ARKADELPHIA – Explosive plays for Henderson State were a key factor in the outcome of 98th Battle of the Ravine on Saturday, as the Ouachita Tigers fell to their cross-street rival by a final score of 41-14 in front of an overflowing crowd at Cliff Harris Stadium.
HSU (8-3) struck first late in the opening quarter, capitalizing on a short field to finish a nine-play, 57-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run by Jeremiah Davis for a 7–0 lead.
Ouachita (7-4) responded early in the second quarter. After forcing a punt, the Tigers needed just three plays to tie the game when freshman quarterback
Tre Nichols found
Carter McElhany behind the defense for a 45-yard touchdown strike to even the score at 7–7.
The game swung dramatically only minutes later. Henderson State converted a six-play, 85-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass to regain the lead, then immediately added another score when De'vonta' Roberts intercepted a pass and returned it 35 yards for a defensive touchdown, pushing the Reddies ahead 21–7 with 2:09 left in the half.
After halftime, HSU extended the margin with the game's biggest play – an 81-yard touchdown run from quarterback Andrew Edwards on the third play of the third quarter. That explosive run made it 28–7 and stole momentum early in the second half.
Ouachita answered with its longest sustained drive of the day, a 10-play, 67-yard march capped by a 2-yard touchdown run from freshman
Jaylen Boardley early in the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 28–14.
But Henderson State sealed the game with two more scoring drives—a 54-yard touchdown pass to Chris Gannaway with 10:06 remaining, and a 1-yard run by Davis with 5:23 left—to reach the final score.
Despite the result, Ouachita received strong performances from several players. Nichols threw for 262 yards, McElhany totaled 98 receiving yards with the long touchdown,
AJ Jones had six grabs for 89 yards, and the defense produced three sacks, two blocked kicks, one interception from
Hutch Grace.
Mario Ganter, Jr.,
Justin Crutchmer, and
Steven Weston all had seven tackles to lead the Tigers.
The Tigers head into the offseason carrying a streak of 17 consecutive winning seasons, which is the longest active streak among all college football programs in the state of Arkansas.
