VERDIGRIS —
Fifth-ranked Verdigris beat Sequoyah 43-21 in a District 3A-5 clash of Rogers County rivals Thursday night at Verdigris Stadium.
The Cardinals (7-1 overall, 3-1 district) have their final two games of the regular season on the road. They are at Dewey on Friday and finish at Sperry.
Verdigris clinches a playoff spot with a win in either game.
The Cardinals are still in the mix for the district championship as well.
The Eagles (4-4, 2-2) will be at home for their last two regular season contests. They will face Metro Chrisitan and then close with Dewey.
Sequoyah is no longer in contention for the district title.
However, a victory in either of those final two games will get the Eagles into the postseason.
Tanner Smith gained a game-high 148 yards on 28 carries and scored two touchdowns for the Cards.
Fellow senior running back J.D. Hanslovan gained 134 yards on 13 carries and scored three touchdowns.
"Tanner and J. D. both played great," said Verdigris head coach Dan Nickles.
"J. D. had one of the best runs I have seen since I have been a coach. We are a physical team and when we play like that we are hard to stop."
Daniel Moniz and Colten Graves had big games for Sequoyah.
Moniz passed for 292 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score. Graves had seven receptions for 165 yards and two touchdown grabs.
Verdigris was down 21-7 at the half but dominated the second half.
Hanslovan put the Cardinals ahead for good at 28-21 after he scored on a 25 yard touchdown run at the 1:38 mark of the third period.
Hanslovan set up his own score two plays earlier when he intercepted a pass at the Claremore Sequoyah 36 yard line.
Verdigris then had an impressive drive that covered a big chunk of the final stanza.
Hanslovan ended the march on a 23 yard touchdwon with 5:36 left. Smith added the two point conversion and then scored late in the fourth from four yards out for the final margin.
"We are such a close group," said Hanslovan.
"We love each other and will never stop fighting together."
Verdigris drew first blood on its opening possession. Smith capped the 13 play, 78 yard march on a three yard touchdown run with 1:23 remaining in the first quarter.
The Eagles, however, answered just 14 seconds later when Moniz connected with Graves on an 80 yard scoring strike.
Sequoyah took a 14-7 lead when Moniz hooked up with Graves again.
That score covered 11 yards at the 7:20 mark of the second period.
The Eagles stretched their advantage to 21-7 after Moniz scored on a one yard sneak with just 28 seconds to play in the first half.
The Cardinals cut the deficit to 21-14 when Hanslovan scored on a 34 yard touchdown run with 3:29 remaining in the third quarter.
Chase Bryant tied the game at 21-21 after he retunred an interception 17 yards for a touchdown with 2:27 left in the third period. Verdigris rode that momentum to the end, mostly behind Smith and Hanslovan.
"This is a great group of kids," said Nickles,"It is a blast to coach them. I think the light switch went off at the half. We have a great group of seniors and they understand what they need to do."
Sports
Related Photos
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Claremore Sequoyah defensive back Kyle Cuttsinger (4) brings down Verdigris tight end Chase Bryant (2) on the 5-yard line during Thursday’s District 3A-5 game at Cardinals Stadium. Verdigris won, 43-21. TOM VAN HOOSER
‘Comeback Cards’
Verdigris rolls off 36 unanswered points to beat Sequoyah, 43-21
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