Eagles fall to 1-1 in District 6-4A play

A pair of longtime rivals crossed paths once again Oct. 20 with the Wills Point Tigers playing host to the Canton Eagles in a key District 6-4A matchup involving playoff qualifiers from the previous season. Wills Point would come away from the matchup, storming back from a 14-0 first quarter deficit to secure a 31-21 win at Ken Autry Davis Field.

Canton made it look easy on the first drive of the game, needing just five plays to complete a 68-yard scoring drive. After a nine-yard completion from McGwire Martin to Carter Day on the first play of the drive, Martin sliced through the Tiger defense for a 24-yard run into Wills Point territory.

Three plays later Dylan Cox took a handoff from Martin and raced 32 yards for the first points of the game. Jair Rodriguez added the PAT, giving Canton a 7-0 lead with 10:28 to play in the quarter.

Wills Point struggled to find any momentum on its first drive of the game, losing a yard on three plays before punting the ball back to the Eagles during the early stages of the first. Canton made the most of the Tiger misstep offensively, scoring again on their second drive of the game to double their lead to 14-0.

Cooper Smith opened the Canton scoring drive by hauling in a 16-yard reception, followed by runs from both McGwire Martin and Dylan Cox to push further towards the Tiger end of the field.

Martin proceeded to make key completions to both Carter Day and Cooper Smith later in the drive, picking up first downs with both completions to set up the Eagles at the Wills Point 12-yard line. Five consecutive running plays, including one on a fake field goal, were capped by Martin helicoptering into the end zone on a one-yard quarterback keeper for the Canton touchdown. Rodriguez knocked home the PAT, extending the Eagle lead to 14-0 with 4:44 still to play in the first quarter.

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