AREA FOOTBALL: TEAMS HEAD TO PLAYOFFS WHILE OTHERS PLAY FINAL GAME
Copan High School’s Elijah Evans (13) is tackled while Keeghan Smith (8) attempts to block during last Friday’s win over Arkoma. The Hornets won 62-18 and host the first round of playoffs on Friday against Coyle.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
Caney Valley (Kan.) Bullpups celebrate on the sideline after a touchdown in last Friday’s second-round playoff game vs Riverton in Caney. The Bullpups won 48-28 and host Osage City on Friday in the playoffs.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
Dewey High School’s Eddie Rice (5) tries to break a tackle against Chandler last Friday. The Bulldoggers fell 38-7 during their final game of the season.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
By Mike Tupa
Nov. 11, 2024
BARTLESVILLE AREA SPORTS REPORT
Following is a summary of last week's football games.
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COPAN 62, ARKOMA 18
Ready … set … sting!
That’s the hopeful scenario for the Copan Hornets as they rev up to surge into the Class B-II playoffs this weekend.
Copan will host Coyle in a win-or-done showdown at Sheets Field.
Copan is unbeaten at home (4-0) — and likely would have been 5-0 if the game against Wesleyan Christian School would have taken place. (WCS forfeited all its games but plans to field a team next season.)
The Hornets secured a home game by routing Arkoma in the regular season finale. Three four-year starting seniors stamped their imprint on the game.
— Teegan Caron ran wild — 232 yards and three touchdowns on 12 carries — to help energize the Hornet offense. Caron also hit on 5-of-6 passes for 144 yards, three touchdowns and two two-point conversions.
— Weston O’Rourke romped for two rushing touchdowns, caught two passes and amassed 15 tackles on defense.
— Shooter Brewington seized five passes for 144 yards and three touchdowns and racked up a team-high 17 tackles.
Copan bolted to a 12-0 lead in the first quarter and doubled its lead by halftime, 42-18. The Hornets added 20 more points in the second half.
Home field energy continued to bolster the Hornets. With last Friday’s win they have averaged 54 points per game at the Sheets field.
Copan and Coyle have battled each other on and off the past 13 seasons.
This is the third-straight season Copan has qualified for the postseason and they will be scrapping for their first playoff win since 2008, when they also hosted a first-round game.
Arkoma: 0-18-0-0 — 18
Copan: 12-30-6-14 — 62
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Copan High School’s Teegan Caron (5) and Arkoma players go after a loose ball during last Friday’s game in Copan. The Hornets won 62-18 and host the first round of playoffs on Friday against Coyle.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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COPAN LEADERS
Rushing — Teegan Caron 12-232 (3 TDs), Weston O’Rourke 8-77 (2 TDs, 1 2-pt), Eli Evans 3-52, Zane Stricklin 3-9.
Passing — Caron 5-6-0-144 (3 TDs, 2 2-pt); Stricklin 5-10-2-42
Receiving — Shooter Brewington 5-144 (3 TDs, 1 2-pt), Caron 2-22, Ashton Jeffers 1-9, O’Rourke 1-6, Sam Thornton 1-5 (1 2-pt receiver, 1 2-pt rush).
Tackles — Brewington 17, O’Rourke 15, Keeghan Smith 8, Payton Call 6, Caron 6, Destry Blair 5.
Interceptions — Edan Thompson 1, Stricklin 1.
Pass break-up — Call 3.
Pass deflections — Jeffers 2.
Sacks — O’Rourke 1.
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Caney Valley (Kan.) Bullpups Traxcyn Garton (27) tries to break a tackle during last Friday’s second-round playoff game vs Riverton in Caney. The Bullpups won 48-28 and host Osage City on Friday in playoffs.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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CANEY VALLEY (Kan.) BULLPUPS 48, RIVERTON (Kan.) 28
Falling behind 21-8 in the first quarter is not exactly the preferred formula for victory.
But that’s the ugly scenario that stared Caney Valley head coach Criss Davis straight in the eyes Friday night in his home stadium.
“This was one of the craziest games I’ve ever been involved with,” Davis summarized.
At stake was season survival, home field pride and a playoff spot in the state quarterfinals.
