The Paris News

Paris High had been snake bit all season when it came to making mistakes a crucial times.

Friday night against crosstown rivals North Lamar, the Wildcats bit back, taking advantage of a late Panther miscue to score the game-winning touchdown and a 12-7 victory at Noyes Stadium.

With the win, Paris (3-4, 2-0) moved into the driver’s seat in the District 10-3A title race, while the Panthers (3-4, 1-1) suffered their first league loss.

“Our kids kept working. We’ve talked about discipline, character and attitude all year long. In years past we would have lost that game, but tonight, we had enough discipline to play good defense and win it at the end,” said Wildcat coach Travis Smith. “I am so proud of the kids.”

Paris rallied from a 7-0 halftime deficit with two fourth-quarter touchdowns to pull out the win, regain the Lamar National Bank Crosstown Showdown trophy, and end a two-game losing streak against their neighbors.

“We had some mistakes, missed some opportunities and didn’t take care of business,” North Lamar coach Tommy Felty said. “I knew it was going to be a tough ball game. Paris did a good job. My hats off to them.”

A 31-yard touchdown catch by Roro Barr pulled the Wildcats to within a point, and a four-yard touchdown run by Aaron Ethridge put them over the top in the final stanza.

Paris’ offense appeared stagnant in the first half, but found new life in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats went 79 yards on two plays for their first touchdown, then took advantage of a Panther mistake and scored on a 25-yard, six-play drive.

With 8:48 remaining in the game, Barr made a one-handed circus catch in the end zone off a 31-yard pass from quarterback Quin Rollerson, leaving Paris down by a point.

“I really didn’t see the ball because the lights got in my eyes. I just stuck my hand out on that one,” Barr said of his catch.

“That has to be one of the best catches that I’ve seen,” Rollerson added.

A bad hold on the extra point attempt resulted in Harper Hunt’s kick hitting a North Lamar defender for a block.

That touchdown was set up when Rollerson threw a perfect 48-yard fade pass to Josh Wallace.

Still leading by a point, North Lamar tried to answer behind the same type of running attack that had allowed them to control the first half. This time, however, Paris’ defense made the key stops and forced the Panthers to punt. The fourth-down punt attempt by Cody Sellers never happened, however, as a high snap sailed over his head, and he landed on the ball at the Panther 25.

Paris took over from there, led by Rollerson, who ran over an official during a 10-yard, third-down run that set up the winning score. The ball continued to bounce the Wildcats’ way, as Tevin McCleary fumbled on a first-and-goal run, but Paris recovered the ball by offensive tackle Jordan Gill. On the next play, Ethridge sprinted around right end untouched on a four-yard run into the end zone.

“This feels great. Coach gave me the opportunity and I took advantage of it,” Ethridge said of his touchdown run.

McCleary was stopped on the conversion run, but the Wildcats led for the first time in the game, 12-6, with 4:48 remaining.

Most fans on both sides of near-capacity Noyes Stadium did not sit down for the final minutes of play as this game was far from over.

Paris’ defense forced North Lamar into another three-and-out and a punting situation, and Seller’s 36-yard punt left Paris with good field position at its own 43 with 2:52 remaining. But an ill-advised pass by Rollerson was picked off by David Bozarth near midfield and he returned it to the Paris 20, giving the Panthers one more shot with 2:04 remaining in the game.

Again, the Wildcat defense rose to the occasion, stopping Panther star running back A.J. George on two straight runs, while a holding penalty left the Panthers with a third-and-13 at the Paris 24.

A Sellers pass to Ryan White went in and out of his hands on third down, and Sellers’ fourth down throw sailed out of the end zone with 15 seconds left.

Game, set, match for the Wildcats, who took a knee and ran out the clock for the win.

“We knew they were dangerous and we didn’t need to give them any big plays, but we did. They (converted) a couple of big plays, played tough defense and did a good job of shutting us down in the second half,” Felty said.

North Lamar outgained Paris 239 yards to 209, but the Panthers failed to cash in on key scoring opportunities. North Lamar got in the Red Zone three times, but only managed one touchdown.

On their first possession of the game, the Panthers had a time-consuming 12-play, 67-yard drive stall at the Paris 16 on a fumble by George that was recovered by Paris’ Dominique Mitchell.

George led the Panthers to a 16-7 victory last year by rushing for 273 yards on 39 carries. Friday night he finished with about a third of that, rushing for 94 yards on 30 totes while scoring the Panthers’ only touchdown.

That score came with 9:08 left in the second quarter when he rumbled in from three yards out. Sellers added the extra point.

