The Stratford Bulldog defense stepped up again last week and kept the Dibble Demons to only one touchdown. The Demons did manage to get 165 yards on the ground in 34 attempts with almost a 5 yards per carry average. They also threw for another 89 yards to a total of 254 yards in offense.
Stratford’s Hunter Morton led the Bulldog defense with 11 tackles, Justin Arriaga had 10 tackles, Blake English had 7 tackles, one of them being recorded as a sack. Taylor Arriaga had 7 tackles, Nolan Hall had 6 tackles and an interception and Lincoln Hall had 6 tackles and an interception.
The Bulldog offense got off to a big start when Nolan Hall connected with Walker Chandler on a 70-yard touchdown pass early in the first quarter. David Arriaga made the extra point attempt, and the Bulldogs took a 7-0 lead. Five minutes later Stratford’s Hunter Morton ran in for a 2-yard touchdown and an Arriaga kick extended the lead to 14-0. Stratford’s Nolan Hall scored again from the 1-yard line with about a minute left in the first quarter, and Arriaga’s kick put the Bulldogs in a 21-0 lead going into the second quarter.
The Demons got on the board early in the second quarter when Jag Norman scored on a 6-yard run into the end zone. The Demons failed on the extra point attempt cutting the Bulldog lead to 21-6.
The Bulldogs’ Morton scored again on a 22-yard touchdown run late in the second quarter. Arriaga made the extra point attempt, bringing the score to 28-6. Neither team was able to score again in the second half. Stratford’s Nolan Hall ended the game with 142 yards and one touchdown on the ground and 164 yards and a touchdown through the air. Hunter Morton had 55 yards rushing and another 55 yards receiving. The Bulldogs’ Walker Chandler had 77 yards and a touchdown receiving. Jase Fulks had 32 yards receiving.
“It was a really good district win for us tonight. Again, we had to have some guys step up and fill in for some injuries, and I was proud of the way the team responded,” Stratford Head Coach Michael Blackburn said.
This week the Bulldogs welcome Rush Springs to town as Stratford celebrates senior night. Rush Springs is 2-6 on the season and coming off a tough 20-8 loss to Elmore City-Pernell last week. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
