After falling behind 21-0 in the first half, the Houston High School football team never fully recovered and was defeated 41-20 in a South Central Association conference game Friday night at Mountain Grove.
The host Panthers got on the board on a bizarre play midway through the first quarter. As the Tigers set up for a punt at about the 40-yard line, the kick was blocked and the ball bounced and was knocked by multiple players all the way back to near the goal line where it was picked up and taken into the end zone. After a 2-point conversion run, Mountain Grove was ahead 8-0.
In the second period, the Panthers took a commanding 21-0 lead after adding a pair of rushing TDs, the first on a 19-yard scamper by senior running back Cooper Hoerning and the second on a 32-yard dash by junior quarterback Aden Estep with 5:11 to go before halftime.
Houston closed the gap at the 3:30 mark, when senior Jordan Arthur scored on a 2-yard run that was set up a few plays earlier by a 68-yard kickoff return by junior DJ Riley. When sophomore kicker Dillon Shelton booted an extra point, the Tigers trailed 21-7.
But the Panthers responded quickly and scored on a 28-yard run by sophomore Braydon Curtiss moments after he gained 24 yards on another run. Following a point-after kick by senior Brayden Haughey, the score was 28-7 in favor of Mountain Grove.
Houston kept pace and reduced the deficit again on their final possession of the half.
The Tigers moved the ball downfield on a pass from quarterback Riley to Arthur, and had the ball at the Panthers’ 19-yard line after a 26-yard run by senior Layne Seago. Then with under a minute remaining, Riley threw a pass to Arthur, who leaped high and briefly bobbled the ball before bringing it down in the end zone. Another extra point by Shelton left the score at 28-14 with 43 seconds showing on the clock.
The two teams traded blows through much of the third quarter before the Panthers essentially put the game away with a 67-yard rushing touchdown by Hoerning with about 2 minutes left in the period. When Haughey kicked another point-after, Mountain Grove was up 35-14.
The Panthers increased the lead on a 2-yard run by Curtiss with about 7 minutes left in the contest, and the Tigers got the last points of the game on a 24-yard run by Arthur with about 4 minutes to go.
For the second straight week, Houston recorded 356 yards of total offense (including 216 on the ground and 140 through the air).
Arthur led the way, rushing for 89 yards on 16 carries and catching 4 passes for 73 yards.
Junior linebacker Mason Dodson has 13 tackles for the Tigers, including 7 solo.
Houston (5-3, 3-3 SCA) will wrap up the regular season with a Senior Night home game against Liberty (6-2, 5-1 SCA) Friday (Oct. 25) in Tiger Stadium.
The Eagles are No. 10 in the latest Class 2 state rankings and will come equipped with a high-powered offense known for gaining yardage in multiple ways.
With hopes of earning at least a share of the conference championship, the Panthers (5-3, 5-1 SCA) will conclude the regular season with a road game at Thayer (7-1, 5-1 SCA).