On a night when the Huntingdon Mustangs offense looked a little sluggish, the Mustang defense delivered its best performance of the season in a 27-7 win over JCM. The Mustangs held the Cougars to 64 rushing yards on 23 attempts, allowed just 9 of 18 passing for 99 yards, and forced one turnover. Senior linebacker Broox Bennett, back after missing three games with an injury, led the defense with 14 tackles, four for loss, and an interception.
Now 4-1 on the season and 2-1 in Region 7-2A, the Mustangs pounded out 263 rushing yards on 42 attempts and completed 3 of 3 passes for 53 yards. Junior quarterback Kenton Smith ran for 37 yards and completed all three of his passes for 53 yards. Tyreke Hutch carried for 86 yards, and Hayes Eubanks added 72 on the ground.
The Mustang defense stopped JCM on its opening drive after the Cougars reached the 24-yard line, forcing an incompletion on fourth down. Three plays later, Hutch sprinted 54 yards to the end zone, and Greyson Anderson nailed the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
After fumbling away a drive earlier in the second quarter, the Mustangs capitalized late in the half when they took over at the Cougar 48 following a 14-yard punt. Facing fourth down from the nine, Smith hit Carter on an out route for a touchdown with 12 seconds left. The extra point missed, but the Mustangs carried a 13-0 lead into halftime.
Both teams punted to open the second half, but Huntingdon then mounted a 14-play scoring drive from its own 14. Eubanks capped it with a four-yard run at the 8:23 mark, and Anderson added the point after to make it 20-0.
Anderson’s kickoff sailed into the end zone, and Bennett immediately intercepted Terell Williams’s pass on first down, returning it to the Cougar 17. On the next snap, Hutch took advantage of strong blocking off the right side and cruised into the end zone. Anderson stayed perfect on the kick, pushing the lead to 27-0.
The Cougars responded with their only points of the night, covering 73 yards in seven plays before Williams connected with Jayland Eckford for a four-yard touchdown pass. The PAT cut the deficit to 27-7 with four minutes to play, where it stayed.
The Mustangs hit the road Friday for their final regular-season trip, facing Gibson County in Dyer for a region matchup. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m.
