds later after Rome Fields recovered Bentonville’s fumble on the ensuing kickoff. Donovyn Omolo ended the Tigers’ next drive when he intercepted a pass and returned it 51 yards for a score as Conway led 48-35 with 6:52 left to play.
“It just comes down to a little luck here in Bentonville,” Conway Coach Keith Fimple said. “One thing we talk about is causing turnovers, and we were fortunate to get those. We’ll take those in any game. It’s great to have them.
“We preached on it all week long and worked on it every day. You get six turnovers in a high school football game, and you’ll win 99% of the time.”
Bentonville (1-1) avoided another costly turnover on its next drive when Chas Nimrod recovered his fumble at the Conway 2 after a 25-yard pass completion from Drew Wright. Josh Ficklin then scored on the following play, but a fumbled snap led to a bad two-point conversion pass and left Conway’s lead at 48-41 with 4:56 remaining.
The Tigers came up with a crucial defensive stop and were able to get the ball back at their 24 after a punt with 2:54 on the clock. Bentonville then drove to the Conway 28 before a bad snap resulted in a 9-yard loss on second down, then Wright’s scrambling on fourth down led to the fumble and Waller’s touchdown.
“Here’s the deal,” Bentonville Coach Jody Grant said. “If you turn the ball over six times — I don’t care if you’re playing a junior high team – you’re not going to win those games.
“That’s what I told our guys — we scored 41 points and we turned the ball over six times and punted twice. I give credit to the other team, but geez, just half of them not being what they are and this game’s a different outcome. I’m anxious to see how our guys respond from it.”
Bentonville ended its first two possessions with turn- overs on Conway’s side of the field, and Trey Roberts’ interception of a Wright pass ended the Tigers’ chance of building on a 21-14 lead late in the first half. It allowed the Wampus Cats to eventually tie the game when Wilson hit Manny Smith with a 25-yard touchdown pass with 22 seconds remaining.
Ficklin, who ran for 177 yards on 29 carries and added a 61-yard touchdown reception, scored on a 1-yard run to give Bentonville a 35-28 lead with 1:52 left in the third quarter. Conway responded on Wilson’s second touchdown run — the third time in which the Wampus Cats scored on a fourthdown play.
Wilson finished with 131 yards and 3 touchdowns on 12-of-28 passing, and added 99 yards and 2 scores on the ground, including an early 61-yard touchdown run on a fourth-down play. Boogie Carr added 119 yards on 24 carries.
Both teams conclude the nonconference portions of their schedules with home games next week as Bentonville meets Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst and Conway takes on Jonesboro.