The Cabot Panthers, who are a lock for the 7A playoffs, took on conferences for North Little Rock Charging Wildcats and won 27-13.
The loss hurts North Little Rock’s chances to be in the playoffs, but it’s still possible once the dust settles from all of Friday’s games.
Cabot struck first during the first quarter. With 8:23 left on the clock, North Little Rock’s Isaiah Deandre Carter tried to throw the ball to a teammate but the pass was intercepted by John Williams, who then ran the ball into the endzone giving the Panthers the first touchdown of the game. Dean Heyer kicked an extra point putting Cabot in the lead 7-0.
Towards the end of the quarter, North Little Rock’s Tyson Bradden handed the ball to Jontavious James. James ran past the Panthers defense and into the endzone. Jack Copley kicked the extra point and tied the score for the end of the first quarter, 7-7.
During the second quarter, Cooper Powell carried the ball into the endzone giving the Panthers their second touchdown. Heyer kicked the extra point for a 14-7 Cabot lead.
But the rest of the second quarter and the third quarter saw no points added to the scoreboard.
The fourth quarter started off as a nail biter for Panther fans. North Little Rock scored a touchdown with 10 minutes on the clock. Coppey attempted to kick an extra point, but failed. North Little Rock was moving up on the Panthers, 14-13.
With six minutes left in the game, Charlie Powell handed the ball to Cooper Powell. Powell ran halfway down field into the endzone giving the Panthers their third touchdown. Heyer attempted to kick an extra point, but it was no good. Thankfully the touchdown secured the lead, 20-13.
Two minutes later, Cabot was on another scoring drive as Charlie Powell handed the ball off to Dausyn Hardnett. Hardnett outran the North Little Rock defense, and crossed the goal line bringing the score to 26-13. Heyer kicked an extra point, giving the Panthers the win, 27-13.
Cabot looks to be the third seed in the 7A playoffs and North Little Rock should be the fifth seed. Both will play Friday night.
