Magnolia hands Troy first conference loss
MAGNOLIA — A 25-yard touchdown run by Magnolia’s James’Darius Smith with less than two minutes to play gave the Panthers a 21-18 win over 5A South conference leader Hot Springs Friday night.
The Panthers (4-3, 2-2) led most of the game before getting the game-winning touchdown over the Trojans (4-3, 3-1), who suffered their first loss in league play.
Hot Springs fumbled the opening kickoff, but forced the Panthers to give the ball over on downs at the 19yard line. The Trojans used 10 plays to drive to the Magnolia 18 before Issac Shelor’s pass was intercepted in the end zone.
With one second on the first-quarter clock, Magnolia quarterback Braelyn Beasley hooked up with receiver Kahlil Collins on an 85-yard scoring play. Jay Todd Baker’s PAT made it 7-0.
The Trojans got on the board early in the second period when Shelor threw a 63-yard TD pass to Malik Brewer. The 2-point conversion failed, leaving the Trojans trailing 7-6.
Magnolia’s defense forced the Trojans to give the ball over on downs during the next two possessions, while the offense reached the Hot Springs 5 before time expired in the first half.
In the third quarter and following Shelor’s second interception, the Panthers traveled only 12 yards for their second score. Javorrea Murphy crossed the goal line from the 8 to make it 14-8.
Both teams exchanged fumbles midway through the period, but the Trojans closed the gap to 14-12 with 2:10 on the clock when Shelor sneaked in from the 1. Again, the two-point attempt failed.
Early in the fourth with good field position at the Magnolia 16, Hot Springs took its first lead when Shelor threw a 19-yard strike to Brewer with
11:54 on the clock. For the third time, the Trojans failed to convert the twopoint attempt, leaving the score 18-14.
With 1:58 to play in the contest, Smith scored the 25-yard TD that gave Magnolia the win. Hot Springs was able to move the ball to the Magnolia
23 on the following possession, but was later forced to give the ball over on downs.