Cubs, Wildcats play to 20-20 tie Thursday night

EL DORADO — The Magnolia freshmen Cubs went back-and-forth with the El Dorado Wildcats Thursday night, but had to settle for a 20-20 tie when the dust settled.

In the 8th grade contest, the younger Cubs made too many mistakes and lost 34-0 to the Wildkittens.

During the junior high season opener at Memorial Stadium, the Cubs threatened first in the opening quarter behind the running of Kadyn Roach.

Roach used a 30-yard run to get the Cubs deep into Wildcat territory. But the drive stalled and Magnolia was forced to give the ball over on downs at the 2-yard line.

Five plays later, El Dorado scored on a 55-yard pass play. A blocked PAT attempt left the score at 6-0 with 1:08 left in the first quarter.

Early in the second period and following a six-play, 60-yard drive, Roach sc on a 10-yard run. Garrett Clark's PAT put MJHS up 7-6 at the 6:49 mark.

With 3:05 on the clock, El Dorado scored on a 3-yard run and the two-point conversion gave the home time a 14-7 advantage.

The Cubs responded quickly as quarterback Payton Campbell and Roach connected on 34-yard scoring play. Clark's PAT tied the game at 14-14 with 1:19 remaining in the first half.

The Wildcats drove the ball to the Magnolia 25 during the closing seconds, but Cub defense came up with a big sack to end the game.

Magnolia regained the lead at the 5:12 mark in the third when Campbell threw a swing pass to Roach, who galloped 65 yards down the sideline for the score.

A missed PAT made it 20-14.

El Dorado tied the game on a 6-yard quarterback sneak with 4:24 remaining in the game. A two-point attempted failed, leaving the score at 20-20.

The Wildcats recovered an on-side kick, but a pair of quarterback sacks forced them to punt the ball away.

Magnolia took over with 2:11 remaining, but couldn't get anything going after starting at its own 11.

There was a brief discussion with coaches when time expired but both sides agreed to let the game end in a tie.

In the 8th grade contest, the Cubs trailed 14-0 at the half and 28-0 after three periods.

El Dorado added another score late in the game to make the final margin 34-0.

The Cubs gave up a touchdown on the final play of the first half and allowed El Dorado to return a fumble 75 yards for a score in the third.

MJHS will play their first games at Panther Stadium next Thursday against Texarkana. The 8th grade game will begin at 5:30 p.m.

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