To give you an opportunity to see what's new, and what has changed, we have taken the paywall down temporarily.
Currently, there is no need to log into the site.
We will provide instructions for creating new account and resetting passwords when the paywall is turned back on.
The Berryville Bobcats showed plenty of fight against Yellville-Summit on Friday, Sept. 20, but in the end they couldn’t break through.
The Panthers held on for a 34-27 victory over visiting Berryville that left the Bobcats still looking for their first victory of the season.
“It was our best game altogether so far as a team,” said Berryville coach Macklin Chermak. “We got down a little bit and fought our way back. Probably the best overall game we’ve had so far. It’s disappointing we came up short.”
A Yellville-Summit touchdown on the final play of the first half gave the Panthers a 14-13 lead that they extended to 26-13 by early in the fourth quarter.
Berryville junior Kale Smith had a highlight-reel night, returning two kickoffs for touchdowns in the second half to keep the Bobcats in contention.
Chermak praised linemen Antonio Smith and Daniel Roque along with Smith.
“We’ve got a lot of kids playing both ways, but Antonio Smith showed a lot of guts and played hard both ways until he was too exhausted and couldn’t go anymore,” Chermak said. “He did a phenomenal job. Daniel Roque on the D-line and the offensive line as well fought through a broken hand and kept going. He wasn’t going to quit for his team. He did an awesome job. Kale Smith plays both ways as well, works his butt off. He plays receiver and defensive back. He was just gassed and only asked to come out once or maybe twice for a couple of plays. Those three showed a lot of guts and fought hard. We’re definitely glad to have those young men.”
The Bobcats led 13-8 after sophomore quarterback CT Hicks scored on a 1-yard run and Valentin Trujillo added the extra point with 11:04 left in the second quarter. Sophomore running back John Butler scored Berryville’s first touchdown when he took a screen pass from Hicks 43 yards on a fourth-down play with 3:55 left in the first quarter to get the Bobcats within two points at 8-6.
“Each game our offense has gotten better,” Chermak said. “Unfortunately, our defense hasn’t gotten better. We’re still struggling tackling, making reads and getting downhill. So that’s definitely a focus this week.”
Berryville will open conference play on Friday, Sept. 27, hosting Huntsville at Bobcat Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. The Eagles (12) beat West Fork 8-6 last week to snap a 13-game losing streak dating back to October 2022. Berryville beat Huntsville 20-12 last season.
“They’re a physical team,” Chermak said of the Eagles. “They’re a no-nonsense kind of team. They’re going to bring tight ends into the game and try to run it down people’s throats. We’re going to have to show up and really try to hit them before they hit us.”
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here