Freshmen win thriller

The Whitehouse freshman maroon team pulled out a dramatic come from behind win last week in Henderson defeating the Lions, 26-24.

The Wildcats opened the game with a perfectly executed onside kick with Carl Caldwell recovering. Roderick Johnson scored three plays later on a 15-yard run, and Taylor Burns' PAT would give the Catsan early 7-0 lead.

On the ensuing drive, the Lions tried a fake punt only to have Xavier Hawkins make the tackle and give the Wildcats possession on the Lion 21-yard line. From there, Johnson got his second score on the night, this time on a 13-yard run, and the PAT put the Wildcats up, 14-0.

Henderson cut the lead to 14-7 midway in the second quarter and then tied the game at 14 all as the third quarter ended.

The Wildcats took back the lead in the fourth quarter on a 42-yard pass from QB Payton Smith to Kevin Hickman, but the PAT failed, leaving the score 20-14. Burns kicked a 25-yard field goal on the Wildcats' next possession after Montrell Walker recovered a Henderson fumble on the ensuing kickoff.

The Lions answered with a 25-yard field goal of their own and then recovered the onside kick and scored. The following PAT gave them a 24-23 lead with 36 seconds remaining in the game.

Earlier in the year, these freshmen may have thrown in the towel seeing a fourth quarter lead evaporate; but, after weeks of constant improvement and growing confidence, they now believed they could come back and win.

After taking possession on the Whitehouse 35-yard line, and with no time outs left, Smith opened the drive with a 15-yard completion to Hickman. A pass interference call on the Lions giving the Cats the ball at the Henderson 35.

Another pass to Hickman moved the ball to the 26-yard line with six seconds left. Then, Burns marched out on the field and shocked the Lions by booting a 43-yard field goal for the win, 26-24, as time expired.

The freshman white team lost at Henderson, 19-6. Carson McKown scored the lone touchdown for the Wildcats.

With the loss, the white team moves to 1-1-3 on the year. The come-from-behind win for the maroon team moves their record to 3-4-1 on the year and 1-3-1 in district. Both teams travel to Marshall tonight to take on the Mavericks.