Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Wolves don't fare well in first meeting with Cougars

Prescott's homecoming was a lot of things. It was warm, festive and fun, but it didn't result in a win for the Wolves.

In their first meeting, the Wolves fell to the Lafayette County Cougars 30-10 and were eliminated from the playoffs.

Pre-game festivities saw the crowning of Shana Johnson as homecoming queen. The Maid of Honor was Nicole Stuart.

When this ended the game got underway with Prescott winning the coin toss. The kick was returned to the 28, but the Wolves were only to gain seven yards and had to punt.

Sean Beaver fielded the punt, returning it to midfield. The Cougars were flagged for holding and moved back to the Lafayette County 40.

Only two plays were needed as Dexter Lowe broke free on a sweep for a 57-yard score with 9:22 remaining. The point after made it 7-0 Cougars.

The ensuing kick was fumbled, but recovered by the Wolves at the 27. Prescott marched downfield, primarily on the arm of Ben Smith, and with the help of a couple of offside penalties against the Cougars.

The drive stalled at the seven, with Coach Greg Smith calling for the field goal team. Justin Marcum's 24-yard attempt was good to make it 7-3 with 4:45 left in the first.

It was three and out for the Cougars on the next series, with Prescott taking over at its 40. The Wolves made it to the Lafayette County 38 before punting.

Beaver took the kick at the goal line and got back to the 14. Two plays later period one ended and the Cougars had some breathing room at its 22.

James Stewart was stopped for no gain to open the second quarter. This put the Cougars in a fourth and short situation. At first the team lined up to punt, but called time out with 11:21 showing. When play resumed, the Cougars opted to try for the first down.

Beaver gained two yards to keep the drive going. From there, Lafayette County marched downfield for its second touchdown of the night. The Cougars overcame a fumble, and illegal motion call, and were aided by a facemask call against Prescott.

The touchdown came on a 41-yard pass from Shane McClelland to B.J. Edwards with 7:30 to go in the half.

The point after was wide left, leaving the score at 13-3.

Daron Burks returned the kick to the 28, where the Wolves got started.

A reverse to Tyler Yarbrough gained eight. Roger Muldrow fought for almost two yards, with Yarbrough keeping the drive alive with a gain of six. Tristan Stuart moved the Wolves to the Prescott 45 before Smith was picked off by Beaver, who returned the interception to the Prescott nine.

Three plays later the Cougars extended the lead to 19-3 with 3:57 showing. The try for two was good, making the score 21-3.

Starting at the Prescott 27, the Wolves used every second left on the clock to cover the 73 yards and score. Prescott overcame a holding call, and was helped by a personal foul call against the Cougars.

The touchdown came when Smith hit Muldrow for 28 yards with no time on the clock. The point after was good to cut the lead to 21-10.

Lafayette County was called for holding on the touchdown play, but this penalty was declined.

The Cougars opened the third quarter at the Lafayette County 27, drove to the Prescott two and were stopped by a solid defensive front, thereby turning the ball over on downs with 9:12 to go.

Unfortunately, the Wolf offense was unable to get anything and lined up to punt. The snap was high, resulting in a safety and two more points for the Cougars. With 8:21 to go, it was 23-10 Lafayette County.

The remainder of the quarter was a series of penalties and mistakes, primarily by the Cougars. Lafayette County fumbled twice, with Prescott recovering, but the Wolves couldn't capitalize on the mistakes.

Prescott suffered a second interception, which killed a drive. On the pick, the Cougars were hit with two penalties. One a personal foul, moving the team back 15 yards, and the second for an illegal block in the back, adding 10 more to the total. Because one was during play, and the second was a dead ball foul, both were assessed.

This moved the Cougars back to the Lafayette County 25. The team go tot the Prescott 42 before losing the second fumble of the quarter with 2:36 showing.

The Wolves began moving with Smith hitting Muldrow with a 14-yard completion. A facemask call against the visitors added five yards to the play, putting the ball on the Cougar 38.

Stuart carried twice to the 31, with Smith breaking loose to the 12. Prescott made it to the 10 before the quarter ended.

The final 12 minutes opened with Prescott facing a third and eight from the 10. A reverse to Muldrow gained three, but Smith failed to find a receiver on fourth down, giving the ball to the Cougars.

The Cougars ran nine plays before Chris Carrigan intercepted a pass from Matt Ross at the Wolf 34with 5:32 left.

Prescott's offense started moving, getting to the Cougar 47 before the wheels fell off and the Wolves went backward to the home side of the 49.

Lafayette County's final offensive series began at the Prescott 49 with 3:18 remaining. The Wolves' defense held, forcing a punt. The ball was fielded by Carrigan at the 25.

Smith went to the air, missing Ryan Roberson on first down, but finding Marcum on second for 17 yards. The Smith-Marcum tandem struck again for 15 more, moving the ball to the 49.

The two squads swapped offside calls, before Smith was picked off by Beaver, who returned the interception for a touchdown with 39 seconds left. The point after made it 30-10.

Unofficial statistics showed the game to be fairly even. Prescott ran 50 offensive plays to 47 by the Cougars.

The Wolves gained 127 yards rushing, while Lafayette County had 227.

Prescott was 11-31 for 147 yards, with three interceptions in passing, while the Cougars were two of six for 58 yards and had one picked off.

Overall, Prescott had 274 offensive yards, while the Cougars had 285.

The Wolves were flagged five times for 30 yards, while the Cougars were penalized 12 times for 105 yards.

Prescott fumbled once, recovering it. The Cougars put the ball on the ground five times, losing it twice.

Prescott led in first downs, 16-14.

The Wolves will play the final game of the season at Cummins Field Friday against the Ashdown Panthers. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.