IOWA PARK — Offensive highlights were in abundance for both Iowa Park and Pilot Point.

Just when it seemed like the team with the ball last would win Friday night, a defensive play turned the tide.  

Pilot Point’s Austin Balderas sacked Hawks quarterback Lee Clubb for a 16-yard loss at the Iowa Park 39-yard line with 5:26 remaining, and the Bearcats drained the remainder of the clock to hold on for a 35-32 victory.

“That was a huge play — it may have been the play of the game,” Pilot Point head coach Blake Feldt said. “We were having difficulties getting that quarterback stopped. [Clubb] is a fantastic player.”

The outcome spoiled the home debut of Iowa Park coach Scott Ponder, but it was an exciting game to watch for Hawk fans who are used to the Wing -T.

Pilot Point took the lead for good with 6:52 remaining on quarterback J.P. Price’s 6-yard run, the eighth time the lead changed hands.

Iowa Park marched to the Bearcats’ 45-yard line, but Balderas’ sack on fourth-and-2 proved critical. Then the Hawks’ defense couldn’t make a stop when it needed to, as Pilot Point drove to the 2-yard line. 

“I thought we took them to the wire,” Ponder said. “We’re going to learn how to finish, especially if we’re going to compete with people like Burkburnett and Graham. That’s our job to do right now.” 

Clubb had a fantastic night, rushing for 167 yards and four touchdowns, while passing for 146 yards. Among his many highlights were a dazzling 73-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and a 2-yard touchdown dive on fourth down that allowed the Hawks to reclaim the lead at 32-29 with 10:16 remaining.

“There are still a lot of things we have to clean up, and a lot of things to improve,” Ponder said. “We’re still new to what we’re doing, and we’re going to get nothing but better.”

Feldt echoed those same sentiments, commenting that the Bearcats “improved drastically” from last week’s 50-35 loss to Liberty Christian.

Price threw for 343 yards in that defeat, but against Iowa Park, the Bearcats kept the ball on the ground behind an offensive line that had a size advantage. The result was 299 rushing yards.

Price led Pilot Point with 152 yards on 21 carries, while running back Mason Guthrie gashed Iowa Park’s defense for 143 yards and three touchdowns.    

“Obviously with what we’re doing right now, we’re trying to come out and throw the ball first,” said Feldt, whose team shook off J.D. Cuatt’s interception of the game’s very first play. “Like any football team, we’re going to try and make yards any way we can make yards.”

The Hawks, who are transitioning to the spread offense after years in the Wing-T, were at their most explosive in the second quarter, scoring 25 points in a 10-minute stretch.

Clubb connected on 11 of his first 12 passes, but the Bearcats’ offense responded after every Iowa Park score with one of their own. All of Guthrie’s touchdowns came in the first half.

Matt Rodgers’ 31-yard field goal propelled the Hawks into a 25-23 halftime lead, but Price hooked up with Willie Davis for a 15-yard touchdown on third-and-goal in the third quarter. It was one of the many times the Hawks’ defense had Pilot Point — last year’s 2A Division I champion — in a bind but failed to close the door.

“It was one of those heart-stoppers,” Feldt said. “There was no doubt the game was up in the air until the very last second.”

Pilot Point 35, Iowa Park 32

Pilot Point         8          15        6          6          --         35

Iowa Park        0          25        0          7          --         32

Scoring summary

FIRST QUARTER

PP — Mason Guthrie 4 run (J.P. Price run), 6:09

SECOND QUARTER

IP — Lee Clubb 1 run (kick failed), 10:20

IP — Clubb 3 run (Matt Rodgers pass from Clubb), 7:47

PP — Guthrie 4 run (Austin Balderas pass from Price), 4:30

IP — Clubb 73 run (J.D. Cuatt pass from Clubb), 4:04

PP — Guthrie 5 run (Ruben Martinez kick), 1:21

IP — Rodgers 31 field goal, 0:19

THIRD QUARTER

PP — Willie Davis 15 pass from Price (pass failed), 5:06

FOURTH QUARTER

IP — Clubb 2 run (Rodgers kick), 10:16

PP — Price 6 run (kick failed), 6:52

Team statistics

PP        IP

First downs      23        14

Rushes-yards    46-299             29-221

Passing yards    190      146

Total yards       489      367

Passes  17-28-1           14-24-0

Punts-avg         3-29.1  2-33.0

Fumbles-lost     0-0       4-1

Penalties-yards 9-79     7-40

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing: PP -- Mason Guthrie 20-143; J.P. Price 21-152; Conner Camacho 2-8; Willie Davis 1-3; Corbin Sitzes 1-(-1); team 1-(-6). IP -- Lee Clubb 18-167; Garrett Davis 9-58; Kris Tucker 2-(-4).

Passing: PP – J.P. Price 17-28-1-190. IP -- Lee Clubb 14-24-0-146.

Receiving: PP -- Willie Davis 5-71; Austin Balderas 1-33; Mason Guthrie 5-32; Conner Camacho 2-29; Austin Trinklein 1-22; Daniel Berry 1-13; Clay Laughrey 1-9; Ricky Campbell 1-0. IP -- Corey Bennett 5-53; Dillon Ross 3-44; Matt Rodgers 4-36; Garrett Davis 2-13.