Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

None arrested as 'Cats mug Wolves 50-0

For 12 minutes, Prescott's Curley Wolves played Hope almost dead even.

Unfortunately, during the next 36 minutes, the Bobcats were a dominate force and posted a 50-0 win over the Wolves at Hammons Stadium Friday, Sept. 7.

The Cats didn't need any help in the contest, but got it from Prescott anyway in the form of turnovers.

Fumbles and interceptions killed every scoring chance the Wolves had in the game, as they turned the ball over twice in the Hope red zone, and fumbled twice inside their own 10.

The game began with Hope winning the toss and taking the opening kick.

The Cats started at their own 28, were hit with a procedure penalty before any action could take place and were looking at a first and 15.

Three plays later Hope punted to Prescott, with Jarrod Norwood fumbling the reception, and the loose ball being recovered by Hope at the Wolf 41.

This was at the 10:27 point of the first period.

Hope needed one play to put the ball in the end zone, as the Cat quarterback found a wide open receiver downfield who took the pass into the promised land for the score.

The point after made it 7-0 Hope with 9:43 left in the opening quarter.

Norwood fielded the ensuing kick at the 15, getting to the 18 before being brought down.

Prescott lost five yards on three plays as the Cat defenders spend as much time in the backfield as the Wolf running backs.

For the remainder of the first quarter, the Wolves played solid defense, keeping the Cats treed.

However, penalties on both sides kept either offense from starting or sustaining a drive. There were six flags thrown during the inaugural quarter, most due to mental mistakes.

As the period wound down, Hope lined up to punt. Norwood fielded the ball at the Prescott 36, getting to the 38 before going down. A flag hit the turf, with Prescott Coach Kirk Armitage expecting it to be interference against Hope as a Cat defender was in Norwood's face when he fielded the punt.

Instead, the officials called holding on Prescott, said it was before the punt, marched off 10 yards and gave the ball back to Hope.

Armitage was livid on the sidelines.

Starting at their own 46, the Cats began moving downfield again, but had a completed pass wiped out with an offensive interference call.

The Wolfpack "D" forced a fumble on the next play, with Prescott recovering at the Cat 46 with a minute left in the period.

The Wolves ran three offensive plays, lost five yards on a delay of game call and punted into the end zone as time expired.

Then it got ugly.

In spite of a holding call to open the second period, the Cats pushed the Wolves defense backwards, 90 yards in four plays for their second touchdown.

The drive included four penalties, two against each team.

The point after made it 14-0 with 9:26 left in the half.

Manuel Bautista's kick went into the end zone for a touchback, putting the ball at the Prescott 20. Bautista's kicks regularly went into the end zone on kick offs.

The Wolves fumbled with Hope recovering at the Prescott six.

Prescott's defense stiffened, pushing the Cats backwards, and sacking the quarterback at the 13.

Bautista came in, booted the ball between the uprights and Hope led 17-0 with 7:49 showing.

The Wolves offense took over on the Prescott 20 after the kick again sailed into the end zone.

R.J. Vanhook gained a yard on first down, before Zach Martin hit Norwood at the 41 to give Prescott some breathing room.

However, his next pass attempt found its way into the arms of a Hope defender, as the ball was picked off at the Cat 34.

The Cats needed 10 plays, overcoming two penalties, to score their third touchdown of the game and make it 23-0 with 2:20 left in the half. A bad snap kept Bautista from getting the kick off for the point after.

Bautista's kick was short this time, with Vanhook trying to field it, only to have it roll out of bounds at the Prescott seven.

The Wolves lost six yards in three plays and punted. Casey Ward's kick went to the 31, with the return making it to the 13.

The return, though, was called back as Hope was found guilty of clipping. This put the ball at the Wolves's 37.

One play later, a halfback option to be exact, the Cats were again in the Prescott end zone, with the score now 29-0 and 27 seconds still left in the half. Again, problems with the snap prevented Hope's kicker from putting the ball between the goal posts.

The Wolves again took over on their own 20 after the kick went into the end zone.

Craig Teague lost the handle on the last play of the half, with Prescott falling on the loose ball as the buzzer went off.

It was Prescott's ball to start the third quarter, with the Wolves beginning at the 20 after the touchback.

Vanhook gained two on first down, but Martin was sacked at the 17 on second down. He was hit and fumbled on third down, with Hope recovering at the Prescott one.

The Wolves were hit with a flag for having too many men on the field, but the Cats declined as they'd scored to make it 35-0. The point after made it 36-0 with 10:35 showing.

Following yet another touchback, the Wolves began on their 20. Decolen Prater broke free to the Hope 33 to seemingly put Prescott in business.

Four plays later the Wolves were on the Cat 22, before Prater carried to the six on a counter.

The bottom fell out of the drive when the ball wound up on the ground on a pitch play, with Hope recovering at its 19.

The Cats needed four plays to cover 81 yards and push the score to 42-0 with 4:49 left in the third. The PAT made it 43-0.

Needless to say, the Wolves began on their own 20 again after the kick.

A pitch to Vanhook lost four, before a fumble was picked up by a Hope defender and returned for a touchdown. With the point after, the score was 50-0, with 4:35 remaining.

With the game well in hand, Hope's coaches began wholesale substitutions, getting younger players into the game for experience in the future.

Vanhook took the ensuing kick at the five, returning it to the 29, where he lost the ball and the Cats recovered.

Hope fumbled on its second play, but recovered.

The Cats put the ball on the ground a second time, but with different results as Prescott fell on the loose pigskin at the 30 with 2:55 left in the third.

After Prater lost a yard on first down, Martin hit Norwood at the Hope 48.

Two more play saw the Wolves travel to their own 49, before Norwood made it to the Cat 44 on a counter to end the third.

The Wolves had nothing to lose with a fourth and six to start the final 12 minutes, and went for it, only to have Martin's pass fall incomplete.

Hope's offense was in for three plays and a punt, the weakest part of the Bobcat game, as the ball was downed at the Prescott 34.

Damarcus Craven carried the ball six consecutive times, making it to the Hope 43 before Prescott turned the ball over on downs.

This is how the rest of the game went for both teams, as neither generated any offense.

The Wolves fall to 1-1 on the season, and will be on the road again this Friday night as they renew their rivalry with the Gurdon Go-Devils.

And, for the seventh consecutive year, the Wolves and Devils will be competing for the Picayune-Times Traveling Trophy.

So far, each team has won the trophy three times, with the Devils having posted the last two wins in a row. The Wolves will head to Go-Devil Stadium to try and break this streak.