FARMINGTON -- Pea Ridge has had Farmington's number for several years, but now the jig is up with a 24-7 victory by the home team at Cardinal Stadium Friday.
Blackhawk dominance of the Cardinals came crashing down with a thud as Farmington overcame a dirge of penalties and frantic efforts to keep the home team off the scoreboard.
Date^Winner^Score^Site^Status
Oct. 31, 2008^Farmington^38-6^at Allen Holland Field^4A-1 Conference
Oct. 30, 2009^Farmington^35-7^at Pea Ridge^4A-1 Conference
Oct. 29, 2010^Farmington^41-21^at Allen Holland Field^4A-1 Conference
Oct. 28, 2011^Farmington^40-6^at Pea Ridge^4A-1 Conference
Oct. 26, 2012^Pea Ridge^36-0^at Allen Holland Field^4A-1 Conference
Nov. 1, 2013^Pea Ridge^26-7^at Blackhawk Stadium^4A-1 Conference
Sept. 16, 2016^Pea Ridge^13-7^at Allen Holland Field^Nonconference
Sept. 15, 2017^Pea Ridge^24-7^at Blackhawk Stadium^Nonconference
Sept. 14, 2018^Pea Ridge^42-0^at Blackhawk Stadium^Nonconference
Sept. 21, 2019^Farmington^24-7^at Cardinal Stadium^Nonconference
Farmington capitalized on a pair of Pea Ridge turnovers in last two minutes of the first half, scoring twice in the final 1:39 to take a 14-0 halftime lead. At the half the teams were almost even in terms of total offense with Farmington holding a slight edge (110-107). Four Pea Ridge turnovers contributed to the points differential. Farmington suffered one first half turnover, but the Blackhawks didn't get any points.
Prior to Friday, Farmington's last win in the series occurred Oct. 28, 2011, with the Cardinals winning 40-6 at Pea Ridge when both schools were part of the 4A-1 Conference. Pea Ridge won five in-a-row after that including a 13-7 steal in a nonconference contest played Sept. 16, 2016, at Allen Holland Field in which the Cardinals failed to cash in on several interceptions and runbacks deep into Blackhawk territory.
Friday's game resembled that one with the Cardinals scoreless for most of the first half despite a ball-hawking Farmington defense which terminated four Pea Ridge drives over the first two periods with takeaways.
Farmington coach Mike Adams said his defense played well all night.
"We had three interceptions and a fumble recovery to set up our offense in great position. Unfortunately, we didn't take advantage of those turnovers and our offense was inconsistent all night," Adams said. "We did not block their front very well and fumbled twice ourselves. We came up with enough big plays to win the ball game, but we are going to have to improve a lot in order to beat anybody in our league."
The Cardinals couldn't produce much offense in the third quarter, which ended with Farmington still holding a two touchdown advantage. Pea Ridge got new life after turning the ball over on downs when Farmington fumbled and the Blackhawks recovered early in the fourth. Tate Busey's 1-yard quarterback sneak enabled the visitors to cut Farmington's lead in half making the score 14-7 with plenty of time left, but Farmington put the game away with a field goal and a long touchdown run.
In the first quarter, Decory Thomas intercepted a Pea Ridge pass giving Farmington good field position with the ball on their own 46-yard line with over eight minutes showing.
Pea Ridge benefited from a high number of penalties called against Farmington, including an intentional grounding call when there was no pressure on the quarterback and he simply chucked the ball out-of-bounds because his receiver was covered. That proved a wise decision rather than risk an interception then Pea Ridge blocked a 32-yard field goal attempt.
The Cardinals got the ball back almost immediately when Tate Pickens picked off a Blackhawk pass and Farmington took over deep in Pea Ridge territory at the 28-yard line.
The Blackhawks endeavored to continue to beguile Farmington, turning away the Cardinal offense by recovering a fumble at the Pea Ridge 18 and the first quarter ended in a scoreless deadlock. Farmington squandered two splendid opportunities to get on the scoreboard, but eventually Blackhawk limitations were exposed.
