Cats’ Playoff Run Ends With Another Loss To Panthers

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

The strong momentum Conway was able to build the past couple of weeks was quickly devoured by a hungry bunch of Panthers, as Cabot ended the Wampus Cats’ playoff run with a 38-7 victory Friday night at Panther stadium in the Class 7A quarterfinal round.

Fresh off an emotional, three-point victory at Fayetteville in last week’s opening round, Conway (5-7) had its share of struggles in its second loss to the Panthers (10-1) this season.

“We couldn’t ever get going on both sides of the ball,” Cats coach Clint Ashcraft said. “We just struggled all night trying to establish much of anything.”

That wasn’t the case for the Panthers, who will host Springdale Har-Ber in next week’s semifinal round. Cabot amassed 318 yards of offense and held Conway to 141 yards.

“The defense shut them down, and the offense clicked,” Panthers coach Mike Malham said.

The Cabot defense kept Cats quarterback Xavier Acklin — who had been red-hot after his performances the previous two weeks — from clicking. Acklin was 9-of-21 passing for 83 yards and a touchdown and was held to just 13 rushing yards, a far cry from the 200- or near 200-yard performances the senior had the previous two weeks carrying the ball.

“Xavier’s banged up. He didn’t practice much this week,” Ashcraft said. “He’s gutsy, though, and did a good job of fighting through it.”

Friday’s game marked the first postseason contest for the Panthers this season, as they had a bye last week after capturing the 7A-Central Conference regular-season title. Whether it was more time to heal injuries or to tweak some things, that idle week is something that proved to be beneficial.

“That week off really helped those guys,” Ashcraft said. “I don’t want our kids to feel down, though. They should keep their heads up and be proud with what they accomplished this season.”

Cabot jumped to a 24-0 lead before Conway was able to get on the board.

After forcing the Panthers to go three and out for the only time in the game, the Cats got their offense clicking. A 7-yard run by Jemarkus Harmon started the drive, then Acklin — who had misfired on his previous seven passes — completed three straight passes, including two to Tristan Eddings.

The last of those receptions by Eddings, who finished with six catches for 64 yards, was a 10-yarder to gave Conway the ball 39 yards from the end zone. Three plays later, Acklin found a wide-open Eddings for a 22-yard touchdown with 16 seconds left in the first half. Ben Riner’s PAT cut the lead to 24-7.

That, though, would be as close as the Cats would get.

“We gave them some momentum going into the half,” Malham said. “The good thing, though, was we ate up about seven minutes to start the second half.”

Cabot dominated the time of possession battle, consuming 36:43 off the clock.

Panther fullback Michael James, who missed the first meeting between the two teams with an injury, led the way with 103 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries.

The most final blow, however, came from the Cabot defense.

Trailing 31-7, the Cats appeared to be in good shape for another score after Harmon returned a kickoff 66 yards to the Panther 34. Three plays later, Joe Bryant intercepted an Acklin pass attempt and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown. Logan Spry’s PAT gave Cabot its final score with 3:58 left in the third quarter. On the very next offensive play for Conway, Bryant picked off another pass before the Panthers were able to eventually run out the clock.

“I hate that for Xavier. I know he feels bad,” Ashcraft said. “He’s had an outstanding year, and I don’t want that to be the last thing people remember about him.”

The Panthers scored on their first four possessions before stalling on their final first-half drive. They then added to their lead on both of their first two second-half drives.

“We scored a lot, but it didn’t seem easy to me,” Malham said. “But it’s not as hard when there are players who have been there, done that before.”

“They’ve got a lot of three-year starters and a lot of experience,” Ashcraft said. “It showed tonight (Friday).”

The young Cats gained some valuable experience throughout the season. The senior class won as many games this season (five) as it did during the first two years combined. Their leadership is something Ashcraft said played a strong role in Conway’s run, which went into the postseason for the first time since 2003.

“These seniors have set the bar high,” Ashcraft said. “I’m proud of how they bought into the system. Now the juniors and sophomore have a good foundation to build from. Hopefully, they can continue to step up.”


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