VAN BUREN -- Van Buren couldn't have asked for a better start to the game, but Bentonville High bounced back quickly after that Friday night at Blakemore Field.
Van Buren scored on a lengthy touchdown drive and came up with a stop in the first two possessions of the game, but Bentonville didn't allow a score after that in a 38-6 victory.
Bentonville High 38, Van Buren 6
Bentonville^0^21^17^0^—^38
Van Buren^6^0^0^0^—^6
First quarter
Van — Salisbury 6 run (kick failed), 5:53
Second quarter
Bent — Miller 52 run (Younger kick), 11:12
Bent — Miller 3 run (Younger kick), 7:07
Bent — Mays-Hunt 76 pass from Lyons (Younger kick), 2:29
Third quarter
Bent — Campbell 61 yard pass from Lyons (Younger kick), 11:46
Bent — Mays-Hunt 8 yard pass from Lyons (Younger kick), 8:34
Bent — FG Younger 36, 1:10
"Van Buren is a good football team," Bentonville coach Jody Grant said. "Truthfully, they could do anything they wanted to do against us early. They got the score and stop. It kind of woke our kids up."
Van Buren took the opening possession and marched down the field for a 13-play, 85-yard touchdown drive to take a 6-0 lead after a missed kick. The Pointers then backed that drive up with a three-and-out stop of the Tigers.
The Pointers then drove to Bentonville 29 but turned the ball over on downs. It was all Bentonville (3-2, 2-0 7A-West) in the first half after that, outscoring Van Buren 21-0 to take a 21-6 halftime lead.
"I was proud of our kids fighting back against that good start for Van Buren," Grant said. "We were able to pull away with a quality road win in my opinion."
Bentonville picked up its initial first down of the game in the second quarter and made the most of it. Senior running back Easton Miller was the first to move the chains and did so with a 52-yard touchdown run to give the Tigers a 7-6 lead with 11 minutes, 12 seconds left in the second quarter.
Collin Snieski then came up with one of Bentonville's three interceptions in the game and put the ball on the Pointers 30, and Miller capped it with a 3-yard score to take a 14-6 lead. The Tigers added to their lead Senior quarterback Nathan Lyons found Kam'ron Mays-Hunt for a 76-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 21-6.
"He is a special talent," Grant said of Mays-Hunt, who had three catches for 124 yards and two touchdowns. "We've known that because he has been a special player for us. He is one of the top players in the state. We try to get the ball in his hands in different ways."
It didn't take long for Bentonville to add to its halftime lead. The Tigers needed just two plays to score its first touchdown and three on its second drive to push the lead out to 35-6.
Lyons connected with junior wide receiver Harrison Campbell for a 61-yard score, then Bowman found Mays-Hunt again for an 8-yard touchdown pass to cap the two quick scores.
"We big-played them," Grant said. "We got some big-play guys. I'm pleased with the way we were able to make the most of the chances we were given in just a few plays."
Van Buren (0-5, 0-2) was led by senior quarterback Caleb Salisbury finishing 16 of 27 for 163 passing yards including a 6-yard run for a touchdown.
"We moved the ball well because we just punted it twice," Van Buren coach Greg Werner said. "I thought we played well on offense. But we are not capitalizing on our opportunities."
Sports on 09/30/2017