PRAIRIE GROVE — Timely defense and a stellar performance from running back Thomas Soehner proved to be a winning combination for Prairie Grove as the Tigers defeated Huntsville 49-30 Friday night.
Soehner carried 23 times for 250 yards and 5 touchdowns - four in the first half - as Prairie Grove won its first game of the season and broke a six-game losing streak dating to the 2008 season.
"[Soehner] was big tonight," Prairie Grove Coach Danny Abshier said. "He was making some nice cuts out there. The line's blocking it correctly, and he's seeing the hole and making the cuts. Our philosophy on the run [was] get back to the basics and try our best to do the little things right, work on the small stuff."
The Tigers [1-3, 1-0] won despite allowing more than 400 yards of offense to Huntsville, including junior running backPhillip Hoskins' 18 carries for 147 yards and 1 touchdown.
"We're going to go right back to the drawing board and see what we did wrong and let's see if we can't improve off of that," Abshier said.
The Class 1-4A schools went back and forth in the first quarter, with Prairie Grove up 14-7 after Soehner's second touchdown run on the night, but the Tigers broke the game open by outscoring Huntsville 28-7 in the second and third quarters.
"All week in practice our focus was to stay positive in the huddle and not drop our heads if they scored or a big play happened," Soehner said.
Soehner capped a six-play, 58-yard drive with a 7-yard score on fourth down to give the Tigers a 22-7 lead with 8:15 remaining in the first half. Huntsville [1-3, 0-1] fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Tigers receiver Skyler Ellis recovered on the Eagles 32. Three plays later, Soehner racked up his fourth touchdown of the half, giving the Tigers a 28-7 lead with 6:13 to play.
Sports, Pages 27 on 09/26/2009