CAMDEN -- Using its clock-controlling offense, Mount Ida secured a second consecutive trip to the Class 2A state championship game with a 27-14 victory over Camden Harmony Grove on Friday at Bill Manning Field.
The Lions (14-0) will face Foreman on Friday at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.
Mount Ida Coach Michael White was pleased with the way the team played.
"I never doubted the kids, ever," he said. "They put in the time and we never stopped doing this. They are very dedicated kids and they deserve to play for a state championship."
Mount Ida moved methodically down the field after taking the opening kickoff, picking up seven first downs on a 19-play drive that covered 75 yards.
Jonathan Lagrange, who rushed for 199 yards on 36 carries, scored the first of his 3 touchdowns on a 2-yard run up the middle.
After the Lions scored, Harmony Grove (9-4) started on the wrong foot, getting a 5-yard procedure penalty before the first snap. Two incomplete passes and a 1-yard run by Kentrell Hill led to a punt.
Mount Ida stalled and punted after getting two first downs.
In the second quarter, the Hornets picked up a first down on an 18-yard run by Xaylon Falls, then another 15 yards on a late hit by Mount Ida.
After Falls lost 4 yards and Jace Garcia picked up 4 yards, Hill scored on a 36-yard reverse to tie the score at 7-7 with 9:40 left in the half.
Mount Ida got rolling on its next possession, needing 11 plays and 3:37 to score again, this time on a 3-yard run by Lagrange for a 14-7 lead.
Harmony Grove got one first down on its next possession but was forced to punt, giving Mount Ida a first down on its 20.
Two first downs -- one coming on a 23-yard keeper by quarterback Cade Jackson -- put the Lions at the Mount Ida 41. A sweep by Luke Forga gave the Lions another touchdown and a 21-7 lead with 1:26 left in the first half.
Harmony Grove picked up 3 yards on a first-down pass, but quarterback Gannon Bearden then tried to hit Hilll down the middle and Gage Dyer intercepted the ball at the Mount Ida 31 to end the first half.
Neither team could move on its first possession of the second half, but Harmony Grove later caught Mount Ida in the wrong defense on a third and 8. The result was a 58-yard touchdown pass from Bearden to Shaun Lucas, narrowing the Mount Ida lead to 21-14.
The Lions added another touchdown from Lagrange late after Harmony Grove turned the ball over on downs at its own 20.
"We are a run-first team, split-back veer," White said. "Harmony Grove did a good job. They made some adjustments and pretty much shut us down in the second half.
"We got just enough early. We usually get a few quick scores early then the defense figures out what is going on and we just hold on."
Harmony Grove Coach Tony Chambers was impressed by the Lions' running game.
"They are a really good football team," Chambers said. "They just line up and get behind those big boys, those big running backs, and say here we come."
Harmony Grove tried to move down the field, but Bearden was intercepted in the end zone by Dallas Weston with 17 seconds left. A kneel-down by Jackson ended the game.
This was the second consecutive year Harmony Grove ended its season with a loss to Mount Ida in the Class 2A semifinals.
Sports on 12/09/2017