Reality hadn’t changed much by halftime — Riverton still led by two scores, 28-16.
It’s obvious by the final score listed above that Davis’ boys turned the game around — outscoring Riverton, 32-0, in the second half.
What isn’t apparent on the stat sheet is how they did it.
“I have to give credit to my assistant coaches,” Davis said. “(They) talked me into going to a four-front on defense instead of the five-front we normally run. We went to a 4-3 look.”
As a result, the Riverton Rams rushed for only 81 yards and — obviously — no touchdowns in the second half, after having rumbled for 281 yards and three scores in the first half.
In addition, the Rams coughed up the ball three times on lost fumbles in the second half.
“We really did a pretty decent job in the second half,” Davis said. “I thought we did a lot of good things.”
On the offensive side, Caney Valley scored three second-half touchdowns. The scoring was capped by Angel Martinez’s 85-yard pick-six in the final three minutes.
Next up, the Pups (9-1) will be home in the playoffs for the third week in a row when they take on Osage City (9-1) in the Class 2A state quarterfinals. This matches the deepest playoff run Caney Valley has ever made. A win next Friday would propel them to the state semifinals for the first time in school history.
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Caney Valley (Kan.) Bullpup quarterback Layne Denny (3) looks downfield during last Friday’s second-round playoff game vs Riverton in Caney. The Bullpups won 48-28 and host Osage City on Friday in playoffs.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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But if not for their tremendous rally against Riverton, they would be eliminated.
Going into the game, Caney Valley appeared to be the colossal favorite — they had beaten Riverton just two weeks earlier, 48-7.
But on the first offensive play of Friday’s playoff game, Riverton’s Noah Parker broke free for a 70-yard touchdown run. The extra point put the Rams on top, 7-0, just 13 seconds into the game.
Caney Valley answered on a 25-yard touchdown gallop — less than two minutes later — by Jace Buckley. Traxcyn Garton ran in the two-pointer to push Caney Valley ahead, 8-7.
Riverton ripped back with two more touchdowns in the first quarter — on another 70-yard run, this one by Aiden Weatherspoon, and a recovered blocked punt in the end zone. As the opening period ended, Riverton led big, 21-8.
Caney Valley found the end zone in the second quarter on Garton’s two-yard run — he also ran in the two-pointer — to trim Riverton’s lead to 21-16.
But Riverton responded with its third rushing touchdown and carried a 28-16 lead into halftime.
This marked only the second or third time this season the Pups trailed at intermission.
Caney Valley’s defensive adjustment at halftime to go from a 5-2 to a 4-3 would make the difference in the second half.
While Riverton put up a zero in the final two quarters, Caney Valley unleashed a crushing running attack that would net 405 yards for the game.
Garton scored on two short runs and Buckley on another in the second half. Martinez’s interception return put the exclamation point on the comeback.
Caney Valley also finished 6-for-6 on two-point conversions — all runs — including three by Garton, two by Buckley and one by Boone White.
“They hung in there,” Davis said about his team’s attitude after it went down early by two scores. “They could have checked it in after that but they never gave up hope.”
The hope for the Pups now is to leap-frog over Osage City into the Final Four.
Riverton: 21-7-0-0 — 28
CV: 8-8-16-16 — 48
First quarter
RIV — Noah Parker 70 yards (Javonte Johnson kick), 11:47.
CV — Jace Buckley 25 run (Traxcyn Garton run), 9:50.
RIV — Aiden Weatherspoon 70 run (Johnson kick), 2:20.
RIV — Recover blocked punt in end zone (Johnson kick) 0:50.
Second quarter
CV — Garton 2 run (Garton run), 7:34.
RIV — Weatherspoon 27 run (Johnson kick), 2:06.
Third quarter
CV — Garton 6 run (Buckley run), 8:58.
CV — Garton 5 run (Garton run), 7:52
Fourth quarter
CV — Buckley 2 run (Boone White run), 4:27.
CV — Angel Martinez 85 interception return (Buckley run), 2:48.
