ARKADELPHIA, Ark. — Henderson State got a career-high 463 yards passing from
Evan Lassiter and racked up a season-high 545 yards of offense, but Ouachita Baptist's Drew Harris scored seven times to help the Tigers defeat the Reddies 49-42 in the 91st Battle of the Ravine on Saturday afternoon.
KEY PLAYS
-Trailing 49-28 in the fourth quarter, Henderson went on a 78-yard drive, capped off by a 1-yard rushing score from
Cobra Jones to trim the lead to 49-35 with 6:41 to play. After a defensive stand, the Reddies got the ball back at their own 2-yard line and marched 98 yards, scoring with four seconds remaining in the game on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Lassiter to
Andrew Black. Trailing by seven with just seconds left, HSU recovered the ensuing onside kick to give itself one final heave, but
Reece Shaw, who was inserted on the final play to throw the Hail Mary, was hit before he could throw the pass, sealing the game for Ouachita Baptist.
- It was an inauspicious start for the Reddies in the rivalry showdown, as Henderson State's
Melvin Walters fumbled the opening kickoff and OBU recovered at the HSU 14-yard line. Three plays later the Tigers took advantage with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Lucas Reed to Drew Harris to go up 7-0 just minutes into the game.
- The Reddies answered on what turned out to be their first possession, going on a 79-yard, 13 play drive which was capped off by a 1-yard rushing score from Black. The drive took 7:12 off the clock and tied things at 7-7.
- It took the Tigers two minutes to strike again, as Austin Warford hooked up with Harris for his second score on a 58-yard pass to give OBU the lead, 14-7.
- After a Lassiter punt pinned OBU deep, Henderson forced a three-and-out to give its offense good field position. Jones took advantage moments later on a 1-yard plunge to tie it back up at 14-14 early in the second quarter.
- OBU got a big return from Allie Freeman on the ensuing kickoff, which set the Tigers up on the Reddies' side of the field. Seconds later, the Tigers struck on a 38-yard touchdown pass from Warford to Harris again to put themselves back in front, 21-14. After an HSU punt on its next possession, Ouachita extended its lead on a 2-yard plunge from Harris, his fourth score of the first half, to put OBU up 28-14 with 6:34 to go until the break.
- The Reddies had a big answer before halftime, as Lassiter hooked up with Black four times on a 10-play, 80-yard drive and then scrambled around on 3rd and goal before finding
Darion Gray for a 3-yard touchdown with 11 seconds to go in the half. The score cut the OBU lead down to 28-21 at the break.
- OBU cashed in on its first possession of the second half as Harris got his fifth score on a 16-yard run, capping a 13-play, 80-yard drive and giving the Tigers a 35-21 lead.
- The Reddies responded once again with another long drive of 77 yards, this time sealed with a
Blake Faulk 12-yard rushing score to cut the deficit to 35-28 at the 6:04 mark of the third quarter.
- It was at that point where momentum shifted the Tigers' way. After another OBU drive led to Harris' sixth touchdown and extended the lead to 42-28, Faulk was stripped fighting for extra yardage and OBU came up with the recovery at the HSU 34-yard line. Four plays later, the Tigers converted a 4th-and-9 on a questionable pass interference call and then punched it in seconds later with Harris again to go up 49-28 with 13:41 to play in the game. The score gave OBU a 21-point cushion, which was just enough to withstand the late rally from the Reddies.
KEY STATS
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Evan Lassiter had arguably his best game in a Reddie uniform on Saturday, completing 47-of-64 passes for a career-high 463 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. Lassiter's 47 completions is an HSU record for a single game and his 64 attempts is the fourth-most in Reddies history.
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Andrew Black finished with a career-high 10 catches for 131 yards and a touchdown while also running for another score, giving him 11 rushing touchdowns on the season.
Ben Johnson also caught 10 passes for Henderson and finished with 86 yards receiving.
Darion Gray caught six passes for 47 yards and caught the other touchdown pass from Lassiter.
- Both freshman backs found the end zone in the contest for the Reddies.
Cobra Jones scored twice on the afternoon, while Faulk carried 12 times for 55 yards and one score.
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Malcom Scott led Henderson's efforts defensively, as he finished with 8 stops in the game.
- Henderson out-gained OBU with a season-high 545 yards to 395 and ran 88 plays on the afternoon. The Reddies 88 plays run is the fifth most plays run in a game in program history, just five short of the record 93 plays run against Arkansas Tech in 1998.
- Drew Harris finished with 271 all-purpose yards for the Tigers and set a Great American Conference record with seven touchdowns in the game.
- The loss snaps Henderson State's NCAA DII record 31-game road winning streak and is the first GAC road loss ever for the Reddies. The streak spanned nearly seven seasons. Before Saturday, HSU's last road loss came to South Alabama in a 28-3 defeat back in 2011. Henderson ends the season 6-5 overall and in GAC play.
