Houston County Stuns WCHS Wildcats

The Houston County Fighting Irish streaked for 371 yards and 5 rushing touchdowns to stun the Wayne County High School Wildcats, 39 – 14, in football action Friday night.

The Irish scored their first touchdown with 8:35 left on the first quarter clock on a 19-yard pass play, and never looked back. The Wildcats managed only one first down in the second half and saw Houston County control the clock on a 17-play drive, to take the win. The 'Cats are now 1 – 3 on the year, and begin region action Friday as they travel to Bruceton/Hollowrock Central.

The Wildcats opened the game on offense, managing 4 yards, and being forced to punt. Four plays later, the Irish had traveled 56 yards, scoring a touchdown on the 19-yard pass. They kicked the PAT to make the score 7 – 0. The 'Cats got 30 yards on 9 plays on the next series, but turned the ball over on downs. Three plays later, the Irish got loose on a 56-yard touchdown run. The PAT was no good, making the score 13 – 0 with 1:27 left in the first quarter. The Wildcats managed only 17 yards on their next series and were forced to punt. The Irish took possession again and scored on a 43-yard run. With the PAT completed, the score was 20 – 0 with 6:30 left before the half.

The Wildcats managed a score on the next series as Case Butler carried it in from 2 yards away. He also added the 2-point conversion to make the score 20 – 8. Houston County wasted no time, scoring again less than a minute and a half later on a 49-yard run. The conversion attempt failed, making the score 26 – 8 at the half.

In the second half, the 'Cats forced a three-play and punt series to get the ball at their own 31. This time they put together a 7-play drive, scoring from 3 yards away. Cayden Castleman scored the touchdown. The conversion was no good, to make the score 26 – 14. Houston County scored quickly again, two minutes later, making the score 32 – 14. The Wildcats were forced to punt with 37 seconds left in the third period. The Fighting Irish went 17 plays that took over 10 minutes to score the final touchdown of the game, this time from one yard away. They hit the PAT, making the final score 39 – 14.

Sophomore runner Avery Vaughn led the 'Cats in rushing with 125 yards on 5 carries. Case Butler had 55 yards on 9 carries with a touchdown and a 2-point conversion. He was 3 of 8 passing for 23 yards. Daylan VanFleet had 4 carries for 14 yards and a pass reception for 27 yards. Cayden Castleman rushed 2 times for 5 yards and a touchdown. Raymond Overby had 2 carries for 5 yards, and Ethan Dinges had one carry for no gain. Daniel Pike had one reception for a loss of two yards, and Brayson Harris had one catch for 3 yards. The Wildcats managed 187 yards rushing on 33 attempts.

The Wildcats were led on defense by Davey Ullman with 6 tackles and 8 assists. Cayden Castleman had 3 tackles and 4 assists, while Keyton Green had 1 tackle and 5 assists. Jaxon Bryant had 4 tackles and an assist, and Case Butler had 3 tackles and 2 assists. Roby Brown had 3 tackles and an assist. Brayson Harris had 2 tackles, an assist, and a tackle for a loss. Caden Weaver and Briar Hampton each had a tackle, an assist, and tackle for a loss. Jacan Floyd and Kayden Mitchell each had 2 tackles, and Kamden Ray had a tackle and an assist. Kaleb Gross, Preston Gough, Daniel Pike, Braylen Martin, Ethan Dinges, and Raymond Overby each had a tackle. Kolby Ray had one assist. The Fighting Irish finished with 390 yards of total offense.

Travel to Bruceton Friday and cheer the 'Cats on for a big region win. Game time is 7:00 p.m. “GO WILDCATS!”---Submitted by Susan Gallian