FAYETTEVILLE -- Bentonville scored two touchdowns less than 10 seconds apart late in the fourth quarter to surge past Fayetteville 37-26 in a 7A-West Conference game at Harmon Stadium.
Fayetteville (8-2, 5-2) led 26-23 with 4:19 to play after Jon Fagg's second field of the game, from 22 yards.
Fagg, who earlier kicked a 36-yard field goal to give Fayetteville a 15-14 halftime lead, gave the Bulldogs a lead for the fifth time.
But Bentonville (9-1, 6-1) drove 72 yards in eight plays, scoring on David Nichols' 5-yard touchdown run with 1:11 to play. The extra point made it 30-26, leaving Fayetteville with time to attempt a game-winning drive.
Bentonville's Ryan Kneeshaw had other ideas, intercepting a screen pass from Fayetteville quarterback Ryan Powell and returning it 26 yards to turn what had been a three-point deficit into an 11-point victory for the Tigers.
"We got the ball back with 1:11 left and I thought we were going to go down and score," Fayetteville Coach Daryl Patton said. "But they made a great play. It wasn't a great play call, and I take the blame for that.
"But overall, it was a great game between two great programs and we'll probably see each other again."
Bentonville Coach Jody Grant said his team knew a screen pass was in Fayetteville's offensive arsenal.
"We prepped a little bit for that play and we had seen it enough," Grant said. "But I think our kid just kind of snuffed it out and made a great play."
Bentonville finished Fayetteville off with another interception of Powell, then took a knee to run out the clock.
Bent0nville is a No. 2 seed in the Class 7A playoffs and gets a first-round bye. Fayetteville will be the No. 3 seed from the 7A-West and will host 7A-East No. 3 seed West Memphis next Friday.
Patton said the Bulldogs are looking ahead.
"This was a rivalry game, that's what it was in my opinion," Patton said. "It's a game you want to win for bragging rights, but the next one will be the big one.
"But we just have to get a lot better."
Sports on 11/07/2015