ALPINE – The Oakman Wildcats entered Friday’s game riding a three-game win streak. However, the streak came to a heartbreaking end courtesy of the Winterboro Bulldogs as the Wildcats fell 26-20.
The Bulldogs scored on a 66-yard completion with just 37 seconds remaining in regulation to take the lead.
“This is a tough loss,” Oakman head coach Ryan Hall said after the game. “Hats off to Winterboro, they made one more play than we did.”
Oakman started strong after recovering an impromptu onside kick. The Wildcats nickele and dimed their way down the field for the first score of the game when Kaysen Dickerson found the endzone on a 9-yard run.
After Oakman shaved four minutes off the clock, Winterboro responded with a four-minute drive of their own to cut the lead to 7-6. In the second quarter, Quarterback Trace Cagle found tight end, Luke Martin, for an 11-yard touchdown completion to cap off a more than six-minute drive to give Oakman a 14-6 halftime lead.
After receiving the ball after the half, Oakman continued with their slow and steady style of offense with another lengthy six-minute drive.
Cagle called his own number as he barreled into the endzone to extend the Wildcat lead to 20-6 after a blocked extra point.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Bulldogs found a seam all the way to the endzone before a holding penalty brought them back to their own 15 yard-line.
It appeared that the Wildcats were about to wear the Bulldogs down. However, with their backs against the wall on homecoming night, Winterboro took the ball 85 yards on nine plays to cut the deficit to six points with 47 seconds left in the third quarter.
Oakman struggled to get things going offensively on the next two drives that ended with a punt and Cagle’s second interception of the night. With a short field, the Bulldogs only need one play to tie the game at 20-20 with 5:41 left in regulation.
Despite the adversity and onslaught of the Bulldogs, the Cats drove the ball down into their opponents’ territory poised to take the lead. After a costly holding penalty, Oakman faced fourth-and-ten from the 20-yard-line.
With 1:01 left in the game, the Wildcats called on freshman kicker Brady Jones for his first career field goal attempt. Unfortunately for Oakman, Jones’s kick fell just short on the 35-yard attempt.
It appeared that overtime was imminent when a Bulldog receiver caught a pass in the flats, breaking multiple tackles, before streaking down the sideline for a 66-yard winning touchdown reception in a hard-fought contest.
Oakman was able to control the clock, holding the ball for thirty-one of the forty-eight minutes of regulation but was not able to hold on to the lead in the final stretch.
“To grow up sometimes you have to be in games like that where the outcome comes down to the final few plays. We will grow from it and be better prepared next time we get in that situation. Our kids are resilient, tough, and they will bounce back.”
Oakman returns to region play as they travel to Fayette County on Thursday for a battle of 3A Region 5 unbeatens.
 courtesy of the Winterboro Bulldogs.){kind=link}