HASKELL -- Glen Rose quarterback Aaron Weatherford threw five touchdown passes, and the Beavers survived a rocky second half to escape with a 34-31 victory over host Benton Harmony Grove at Sykes Stadium.
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Harmony Grove (3-1, 0-1 5-3A) trailed 28-7 with 1:47 left in the first half, but the Cardinals scored the next 17 points before Glen Rose (4-0, 1-0) recovered to put the game away.
The Cardinals started their final drive on their own 47-yard line with 1:48 remaining, but Beavers senior linebacker Jacob Lowry broke through the line to sack Hunter Hilson for a 10-yard loss on the first play of the drive.
Harmony Grove could not recover, managing only 1 yard during the next three plays and turning the ball over on downs with 58.6 seconds left.
"Say what you want, but they played a great game and we played a great game," Glen Rose Coach Mark Kehner said. "I would like for officials to stay out of the game and let players decide the game. They need to let the game be decided between the white lines, and I don't feel like that happened tonight."
Glen Rose was flagged nine times for 93, including four times for either pass interference or unsportsmanlike conduct. The Beavers were also guilty of two turnovers, both of which came in the second half.
"We overcame a lot of obstacles tonight, a lot of adversity," Kehner said. "But we found a way to win on the road."
Glen Rose gained only three first downs and 31 yards of total offense in the second half, but Weatherford did manage to toss a 41-yard scoring pass to junior wide receiver Adam Day three minutes into the fourth quarter to temporarily halt Harmony Grove's momentum.
Day caught 3 passes for 101 yards and 2 touchdowns, the second of which increased the Beavers' lead to 34-24 with 9:02 to play.
Harmony Grove responded with a four-play, 57-yard drive, scoring when Hilson escaped a hard-charging Beavers defense and flipped the ball forward to sophomore Jake Brooks for a 49-yard touchdown pass.
The Cardinals ran eight more plays the remainder of the game, and only one of them went for positive yards.
"Obviously, I've been disappointed after losses before, but tonight I'm really proud of the effort we showed tonight," Harmony Grove Coach Paul Calley said. "I thought we played a really good game."
Weatherford completed 13-of-26 passes for 270 yards and one interception. In the first half, the Beavers quarterback threw four touchdown passes to four different receivers -- senior Seth Davis (4 for 63) caught an 18-yard TD pass; senior Sam Dawson's only catch was a 30-yard scoring reception; Day caught a 39-yard scoring pass; and senior Austin Hughes (2 for 63) hauled in a 48-yard TD pass.
"We spread the ball around. That's what we do," Weatherford said. "But I couldn't have done any of it without my O-line. They did a good job tonight."
Hilson completed 16 of 39 passes with 2 touchdowns, including a 38-yard touchdown pass to senior Nathan Watkins that pulled the Cardinals to within 28-24 with 6:13 left in the third quarter. Watkins finished with six catches for 100 yards.
Senior Dillon Hager caught five passes for 76 yards. He also intercepted a pass.
Harmony Grove also picked up 1-yard touchdown runs from Brooks and senior Antonio Roberson, who collected a game-high 100 yards rushing on 15 carries and completed his only pass for 35 yards.
Harmony Grove outgained Glen Rose 394-316. The Cardinals limited the Beavers to 58 yards rushing, including a minus-13 yards in the final two quarters.
Jake Thompson led Glen Rose with 36 yards on seven carries.
"We made the decision as a coaching staff that we were going to do everything we could to stop the run," Calley said. "If they were going to beat us, it was going to be with the pass. And they did."
Sports on 09/24/2016