The 12-play, 81-yard scoring drive was highlighted by a 25-yard pass from Sellers to Kaleb Price, the only completion in the game for the Panthers. Price also had two more first-down runs, while Patrick Thomas broke free on a 16-yard run during that drive.

Thomas gained 71-yards on 12 carries, while Price finished with 53-yards on 10 totes.

The Panthers outgained Paris 140-58 in the first half, limiting the Wildcats to four first downs. Paris outgained the Panthers 151-99 in the final two quarters with an effective aerial assault.

“We knew we had to continue to work hard on defense because they were going to keep coming and keep coming. We just didn’t let up and it paid off at the end,” said Paris High defensive tackle Westley Martin.

Rollerson completed 13 of 20 passes for 171 yards. While he threw a touchdown pass, he was intercepted twice by North Lamar’s Canyon Conley and Bozarth.

Rollerson completed passes to five different targets with Wallace stepping up to snare four passes for 78 yards. Barr had two catches for 42, Rod Ceasar caught three for 30, and Dominique Mitchell and Tyrell Smith each had two receptions.

Paris was limited to 38 yards rushing, Walter Gunn gained 26 yards on nine carries, while Ethridge gained 19 yards on seven totes.

For the second straight game, Paris finished with four penalties. Against North Lamar, the Wildcats those penalties added up to 35 yards. The Panthers had five penalties for 35 yards.

“We had a pretty good practice all four days leading up to this game. We worked hard and everything came together at the end,” Wildcat lineman Michael Clifford said. “It’s all about working together as a team.”

Defensively, Wildcat linebacker Nathan Jordan had a defensive end Cedauris Hill led their team in tackles. Jordan finished with 21 tackles, including eight solos, and a caused fumble. Hill had 20, 10 solos. Senior linebacker Robert Staples also had 10 solos and 19 total tackles.

Panther end Logan Lane led his team in tackles with eight, including one tackle for loss and five solos. Price had seven tackles, including five solos, at linebacker, while strong safety T.J. Shirley had six, including five solos. North Lamar end Terrell Bush, who played at Paris High last year, also had six tackles, including five solos. Paris travels to winless Anna Friday, while North Lamar hosts Bonham (1-5, 1-1), which beat Commerce 21-14.

PARIS 12, NORTH LAMAR 7

North Lamar 0 7 0 0 — 7

Paris 0 0 0 12 — 12

Second Quarter

North Lamar - A.J. George 3 run (Cody Sellers kick), 9:08

Fourth Quarter

Paris - Roro Barr 31 pass from Quin Rollerson (kick blocked), 8:48

Paris - Aaron Ethridge 4 run (run failed), 4:48

North Lamar Paris

First Downs 12 11

By run 10 4

By pass 1 7

By penalty 1 0

Rushes-yards 56-214 24-38

Passing 25 171

C-A-I 1-6-0 13-20-2

Total yards 239 209

Fumbles-lost 3-1 2-0

Punts-yards 4-32.5 3-35.7 Penalties-yards 4-35 5-35

INDIVIDUAL STATS

RUSHING: North Lamar - George 30-94, Patrick Thomas 12-71, Kaleb Price 10-53, Cody Sellers 3-11, Team 1-(-15). Paris - Walter Gunn 9-26, Rollerson 3-12, Ethridge 7-19, Tevin McCleary 4-8, Team 1-(-27).

PASSING: North Lamar - Sellers 1-6-0 25. Paris - Rollerson 13-20-2 171.

RECEIVING: North Lamar - Price 1-25. Paris - Josh Wallace 4-78, Rod Ceasar 3-30, Barr 2-42, Dominique Mitchell 2-16, Tyrell Smith 2-5.

INTERCEPTIONS: North Lamar - Canyon Conley, David Bozarth

RECORDS: North Lamar 3-4, 1-1. Paris 3-4, 2-0

PANTHER JV VICTORIOUS

North Lamar won the junior varsity Crosstown Showdown over Paris High, 36-20, at North Lamar Thursday night.

Panther quarterback Will Harrington scored two touchdowns, Dakota Boles scored two touchdowns and also ran in two two-point conversions, and Colton Latimer scored the final touchdown.

North Lamar’s offensive linemen did a good job all night. Tony Gunn, Dakota Newman, De’vin Noiel, Michael Davidson and Adam Bolton were the linemen.

Defensively, North Lamar had two interceptions by Dillon Wilson and Nick Neel. Other defensive standouts were Jonathan Mock, Sam Harrington, Austin Sugg, Clay Flippen, Tanner Goff, and Cameron Pannell.

North Lamar improved to 2-0 in district and 4-2 overall.

