Written by Students: Deagan Lebouf, Levi Jones, and Colton Vinson
Cave City fell short in their home opener. With five minutes remaining and the Cavemen down 28-20, Clinton intercepted a pass in their own end zone to seal the win. They proceeded to tack on another touchdown and extra point to make the final score 35-20.
Cave City started off with a 78 yard drive but fell short on the 4 yard line. Clinton scored on their first possession of the game. On the second drive the Cavemen powered through the Clinton defense for 69 yards to end with a touchdown by Bryce Walling. The Cavemen forced Clinton to punt, and then drove for 79 yards before fumbling on 4th down. Clinton then scored with 5:23 left in the second quarter. The Cavemen’s fourth drive ended with another touchdown by Bryce Walling. Right before the half, the Cavemen forced a fumble on the goaline. Millie Beller recovered her own onside kick to start off the second half, which resulted in a 20 yard touchdown reception by Kolbie Birdsong. Clinton answered with a touchdown to take a 22-20 lead with 4:48 left in the 3rd quarter. The Cavemen were halted on 4th down on the next possession. Clinton scored again to take a 28-20 lead with 11:55 left in the game. Soon after, Clinton forced an interception to seal the win for the Yellow Jackets.
Offensively, Jacob Moore went 12/19 for 201 yards and a touchdown. Bryce Walling finished the game with 22 carries for 158 yards. Kolbie Birdsong contributed 6 receptions for 97 yards and led with 4 returns for an additional 57 yards. Defensively, Deagan Lebouf led the team with 6 tackles, closely followed by Hunter Greathouse with 5 tackles. Jacob Moore had a fumble recovery forced by Hunter Greathouse. The Cavemen return to action next Friday night, Sept. 2, hosting the Walnut Ridge Bobcats.