TEAM STATS
FIRST DOWNS: CV 20, Riverton 14; RUSHING: CV 49-405, Riverton 39-332; PASSING: CV 2-4-0-40; Riverton 4-10-1-66; TOTAL YARDS: CV 445, Riverton 398; PENALTIES: CV 8-71, Riverton 1-15; PUNTS: CV 0-0, Riverton 0-0; FUMBLES: CV 1-1, Riverton 3-3. TURNOVERS: CV 1, Riverton 4.
CANEY VALLEY LEADERS
RUSHING: Traxcyn Garton 21-182, Jace Buckley 22-155, Boone White 3-35, Layne Denny 1-18, Konner Paulie 1-15.
PASSING: Denny 2-4-40-0.
RECEIVING: Jacob McVey 1-23, Garton 1-17.
TACKLES: Garton 8.5, Brayden Martin 8, White 7, Buckley 5.5, Angel Martinez 5.
INTERCEPTIONS: Martinez 1.
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Pawhuska High School players react during an earlier season game. The Huskies defeated Morrison 30-20 and will host the first round of playoffs on Friday.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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PAWHUSKA 30, MORRISON 20
When it comes to their favorite transportation, forget the bus.
Pawhuska High football players would rather climb aboard the Vann.
And during Thursday’s victorious expedition to Morrison, who could blame them?
Vann Wildcat ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns and a two-pointer to elevate the Huskies to a 30-20 victory.
An amazing ending — especially considering Pawhuska trailed after three quarters, 20-8.
“Morrison has gotten better every week,” said Pawhuska head coach Matt Hennesy. “Our kids kept battling.”
With the win, Pawhuska (9-1, 6-1) clinched the No. 2 seed in District A-I-3 and will host an opening round playoff game this coming Friday.
Morrison (5-5, 4-3) will finish as the No. 4 seed, high enough to advance to the playoffs as a first-round road team.
Morrison did everything it could to knock off Pawhuska and improve its playoff pecking order.
Well into the second quarter, Pawhuska gave the ball back on downs inside its 40-yard line, giving Morrison a short porch — which it covered in five plays — to score its third touchdown and stretch its lead to 20-8 late in the second quarter.
Pawhuska nearly answered thanks to an acrobatic sideline catch by Tripp Walker — on a pass from Kane Foreman — down to the Morrison 16-yard line. But Pawhuska turned it over on downs again.
Morrison led at halftime, 20-8.
The third quarter turned into a fierce battle about which team would impose its will — especially defensively. Neither team scored in the period — Pawhuska came up just one inch short of converting a fourth down in the red zone. Later in the quarter, the Huskies lost the ball on downs just outside the red zone.
Meanwhile, Morrison ran into a brick wall defense.
The tide had turned in Pawhuska’s favor — but the Huskies couldn’t convert the momentum into points and still trailed by the same margin, 20-8, going into the fourth period.
That changed in the fourth quarter when the Huskies began feeding the ball to Wildcat like a slot machine and hit the jackpot.
“Vann had been out for a couple of weeks. … But once it decided to pick it up north and south we got it going,” Hennesy said.
He also pointed to the quarterback run game by Foreman as a crux to Pawhuska’s offensive success, “By keeping them honest.”
On Pawhuska’s first possession of the fourth quarter, Wildcat gained 48 yards — including one catch — to lead a 65-yard touchdown drive. Foreman also turned in a few rugged runs, the last one for four yards to the end zone for the touchdown.
Wildcat scored the two-point run to cut Morrison’s lead to 20-16, with 8:25 left.
Morrison had to punt on its next possession, setting up another Wildcat run-heavy drive. He carried four times for 29 yards — including a five-yard scoring run during which he wriggled and weaved through the defense like a greased eagle. Logan Cass connected on the two-point pass and all of a sudden Pawhuska led, 24-20, with just a few minutes remaining.
Morrison then fumbled the ball back to Pawhuska — Jayden Henley recovered it to set up a 38-yard scoring drive in the final two minutes. Wildcat scored from 30 yards out for an insurance touchdown, leading to the final score of 30-20.
“We decided to start blocking and tackling,” Hennesy said about Pawhuska’s second-half resurgence. “Defensively, we played well the whole time. On offense in the second half we executed like we should.”
Henley energized the defense, Hennesy said.