For Paris, Tevin Gray scored all three touchdowns and threw a conversion toss to Travelle Cooke. Other offensive standouts were Kentarious Smith and Shaquille McGrew. Wildcat defensive standout was Roy Kresen.

WILDCAT FRESHMEN WIN 21-6

The Paris Wildcats’ freshman team won Thursday night, 21-6, against the North Lamar Panthers at R.L. Maddox Stadium.

The first half saw Wildcat quarterback Corban Taylor connecting with Tevairus Williams on a 60 yard touchdown pass. Gabriel Vera added the PAT.

The third quarter started off with Paris’ Keith Murray intercepting a pass. Paris quarterback Broderick Reed later ran 25 yards for a touchdown and Vera added the PAT, leaving Paris ahead 14-0.

In the fourth quarter, running back Austin Martin scored on in a five-yard run and Vera added his third PAT.

Tyler Akard threw a touchdown pass to Court Raulston for the Panthers’ only score.

The Paris defense played a great game, only allowing North Lamar two first downs. Paris defensive standouts were Travis Smock, Christian Floyd, Brandon Ortega, Montez Allen, Ty Jones, and Charod Hall.

The offensive standouts were Taylor, Reed, Williams, D.Q. Lipscomb, Brandon Phillips, Jerreckus Graves, and K.D. Reynolds.

With the win, Paris improves its record to 5-2 overall and 2-0 in district.

TRAVIS BLUE REMAINS PERFECT

The Travis Junior High Blue Team remained perfect after a 36-6 victory over Stone Middle School at Noyes Stadium Thursday night.

North Lamar struck first to go up 6-0, but Paris scored 36 unanswered points.

Travis (5-0) had 3 interceptions returned for touchdowns by Dentray Easter, Santavius Gray, and Quey Scott. Scott also ran two touchdowns in from the quarterback position. Jailon Garvin and Dashaun Bledsaw each added two point conversions.

Offensive standouts for Travis were Evan Fussell, Brice Winter, Juan Hernandez, Felix Cobb, and Andrew Dunn. Defensive standouts were Jordan Garnes, Jamal Black, Shed Brown, Mason Dickson, Scott, and Bledsaw.

TRAVIS WHITE EDGES

PANTHERS, STILL UNBEATEN

The Travis Junior High White team beat North Lamar Thursday night, 18-6, at Noyes Stadium, remaining perfect on the season.

Donte Bills scored on a touchdown pass from Dokota Smith. Kenterious Perkins and Smith both ran for touchdowns. The offensive standouts were Kidarius Corprew, Herbert Kirkwood, and Michael Ward.

The defensive standouts for Travis were Will Whitaker, Derrick Williams, and Daron Williamson. This improves the Wildcats record to 6-0 on the year.

CROCKETT BLUE GOES FOR 51

The Crockett Middle School Wildcats Blue Team won their second district football game Thursday night with a 51-0 shutout over the North Lamar Panthers.

The Wildcats took charge early as Kenny Mason went 30 yards to score the games first touchdown, Blake Beshirs added the extra point. Next, Stacey Curlee returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown and Shundarrious Woodson ran the two-point conversion to make the score 15-0.

Curlee found Kenny Mason again on a 20-yard touchdown pass. Devonte Brown was the next Wildcat to find the end zone on a 15 yard run and Blake Beshirs added the extra point for a score of 30-0.

Just before the half, Curlee hooked up with Shundarrious Woodson for a 35-yard touchdown pass, and once again Blake Beshirs added the extra point to put the ’Cats up 37-0 at the half.

The second half saw Crockett’s Devin McDonald running a reverse for a 20 yard touchdown and Tre Wallace scored the conversion to make the score 45-0. Finally on the last possession, Davonte Brown scored again on a 40-yard run to put the score at 51-0.

The ’Cats’ offensive line had a good evening, with great blocking from Marc Bawcum, Datavius Harmon, Airion Milton, Brickey Reed, and Antonio Burton

Defensively, the Wildcats played extremely well. Zabreon King, Tre Wallace, Jackson Reeves, Blake Beshirs, and Derrick Thomas all had good games.

CROCKETT WHITE WINS 20-6

The Crockett Wildcats White Team defeated the North Lamar Panthers Thursday evening by a score of 20-6.

Offensively, Joquan Wallace scored three touchdowns for the Wildcats, and Jaquell Robinson scored a two-point conversion.

Defensively for the White team, Jack Kraft had a fumble recovery, Garland Jenkins had a sack and five tackles, and Jonathan Nichols also had a great game for the Wildcats.

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