Myles Ratliff, Ladaquis Word lead Hixson's late rally

Football
Football

Battered and bruised as he limped across the football field during the postgame jubilation, Hixson's Myles Ratliff shrugged off his wearied condition.

The satisfaction of a last second 21-18 victory over Region 3-4A foe East Hamilton on Friday night at Anthony Martino Field offered a soothing balm to his physical woes.

The senior running back scored the decisive touchdown with 18 seconds remaining, capping a 74-yard, nine-play drive with a 3-yard rumble to give the Wildcats their first win of the year.

Hixson (1-3, 1-1) dropped East Hamilton to 2-3, 1-1.

Ratliff was a sledgehammer behind his determined offensive line on the final drive, carrying the ball five times on the way to 114 yards on 19 carries.

"I knew we were going to score on that last drive. I had no doubts the way our line was opening holes. I told them I was hungry, to just keep feeding me the ball," Ratliff said.

But a pair of sparkling plays from Wildcats quarterback Ladaquis Word kept the winning march alive. The senior connected with Tre Warthon for 29 yards on third down, then scampered 21 yards down to the Hurricanes' 3 on fourth-and-16.

"This is a huge win for us after all the adversity we've been through," Hixson coach Dan Duff said. "Our group may be few in numbers, but we are big in heart and they showed it tonight."

Hixson dominated offensively, racking up 371 total yards while limiting East Hamilton to 230. But the Wildcats misfired on three long field goals and had a drive end at the Hurricanes' 1 to end the first half.

"We're learning how to win again, because our program's been down a few years," Duff said. "I should have gotten us points by kicking the field goal at the half, but our kids just never got down and fought hard the whole game."

The Wildcats took their opening possession 72 yards in eight plays to take an early lead, with Word spinning at the goal line to cap an 11-yard touchdown run.

East Hamilton responded on the next series when quarterback Andrew Sturdivant scored from 2 yards out, capping a 75-yard drive. The PAT was blocked, which haunted the Hurricanes the rest of the game.

Hixson's Britt Rominger recovered a Sturdivant fumble deep in East Hamilton territory to give the Wildcats their next scoring opportunity. Word sped in from 5 yards on the next play to give the Wildcats a 14-6 lead.

Drako Wise's 18-yard burst from 23 yards, followed by a failed two-point conversion attempt, brought East Hamilton back to within 14-12 at halftime.

Hixson's defense stiffened in the second half, limiting the Hurricanes to 100 yards while forcing punts on three of the first four East Hamilton possessions. A 47-yard scoring strike from Sturdivant to Blake Aldredge midway through the third quarter gave the Hurricanes an 18-14 lead after the run for two was thwarted.

Hixson's final possession started with 3:10 left, setting the stage for the heroics from Word and Ratliff.

Word finished with 141 yards on 21 carries, while Jhaeden Smith led East Hamilton with 93 on 17.

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