Nashville tops Warren in thriller

WARREN — The fat lady couldn’t sing until the end.

Nashville overcame five turnovers and Warren’s never-say-die quarterback to post a 42-37 Class 4A quarterfinal win in Warren Friday night.

Nashville’s Leonard Snell ran for 106 yards and threw two touchdown passes, and running back Darius Hopkins ran for 100 yards and two touchdowns to lead Nashville into a semifinals match at home next week against Pea Ridge.

The last time the Scrappers reached the semifinals was in 2007, when they won a state title.

Snell’s and Hopkins’ efforts were barely enough to get by Warren and junior quarterback Hayden Lassiter, who threw for 300 yards and two touchdowns and ran in two more to keep a team with two dozens freshmen and sophomores in the game.

Nashville dominated the third quarter, scoring 21 points, after Warren took advantage of Nashville ‘s firsthalf miscues — two interceptions, two fumbles and a muffed punt — to turn a 14-3 deficit into a 24-14 halftime.

Nashville took the opening kickoff and promptly marched 54 yards for the score on nine plays. Hopkins capped it by bulling in from the 3.

After a stop by the Scrapper defense, Lassiter uncorked a 51-yard punt to bury Nashville at its own 7. On second-and-9, Snell lofted a rainbow deep into the left flat. His receiver fell down and Lassiter camped under at the 40. The junior returned it to the 18.

The Lumberjacks were stuffed on three plays, but Sergio Yepes’ field goal from 35 yards out went through with 20 yards to spare to make it a 7-3 game with 4:59 left in the first.

The Scrappers answered with a 6-play, 65-yard drive. Hopkins ended this one, too, exploding through a hole at right guard and cutting back to his left to score from 27 yards out.

Lassiter turned the game back the Lumberjacks way, connecting with Cade Reep on a deep rail route down the right sideline. Reep made an acrobatic catch around the 50 and tip-toed his way into the end zone to complete a 65-yard toss-and-catch.

Down 14-10, Warren would score the next 21 points

Nashville took the ensuing kickoff and marched from its own 27 to the Warren 29 before Carrington Gilbert ended the drive with an interception in the end zone.

The Lumberjacks needed just three plays after that to put the ball into the end zone. The big one was a fluke.

On second-and-6 from the Warren 44, a long snap to Lassiter went awry. He raced back to the 30, picked it, broke through a crowd of tacklers, broke two more tackles and then raced down the left sideline for a touchdown.

Yepes’ point-after was perfect, and Warren was up, 17-14 with 10:05 left in the second.

The two teams played a hard-hitting battle for field position most of the second quarter until Alan Garcia recovered a muffed punt at the Scrapper 13 with 4:05 remaining. Three plays later, Lassiter put his head down and shoved it in from the one.

The Scrappers came out of the halftime locker room looking like a team on the mission. On its first possession Nashville closed to within three points with a six-play, 88-yard drive.

A 21-yard scramble by Snell set up a 61-yard scoring strike to Ty Pettaway running a skinny post across the middle.

The Nashville defense followed with a third down sack of Lassiter at his own 1. After a punt, the Scrappers needed just six plays to punch it in and take the lead, 28-21.

Warren tried a fake punt on its next try and Nashville’s De’ajeon Armstrong was all over it, breaking up a pass to give the Scrappers a short field at the Lumberjacks’ 24. Five plays later, Terell Grundy went up the middle for four yards and the scorer to make it 35-24.

It was 42-24 with six minutes left in the contest when Hopkins broke a tackle in the backfield and scampered down the left sideline nine yards.

The Lumberjacks weren’t finished. A’Darius Harding took in the ensuing kickoff, found a seam up the middle and raced 91 yards.

A few minutes later, Lassiter found Treylon Burks inside the 10. The receiver ran through the final defender to make it 42-37 with just 1:40 left to play.

Warren’s attempt at an onsides kick failed and the Scrappers were able to kill the clock.