Lake Hamilton had plenty to play for Friday and the Wolves saw some vulnerability in Greenwood after the Bulldogs lost at Benton on Oct. 25.
The chance of another upset quickly vanished under the direction of senior quarterback Jace Presley, who guided the Bulldogs to a 42-14 victory over Lake Hamilton. Greenwood (9-1, 6-1 6A-West) earned a first-round as a No. 2 seed for the playoffs and forced No. 3 seed Lake Hamilton (8-2, 5-2) into a first-round game Friday against Sylvan Hills. Benton (7-3, 7-0) earned the league's No. 1 seed after beating Greenwood 45-38 to end the Bulldogs' 35-game conference winning streak.
TOP PERFORMERS
JACKSON NORBERG Siloam Springs carried 30 times for a 232 yards and three touchdowns in 31-29 win over Russellville.
BEN PANKAU Bentonville threw for 170 yards and one touchdown in 30-7 win over Bentonville West
JAY BURNS Springdale Har-Ber rushed for 143 yards on 20 carries in 27-6 win over Fayetteville.
GARY PHILLIPS Van Buren rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns and passed for 153 yards in a 31-12 win over Springdale.
GABE HUSKEY Harrison ran for four touchdowns in the first half of a 49-20 win over Farmington.
BRADY JAMES Lamar ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns in a 28-21 win over Lamar.
HUNTER LOYD Rogers threw for 351 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-20 win over Rogers Heritage.
BRYANT BURNS Ozark returned an interception 28 yards to spark the Hillbillies to a 26-8 victory over 26-8 win over Elkins.
HARPER FAULKENBERRY Ozark rushed for 112 yards and a touchdown in win over Elkins.
DYLAN COUGHRAN Mountainburg rushed for 154 yards and two touchdowns in a 44-23 win over Hector.
DREYDEN NORWOOD Fort Smith Northside ran for two scores and completed a touchdown pass in the Grizzlies’ 35-12 win over Fort Smith Southside.
Greenwood's offense was clicking again Friday after the Bulldogs started poorly in the loss at Benton three weeks ago. Presley guided the Greenwood starters to six scoring drives to turn the game into a rout. Presley completed 25 of 32 passes for 223 yards and four touchdowns. He used his running ability to avoid the rush and extend plays.
For his effort, Presley is the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Player of the Week.
"Jace did a great job," Greenwood coach Rick Jones said. "He threw passes to eight different receivers and converted some critical third-down plays for us. He played really smart and didn't put us in any danger."
Presley went 6-for-8 on the opening drive and capped it with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Peyton Carter midway through the first quarter. Lake Hamilton closed to within 21-7 late in the second quarter but Greenwood regained the momentum when Presley threw two yards to Caden Brown for the score with 16 seconds left before halftime.
The Bulldogs added two more touchdowns in the third quarter to take a 42-7 lead.
"They were using a three-man rush most of the night, so I know my guys are going to block that up," Presley said. "I was just waiting for a guy to get open."
Greenwood now turns its attention to postseason play after winning its ninth state championship last year with a 12-1 record. The Bulldogs will return to practice before facing the Marion vs. Siloam Springs winner at home on Nov. 22.
Preps Sports on 11/12/2019