“He’s so hard to block and he does so many things,” the coach explained.
He also singled out Jimmie Wildcat, Jarek Edwards and Tripp Walker for their defensive work. Due to necessity, Edwards had to move to free safety, he noted.
Next up, Pawhuska plays host to Panama, which is located near Poteau and will have to make a lengthy drive to the game.
“They’re a good football team,” Hennesy said. “They’re similar to Morrison. They’re a really big physical football team.”
Pawhuska is set to embark on a playoff voyage, hoping for a smoother journey than that against Morrison.
PAWHUSKA LEADERS
PASSING: Kane Foreman 13-21-1-119.
RUSHING: Jenson Snodgrass 10-102 (1 TD), Vann Wildcat 15-93 (2 TDs), Foreman 9-34 (1 TD).
RECEIVING: Tripp Walker 3-39, Wildcat 2-23, Snodgrass 3-20, Jarek Edwards 3-17.
TACKLES: Jimmie Wildcat 13, Vann Wildcat 8, Jayden Henley 7, Dararail Stewart 6, Jack Grooms 6.
TACKLES FOR LOSS: Jimmie Wildcat 2, Vann Wildcat 2, Henley 2
SACKS: Henley 1, Grooms 1.
INTERCEPTIONS: Walker.
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: Henley.
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Dewey High School’s Parker Garrison (44) kicks off on last Friday against Chandler. The Bulldoggers fell 38-7 during their final game of the season.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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CHANDLER 38, DEWEY 7
A season of growth, a season of multiple highlights, a season of hope and a season of directional adjustment has ended for the Dewey Bulldoggers (4-6).
Well, perhaps not really ended as much as laid the foundation for happier years to experience in Doggerdom.
First, Dewey registered its most wins since 2019. Reverse the outcome of a one-score loss at Checotah and avoid a couple of mammoth personnel losses on Friday and Doggers might well have finished 5-5 or 6-4 and be headed to the playoffs.
Second, Dewey should return next season a wealth of valuable contributors such as starting quarterback Braxton Braden, speed burner Kavery Weathers, versatile sharp-tipped threat in Mason Spears, dominating lineman Will Lawrence, a flexible and scrappy all-around athlete in Fenix Bolding and several other talented warriors who gained valuable starting or playing experience this season.
Third, head coach Scott Sapulpa will have a full year to prepare the team rather than the few weeks he had prior to this season.
Fourth, the veteran returnees have gotten a taste of winning and learned more about what it takes to feast on success.
This optimistic outlook doesn’t ignore the challenges of replacing some valiant outgoing seniors, who manned up to keep the program going forward some rugged times the past few seasons.
But the number of probable returnees mixed with freshmen turning into sophomores, middle school players moving up to the high school, possible transfers or other new faces could provide Sapulpa and his staff with the material to build on this year’s foundation.
As far as last Friday’s loss, the Doggers played a good portion of the game without two of their top offensive weapons — Jayden Vallen and Easton Davis. This severely impacted both the rushing and passing attacks and hampered Dewey in moving the chains and keeping Chandler’s potent offense on the sideline.
Quarterback Braxton Brayden connected with Mason Spears for a 45-yard touchdown aerial to prevent the shutout. Brayden and Spears could be two of the key components for next season.
Despite the de facto last minute change at head coach, a change at starting quarterback, the reliance early of some inexperienced players and other challenges, Dewey gave 2025 its best shot.
It’s likely the Doggers will be ready to come out of chute running with their best foot forward when the opening kickoff of 2026 arrives.
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Dewey High School’s Nate Sloan (21) carries the ball during the Bulldoggers’ 38-7 loss to Chandler in Dewey last Friday.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
A Caney Valley Trojan tries to gain yards during an earlier season game. The Trojans fell to Quapaw 33-14 during their final game of the season.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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QUAPAW 33, CANEY VALLEY TROJANS 14
Adversity worked overtime on the Caney Valley crew — but the Trojans continued to scrap and get better through the hard times.
The end of the road arrived last Friday night. The Trojans that traveled the full course deserved an ovation of respect from all Caney Valley fans — and from all those that value character as the highest virtue of an athlete.
