COLUMBUS — West Lowndes had the momentum it needed in the second half.
After being down 14-8 at the half, the Panthers recovered a botched punt to set up a 32-yard touchdown pass from Dekambi Evans Smart to Gary Brewer, with Evans Smart running in the two-point conversion to go up 16-14 on North Pontotoc
Another fumble went West Lowndes’ way late in the third quarter, setting up a long drive down the field, but the Panthers were stopped at the Vikings’ 10-yard line.
Football is a game of momentum swings, and the Vikings got theirs in an instant as Tyler Pickens broke off a 90-yard touchdown run off a quarterback draw, putting North Pontotoc up for good in an eventual 29-16 victory, a back-breaking loss to end non-district play for the Panthers.
“We played hard,” West Lowndes head coach Anthony King said. “We just didn’t play smart. “… That hurt us bad. If we would have scored, that would have helped out momentum. We could have kept going. You get inside the red zone with our offense, we’re supposed to score.”
West Lowndes (2-4) had a chance late to stop North Pontotoc (4-3) and potentially get the ball back with less than two minutes left and a chance to win.
A lengthy drive had the Vikings inside the Panthers’ 20-yard line, but the West Lowndes defense came up big, forcing a fourth-and-long play. Once again, it was Pickens making it happen, finding an open receiver at the 1-yard line to set up the game-sealing touchdown a few plays later.
“We had a couple of let-downs, a couple of busted plays,” King said. “Every time they scored, it was because of something we did. We were out of position or we just didn’t fill up the gaps.”
Evans Smart and Brewer both had solid games offensively for the Panthers, Evans recording a passing touchdown and successful two-point conversion while Brewer had two total touchdowns of his own, a rushing and receiving score.
The first drive of the game was like clockwork for West Lowndes, methodically breaking down North Pontotoc’s defense with runs up the middle, chewing up yards on its way down the field.
It burned roughly seven minutes of the clock and resulted in a game-opening touchdown, but after that drive, West Lowndes didn’t find that same consistent level of execution offensively.
That, plus a number of careless penalties, turned a winnable game into a disappointing loss.
District play starts next week for the Panthers, and in his postgame huddle, King was still confident in his bunch that they can make a late run.
“We have to execute,” King said. “We have to come out and play solid defense. We have to get things like that fixed.”
North Pontotoc 29,
West Lowndes 16
North Pontotoc (4-3) 7 7 0 15 – 29
West Lowndes (2-4) 8 0 8 0 – 16
First quarter
WL – Gary Brewer 4 run (Brewer two-point), clock 5:02
NP – Drew Winfun 2 run (Tripp Little kick), clock 1:43
Second quarter
NP – 8 fumble return (Little kick), clock 7:17
Third quarter
WL – Brewer 32 pass from Dekambi Evans Smart (Evans Smart two-point), clock 3:02
Fourth quarter
NP – Tyler Pickens 90 run (Pickens two-point), clock 9:00
NP – Pickens 6 run (Little kick), clock 1:21
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