Eagles Find Success In Alternative Plan

HUNTSVILLE — Huntsville had to go to Plan C at tailback Friday night, but the Eagles didn’t suffer a any dropoff in production in a 42-28 victory over Gentry.

The win gives Huntsville (4-6, 3-4 4A-1) the No. 5 seed from the 4A-1 to the Class 4A playoffs, where it will play Osceola on Friday night.

Huntsville lost tailback Phillip Hoskins at midseason and his backup, Cody Wages, went down early in Friday’s game after rushing six times for 31 yards.

But senior Wilson Phillips switched from fullback to tailback and rushed for 123 yards on 27 carries. He scored touchdowns on runs of 1 and 6 yards and caught a 10-yard touchdown pass.

Huntsville coach Ken Harriman, who didn’t know the extent of Wages’ knee injury, said he wasn’t surprised by Phillips’ output.

“We lost Wages right off the bat but Wilson Phillips played great,” Harriman said. “(Phillips) is a competitor with a ton of heart. Our offensive line did a great job, too.”

— PAUL NIELSEN

Tigers Use Pass To Stun Gravette

GRAVETTE — Four wins was probably not the target for Prairie Grove heading into the season.

But the Tigers proved that the right four wins allowed them to reach their goal of making the playoffs.

The Tigers (4-6, 4-3 4A-1) saved their best for last by shocking Gravette 44-17 on Friday night to earn the No. 4 seed out of the conference.

Prairie Grove will travel to Dumas next week to open the Class 4A playoffs.

Normally a run-oriented team, the Tigers used the passing of Chad Austin to pull off the upset of the No. 2 Lions.

Although he didn’t throw much, when he did it was effective. Austin finished 6-of-11 for 166 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Workhorse back Thomas Soehner still had a nice game with 95 yards and a pair of rushing touchdowns and also added a 29-yard scoring pass from Austin.

— STAFF REPORT

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