Mustangs tame Brahmas, improve to 3-0
OMAHA -- With two games already in the books for the Hughes Springs Mustang football team, the squad took to the road and squared off against the Paul Pewitt Brahmas. The Mustangs delivered a knockout punch in the third quarter, and then it was literally “lights out” following a fourth quarter defensive stop with Hughes Springs holding on for a 22-12 win. With the win, Hughes Springs improves to 3-0 on the season.
Pewitt has had a run based offense in the past. A few years ago the Brahmas converted to more of a pass-oriented offense. This past Friday, the Mustangs made sure there was no running to be had, holding the home team to negative five yards rushing on the night. The Brahmas were able to find soft spots in the secondary at times, and that led to two touchdowns and making the game and score closer than it actually was.
Defensively for the Mustangs, sophomore Triston Hickey had five tackles, while senior Tradarian Craver had 10 tackles. Trayvon Kennedy had seven tackles while Harrison Reagan added five tackles in the win.
Andrew Gaul, the sophomore signal caller and safety, contributed seven tackles, with Hunter Brabham and Zack Pilgrim adding 2 tackles each to round out the night for Hughes Springs on the defensive side of the ball.
Gaul led the Mustang offense as the rushing game churned out over 300 yards rushing. Craver was the work horse for the Mustangs, carrying the ball 19 times for an eye popping 235 yards. That is better than 10 yards a carry on average. Isaiah Bolden and Bryce Johnston, along with JaKobie Craver all got into the action, but it was Tra Craver who was a monster running the ball, punishing the Pewitt defenders. Bolden had two touchdowns on the night and had over 60 yards rushing, while being slowed by an ankle that has caused him problems.
The Mustangs struck first in the game going on top 8-0 and then went up 16-0 just before the break. But Pewitt took to the air, and with a nice pump fake from the quarterback found a wide open receiver for a 30 yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 16-8 at halftime.
Bolden increased the lead to 22-6 in the fourth quarter, with his second touchdown of the game. Pewitt wasn’t to be denied though, adding another TD with the pump fake throw and catch good for six points.
Things got interesting late in the fourth quarter with Pewitt driving and looking to further cut into the Hughes Springs lead. The stadium lights went out, and the field went dark. With play suspended, the crowd kept themselves busy with the band playing lively music. A breaker caused the outage and play resumed once the lights were restored. However, the Brahmas’ offense itself couldn’t light up the scoreboard anymore, with the drive stalling. Hughes Springs was able to run out the clock and leave Omaha with a 22-12 win, improving their record to 3-0 on the year.
This week, the Hughes Springs squad will welcome the Hornets from Hooks. The Hornets are 2-1 on the year, starting the year with 2 wins, against New Boston and Redwater. Their one loss was last week to Mt. Vernon by a score of 30-6.
Game day is Friday, Sept. 22, and game time is 7:30 p.m. at Mustang Stadium in Hughes Springs. Now you know the particulars, you just need to show up and wear your favorite Mustang gear.
