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Coyotes turn back Guyer, 31-17
October 26, 2007 11:55 PM

Nick Gholson
Times Record News

Wichita Falls High School was going for its 620th all-time victory Friday night at Memorial Stadium.

Denton Guyer was going for its second.

But on a night when the Coyotes were celebrating the greatness of their past, the Wildcats were giving them fits trying to win in the present.

Thanks to one big punt block and a lot of key defensive stops by Armonty Bryant, the Pack overcame a scrappy Guyer group for a 31-17 win.

WFHS, now 6-2 overall and 3-1 in District 5-4A, will travel to Denison next week for a game with big playoff implications. Guyer drops to 1-8 and 1-4.

Bryant blocked a punt in the second quarter that helped break a 7-7 tie on Eric Young's 28-yard field goal. Before the block, the senior defensive end had tackled Guyer quarterback Jake Witt for a 7-yard loss on third-and-two.

Tackling Witt was no easy chore the whole night. The senior ran 22 times for 190 yards.

But with just a little more than a minute to go in the first half, the Wildcats gave Marquis Smith his only carry of the game on fourth-and-two at the WFHS 40, and Bryant stopped him a yard short of the mark.

Ben Henderson hit six straight passes, the last one a 27-yarder to Young at the 2, and then the junior quarterback followed Preston Spray up the middle for the touchdown and a 17-7 WFHS lead with 12 seconds to go until halftime.

Bryant made a lot of other key plays in the game and led a defense that also got strong performances from Josh Wright, Daniel Cortez, Micheal Tapscott and JaQua Charleston.

Isaiah Anderson's 35-yard return of the opening kickoff let the Coyotes start the game at the Guyer 44. Eleven plays and three big Wildcat mistakes later, and WFHS had a 7-0 lead.

After giving WFHS a first down on a pass interference call, Guyer on the next play somehow couldn’t recover a fumbled pitch by Henderson. Then with the Coyotes facing third-and-23 at the 30, the Wildcats were flagged for a personal foul.

The Pack took advantage when Henderson hit Antwone Moore with a 4-yard touchdown pass for a 7-0 lead with 7:16 left in the first quarter.

Guyer wasted little time getting even.

Witt ran 16 yards on the Wildcats' first snap, and then raced 42 yards for a touchdown on the fourth play of the drive to tie things at 7-7 with 5:30 left remaining in the opening quarter.

Bryant's big plays put the Coyotes on top by 10 at the half.

Then Bryant tackled Jamaine Wilhite for no gain on fourth-and-one on the WFHS 49 to end Guyer’s first drive of the second half.

Four plays later, Henderson tossed a 28-yard pass to Joseph Cherry for a 24-7 led.

The Wildcats made it a one-score game, 24-17, with 11 minutes to play on Sam Alspach's 25-yard field goal and Witt’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Luke Russell.

Ryan Robison, who had 93 yards rushing on 15 carries, got 37 of it on one run in the fourth quarter and then ended the touchdown drive by muscling in from the 1 for a 31-17 lead and some breathing room in the final 7½ minutes.

With Witt forced to throw to catch up, Andrew Goble and Matt Contreras came though with interceptions to seal the win.

Sports Editor Nick Gholson can be reached by calling (940) 720-3447 or 1-800-627-1646 (ext. 447) before 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Or you can e-mail him at gholsonn(at) timesrecordnews.com.

WFHS 31, Denton Guyer 17
Denton Guyer WFHS
14 First Downs 16
48-252 Yards Rushing 26-124
14 Yards Passing 194
2-8-2 Comp/Att/Int 22-34-0
1-50 Punts-Average 3-38
2-1 Fumbles Lost 2-0
5-42 Yards Penalized 8-90
-
Denton Guyer 7 0 3 7 - 17
WFHS 7 10 7 7 - 31
-
WFHS - Antwone Moore 4 pass from Ben Henderson (Eric Young kick)
Denton Guyer - Jake Witt 42 run (Sam Alspach kick)
WFHS - Young 28 field goal
WFHS - Henderson 2 run (Young kick)
WFHS - Joseph Cherry 28 pass from Henderson (Young kick)
Denton Guyer - Alspach 25 field goal
Denton Guyer - Luke Russell 14 pass from Witt (Alspach kick)
WFHS - Ryan Robison 1 run (Eric Young kick)

Individual Stats

Rushing: (Guyer) Jake Witt 22-190; Denadre Wilson 11-51; Jamaine Wilhite 8-29; Luke Russell 5-5; Marquis Smith 1(-1); (WFHS) Ben Henderson 11-31; Ryan Robison 15-93.

Passing: (Guyer) Witt 2-7-2 14; (WFHS) Henderon 22-34-0 194

Receiving: (Guyer) Russell 2-14; (WFHS) Antwone Moore 8-55; Isaiah Anderson 4-25; Eric Young 5-53; Robison 2-18; Joseph Cherry 2-42; Riley Mason 1-10.