Hornets add to Bulldogs' skid

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MELISSA SUE GERRITS - 10/17/2014 - Bryant's Ben Bruick, left, and Steven Murdock, center, follow close to Greenwood's Jordan Green during their game at Bryant October 17, 2014.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/MELISSA SUE GERRITS - 10/17/2014 - Bryant's Ben Bruick, left, and Steven Murdock, center, follow close to Greenwood's Jordan Green during their game at Bryant October 17, 2014.

BRYANT -- Bryant scored on offense, defense and special teams in beating error-prone Greenwood 38-21 before a large homecoming crowd Friday night at Hornet Stadium.

The 7A/6A-Central victory kept Bryant (6-0-1, 4-0 7A/6A-Central) tied for the conference lead with undefeated Conway.

Greenwood (4-3, 2-2) has lost consecutive conference games for the first time since Rick Jones became coach in 2004. Conway beat Greenwood 42-37 last week to end the Bulldogs' 29-game conference winning streak.

Jones, who has led the Bulldogs to six state championships in the past decade, is 67-7 in conference games at Greenwood.

"That says something right there," Bryant Coach Paul Calley said following his 90th victory at the school. "That says something about our kids. That's special. I know they've had some guys beat up, but they're still Greenwood."

The teams were tied 14-14 after three quarters before the Hornets pulled away in a frantic final 12 minutes.

Greenwood was within 24-21 after senior quarterback Reid Wheeler threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Garrett Collins with 2:43 to play.

Greenwood then tried an onside kick, but junior Cameron Murray, a 6-3, 285-pound starting defensive tackle who was on the "hands team," fielded the ball near the Bryant 40 and ran into the end zone for a touchdown at 2:34.

Senior outside linebacker Ben Bruick sealed the victory with an 89-yard interception return for a touchdown with 33 seconds remaining.

Bryant had taken the lead for good, 21-14, when senior middle linebacker Conner Chapdelaine returned an interception 90 yards for a touchdown with 9:35 to play.

Bryant took a 24-14 lead on a 27-yard field goal by senior Alex Denker with 4:26 to play. The field goal came after Wheeler, on fourth and 2 from the Bryant 37, fumbled a snap for a 3-yard loss.

Greenwood also lost a fumble at the Bryant 9 on its first possession of the game.

The Bulldogs outgained the Hornets 478-271 in total yardage but made too many mistakes, Jones said.

"The last two weeks we've made what you would call uncharacteristic errors," Jones said. "We've done that, really, all year. We've always emphasized the right things. We've always had a great turnover ratio."

Wheeler completed 27 of 39 passes for 284 yards and 2 touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Kevin Jones, Rick Jones' son, caught 9 passes for 132 yards and a 12-yard touchdown that gave Greenwood its only lead, 14-7, with 7:28 left in the third quarter.

Greenwood junior tailback Jordan Green ran 30 times for 161 yards.

Bryant was led by senior tailback Kylon Boyle, who ran 17 times for 73 yards. Boyle scored on a 2-yard run with 57 seconds left in the third quarter to make it 14-14.

A crisply moving first half ended 7-7.

The Hornets moved 80 yards in 13 plays for a touchdown -- a 1-yard run by senior quarterback Brandan Warner with 5:56 left in the first quarter -- to open the game.

Greenwood's second possession resulted in a touchdown. A 16-play, 59-yard drive was capped by senior tailback Cameron Palmer's 1-yard run with 6:27 left in the first half.

Greenwood played most of the game without standout junior wide receiver/linebacker Grant Morgan, who sustained a hard hit on a reception in the first quarter.

Sports on 10/18/2014

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