Pea Ridge got its offense going and marched towards the goal line, but couldn't sustain the drive and attempted a field goal which Farmington blocked. The next three series ended with punts.
Defensive holding erased another fumble recovery by Pea Ridge and Farmington pinned Pea Ridge at its own 11 following a punt.
Drew Sturgeon came away with the third Farmington interception of the night and the Cardinal offense set up shop at Pea Ridge's 31. Marqwaveon Watson threw to Caden Elsik for a 26-yard touchdown pass to convert second-and-goal. Sturgeon kicked the PAT and Farmington jumped in front, 7-0.
The next Pea Ridge possession didn't last long with Farmington's James Payne recovering a fumble at the Blackhawks' 24. Farmington converted that turnover into points with Watson passing to Sturgeon for a 25-yard score on fourth-and-11. Sturgeon kicked his second extra-point of the first half as Farmington assumed a 14-0 lead.
The third quarter was uneventful. Farmington punted twice and Pea Ridge missed a field goal.
Early in the fourth quarter, Farmington stopped a Pea Ridge drive on fourth down and took over at its own 31, but fumbled the ball back to the Blackhawks giving them a short field from Farmington's 41.
The Blackhawks took advantage and pulled within 14-7 on Busey's 1-yard carry coupled with Luis Reyes' PAT kick.
Farmington answered by moving the chains until the Cardinals were close enough for Sturgeon to boot a 32-yard field goal extending their lead to 10 points, at 17-7. That proved crucial because Pea Ridge drove deep into Cardinal territory and couldn't convert a fourth down turning the ball over to the Cardinals at their own three which led to Watson's 87-yard sprint to the house for the game's final touchdown.
Friday Farmington celebrates Homecoming as 5A West play begins against Clarksville. Kickoff is 7 p.m. at Cardinal Stadium.
FARMINGTON 24, PEA RIDGE 7
Pea Ridge^0^0^0^7^--^7
Farmington^0^14^0^10^--^24
Second Quarter
Farmington -- Caden Elsik 26-yard pass from Marqwaveon Watson (Drew Sturgeon kick), 1:39.
Farmington -- Drew Sturgeon 25-yard pass from Marqwaveon Watson (Drew Sturgeon kick), 0:28.
Fourth Quarter
Pea Ridge -- Tate Busey 1-yard run (Luis Reyes kick), 8:15.
Farmington -- Drew Sturgeon 32-yard field goal, 3:09.
Farmington -- Marqwaveon Watson 87-yard run (Drew Sturgeon kick), 1:13.
TEAM STATISTICS
Pea Ridge^Farmington
Total plays^82^60
First downs^18^12
Total offense^306^347
Rushes-yards^46-195^38-235
Passing yards^111^112
Rush average^4.3^6.2
Comp-Att-Yds^TD^Int^10-27-111-0-2^7-13-112-2-0
Punts-Avg.^1-45.0^4-34.0
Penalties-Yds^10-131^8-65
Third-down conversion^4-13^5-14
Fourth-down conversion^2-3^2-5
Missed Field Goals: Farmington, Drew Sturgeon 32 yards (blocked), first quarter; Pea Ridge, Luis Reyes 41 yards (blocked), 11:52 second quarter.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING -- Farmington, Marqwaveon Watson 11-157, Jayden Schrader 10-48, Caden Elsik 11-33, Josh Stettmeier 1-6. Totals 38-235; Pea Ridge, Samuel Beard 10-80, Tate Busey 13-45, Daniel Deleon 8-37, Hunter Rains 9-29. Totals 46-195.
PASSING -- Farmington, Marqwaveon Watson 7-13-112-2-0; Pea Ridge, Tate Busey 10-27-112-0-3.
RECEIVING -- Farmington, Drew Sturgeon 3-55, Caden Elsik 1-26, Tate Pickens 1-15, Devonte Donovan 1-10, Ben Macedo 1-6. Totals 7-112.
Sports on 09/25/2019