After a blowout loss to Fort Smith Northside, it was obvious that the Hornets were not going to risk falling to 3-3 for the season. The Hornets marched into War Memorial Stadium Sept. 29. with the idea of beating rival team, the Catholic Rockets, present on their minds. They did just that.

The game started out the same as many other Hornet football games, stalling offenses and great defensive stands, but senior running back Jeremiah Long broke the stagnation by rushing for a short yardage touchdown.

“It was pretty amazing.” Long said. “I believe I set the atmosphere of the game.”

The Rockets attempted to respond, but failed repeatedly. Senior kicker Hayden Ray was called onto the field to kick a field goal to raise the score to 10-0. On the following possession, sophomore Andrew Hayes got an interception for a touchdown, giving the Hornets a 17-0 lead over the Rockets.

Early in the second quarter, the Hornets attempted to drive down the field, only to throw an interception to Catholic cornerback Joseph Bilger. The Hornet defense eventually forced the Rockets to turn the ball over on downs, but junior returnman Michael Jones failed to receive a punt, giving Catholic the ball.

“I feel like in that moment, I let the momentum shift, because we were having such great success, offensively and defensively.” Jones said. “After that play, I went onto the sidelines and said that’s my fault and told them to get past it.”

Catholic sophomore Samy Johnson ran in a touchdown that same drive. Sophomore quarterback Ren Hefley threw an interception to Rocket’s senior corner Jared Allison. Catholic was not able to take advantage of the momentum, as the entire second quarter would be plagued by unsuccessful possessions. With four seconds left in the half, Ray kicked another field goal to go up 20-7. The Hornets then watched Johnson run back a kick return to end the half.

The Rockets held the momentum after the kick return for a touchdown, thus causing them to drive down the field and tie up the game with another rushing touchdown by Johnson.

“Our defense is good, we just got to tighten up,” junior linebacker Antonio Todd said.

Bryant reversed the momentum by passing the ball to sophomore Randy Thomas for his first touchdown this year.

“I’m really happy.” Thomas said. “I had some good blocking from [seniors] Landon Smith and Deamonte Terry.”

Seconds later, the Hornets deflected a Rockets pass, and sophomore nose guard Kajuan Robinson intercepted the football and scored. Fans, coaches and players celebrated as Robinson scored against all odds. As linemen almost never have an opportunity to score in their entire career, Robinson’s touchdown was special.

“[Scoring a touchdown] wasn’t even on my mind,” Robinson said. “It will be an unforgettable moment.”

The touchdown gave the Hornets a 34-20 lead, ripping away any hope the Rockets once had. At the start of the fourth quarter, senior Marvin Moody capped off his impressive game of 23 tackles with a blocked punt for a touchdown, improving the score to 41-20. The Hornet defense slacked off in the final minutes of the game, and Catholic’s Johnson scored one final time, marking the score 41-27 Hornets to end the game, improving their record to 4-2.

“We will go all the way this year, if we just stick to it and stick with Coach James,” Todd said.