HAYDEN – It was a late season homecoming for the Hayden Wildcats Friday night and they made the most of it, winning a shootout with the Fairview Aggies 50-40. Hayden used big plays to get the job done getting three huge touchdown runs of 59 yards, 65 yards and 66 yards from senior running back Leonard Johnson.
Hayden started the game with the ball and it was Johnson who put them on the board first. Just 40 seconds into the game Johnson was in the end zone with his first of three touchdowns, a 65-yard sprint down the near sideline. The PAT was successful to give Hayden a 7-0 lead.
Not to be outdone, Fairview quarterback Ragan Ashley marched his team down the field, going 4 of 4 for 57 yards including a 6-yard touchdown pass to Ethan Holland. The PAT tied the game at 7-7 and the shootout was on.
A mere three plays later, Johnson found himself in the end zone again, this time from 66 yards out, to put the Wildcats back on top 14-7. Following a Fairview punt, Hayden scored for the third time in the first quarter with a 3-yard plunge from Caleb Wilson.
The Wildcats continued applying pressure in the second quarter, adding a field goal to start the frame, but the big blow came after another Aggie punt. From his own 23, QB Sheridan Miller connected with Colton Shirley for a 77-yard touchdown to put the Wildcats comfortably in front of Fairview 30-7.
Never a team to lay down and quit, Fairview stole a little momentum going into the halftime break as Ashley found Sambo Woods in the front of the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown as time expired in the half. The Aggies added the PAT and headed to the locker room down 30-14.
Fairview got the ball to open the second half and they made the most of the opportunity as they took the ball 70 yards on nine plays that ended in a 14-yard touchdown pass from Ashley to Timothy Bennett. The Aggies then caught the Wildcats by surprise as Jaxxon Swann kicked and recovered a beautifully executed onside kick that gave the ball and the momentum to Fairview. It didn’t take long for the Aggies to turn the great play into points as Logan Brooks powered his way through the Hayden defensive line for a hard-nosed 37-yard run. The PAT was good with the Fairview Aggies trailing by just 3, 30-27.
After giving up 20 unanswered points, Hayden made another big play and the momentum shifted back to their sideline when Levi Snider found a seam and raced 43 yards for a Hayden touchdown to make the score 37-27. Both teams traded scores down the stretch, but the Aggies could not get closer than 10 points as the Hayden Wildcats held on for a 50-40 victory.
When Fairview takes the field next week, it will be a true home game as the Aggies will fill the bleachers at Dafford Smith Stadium for the first time in well over two years. A state inspector today approved the newly-constructed concrete bleachers on the home side. (The visitors’ side is still under construction.) Fairview’s stadium was condemned just days before the start of the regular season in 2014.
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