It’s rewarding to bask in the sunlight of victory but a challenge to endure when things are tough — and to remain completely focused. That takes real guts, real devotion, real toughness — to stay faithful to a commitment and to continue to give it your all and to celebrate the “little” victories, even if they’re just making a big tackle or scoring a touchdown or picking up a hard-earned first down.
That’s the honor and recognition this Trojan group and its coaches and its fans deserve.
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Nowata High School’s Adrian O’Dell (6) takes the snap during an earlier season game. The Ironmen fell to Tonkawa 62-12 in their final game of the season.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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TONKAWA 62, NOWATA 12
Don’t be fooled by the final score — or by Nowata’s final record.
Even though the Ironmen boasted a handful of exceptional athletes mixed with a passel of new starters, injury took a heavy toll during their journey.
But they kept plugging away, kept battling.
They just didn’t get many good breaks.
In Week 3, Barnsdall scored a late touchdown and held on to beat Nowata, 37-36. The next week, Nowata put up 34 points the next week — but Quapaw erupted with 50 points. That would be Quapaw’s highest point output of the season after it had averaged just 8.3 points in the previous four games.
Nowata also dropped a competitive decision to Chelsea, 28-16.
And there was last Friday’s finale.
On paper, it shouldn’t have been much of a game — Tonkawa unbeaten in district (6-0) vs. Nowata at 2-4 and well out of playoff contention.
But the score was tied, 6-6, late in the first quarter and the Ironmen were down by just two scores a few minutes prior to halftime.
“We knew it was going to be a tough task,” Nowata coach Chance Juby said. “They had put it on Pawhuska and Pawhuska is a really good team. Our kids knew we had nothing to lose. … We just played loose and had fun.”
Late in the first half, Asiah Saxton made his second touchdown catch, which cut Tonkawa’s lead to two possessions.
“The first half we played them harder than anyone else had all year,” Juby said.
But to start out the second half, Nowata attempted an onside kick — which backfired when a Tonkawa player got the loose ball and ran in for a back-breaking touchdown.
“Our players still went out and gave effort and played as hard as they could,” Juby added.
Saxton finished with several catches from Adrian O’Dell for between 150 to 200 yards.
O’Dell displayed a lot of character in the inferno of Tonkawa’s pass rush.
“Adrian was running for his life most of the game … but he gave us a fighting chance for a little while,’ Juby said.
Seniors Brett Malone, Maliki Ordner and Spencer Atkins helped lead the defensive effort.
Atkins made his fourth interception of the season, which leads the district, Juby noted.
O’Dell and Saxton are some of the key veterans eligible to return next season. In addition a couple of injured two-way linemen could play big roles next season, the coach said.
The team will be just overall more experienced at other spots or on the depth chart.
“We started three freshmen on the offensive line for multiple games,” Juby said. “We’re excited about next season. “We’ve got a lot of good pieces coming back.”
The cumulative regular season record of the eight teams Nowata lost to was 43-37.
An Oklahoma Union player tries to tackle a Nowata ballcarrier during an earlier season game. OKU fell to Pawnee 50-0 in their final game of the season.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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PAWNEE 50, OKLAHOMA UNION 0
Oklahoma Union enjoyed some scattered experience but relied on several new starters in what some might characterize as an ubiquitous rebuilding year.
The Cougars also played a grueling schedule, both non-district and district. The cumulative regular-season record of the teams that beat Oklahoma Union was 48-42.
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HOMINY 34, AFTON 8
As mentioned above, Hominy (8-2) won its final seven games of the regular season, including going unbeaten through its district schedule.
Four of the victories were by margins of 20 or more points, and another was a forfeit win.
The Bucks scored 32 or more points in eight of their games and no doubt would have reached that point total a ninth time if not for the forfeit. Pawhuska was the lone team to hold Hominy to less than 30 points (44-27).
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MEDFORD 62, SOUTH COFFEYVILLE 16
South Coffeyville is revving up to make a well-deserved postseason appearance in Class C (eight-man). The Lions (3-5) racked up wins against Graham-Dustin, Watts and Welch — and dropped close decisions against Foyil, 14-8, and Bluejacket, 36-22.