7A/6 A-WEST

Defense gives Fayetteville boost

— Fayetteville forced four turnovers, gave up only five points after halftime and got enough from its high-powered offense to pull away for a 27-11 victory over Springdale on Friday night at Jarrell Williams Bulldog Stadium.

“The offense played well, but I thought the defense set the tone,” Fayetteville Coach Daryl Patton said. “We’ve struggled this year up to this point. I thought the defense came out.”

Fayettville (3-2, 2-0 7A/6AWest) held a 14-6 lead at halftime, but broke it open with Austin Allen’s 34-yard touchdown pass to Cole Harris with 7:43 remaining in the third quarter. That was plenty of breathing room, and Fayetteville’s defense took care of the rest.

Springdale quarterback Will Whatley was pressured into throwing three interceptions, and running back Deandre Murray couldn’t break free for long touchdown runs, like he has in other games this season. The junior needed 26 carries to reach 107 yards, and Springdale (2-3, 0-2) managed only one early touchdown.

“They’ve got good players. They make some good plays. Give them credit,” Springdale Coach Shane Patrick said. “I’m proud of my guys. I thought we played extremely hard, but they made a few big plays when they needed to turn the tide.”

One of those key moments came from a former Springdale player.

Fayetteville wide receiver Jordan Dennis showed why he was a standout player at Springdale last season, making an acrobatic, 40-yard touchdown catch with 1:04 remaining in the first half. The touchdown gave Fayetteville the momentum and a 14-6 halftime lead.

BENTONVILLE 56, SILOAM SPRINGS 0

BENTONVILLE - Tearris Wallace rushed for 97 yards and four touchdowns and became the 7A/6A-West’s all-time leading rusher as Bentonville (5-0, 2-0 7A/6A-West) defeated Siloam Springs at Tiger Stadium.

Wallace needed only 68 yards coming into the game to surpass Fort Smith Southside’s Daniel McGee, who held the record with 3,570 yards from 2006 to 2008.

By the end of the first quarter, Wallace had 61 yards on 7 carries and 2 touchdowns as Bentonville led 28-0.

His 23-yard touchdown run on his eighth carry with 10:26 left in the second quarter gave Bentonville a 35-0 lead and set the record.

Wallace, who now has 3,600 yards in his career, scored his fourth touchdown by leaping over Siloam Springs defenders at the goal line to make it 42-0.

SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 56, ROGERS HERITAGE 20

ROGERS - Springdale Har-Ber shook off two early turnovers and used a strong second half to roll past Rogers Heritage (4-1, 1-1) in 7A/6A-West Conference play at Gates Stadium.

Har-Ber (2-3, 1-1) took momentum into halftime when quarterback Kyle Pianalto scored on a 1-yard sneak for a 21-13 lead. Kicker Miguel Salgado added the extra point.

The Wildcats scored twice in the first three minutes of the third quarter to take command and never looked back. Running back Tucker Lee broke the second play from scrimmage for 58 yards and a touchdown. Pianalto, who ran for four touchdowns and passed for another, capped the second drive of the half with a 12-yard keeper for a touchdown and a 35-13 lead.

ROGERS 56, VAN BUREN 47

The Mounties (5-0, 2-0) built a 15-point second-half lead and held off the Pointers (1-4, 0-2).

The Mounties rushed for 465 yards, and halfback Ty Galyean led the way with 183 yards as he scored four touchdowns.

Van Buren quarterback Jacob Eason threw for 202 yards and four touchdowns while receiver Brad Eversole caught two touchdown passes.

Sports, Pages 26 on 09/29/2012

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