NORTH LITTLE ROCK — For nearly one half, the Northside Grizzlies stood toe to toe with the state’s No. 1 ranked team.

However, an 80-yard touchdown late in the first half one play after the Grizzlies missed a field goal attempt enabled North Little Rock to seize momentum.

The Charging Wildcats converted that long pass into a 10-0 lead; then scored on all four of their second-half possessions to halt Northside’s late-season surge, posting a 34-0 win against the Grizzlies Friday in the 7A quarterfinals.

“We were playing the No. 1 team in the state of Arkansas, and early our defense battled and battled and we had our chances,” Northside coach Mike Falleur said. “We missed a field goal, and we didn’t take advantage when we had the chance and we needed to do that.”

North Little Rock (11-0), which beat Northside for the second time in the past five weeks, advances to next week’s 7A semifinals to take on another 7A-Central foe, Conway. Northside, making its second straight quarterfinal and third in the past four seasons, finishes the season at 4-8, but will return many of its main players for 2018.

“I can’t say enough about (NLR); they’re a great football team, and I’m proud of ours and the way they fought these last three weeks,” Falleur said. “We just met a team that was a little bit better than us (Friday). ... We’ve got to get better.”

The Charging Wildcats were up 3-0 late in the first half, and held on to their lead after Northside missed a 32-yard field goal attempt.

One play later, NLR broke the game open.

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Taking over at its own 20 after the missed field goal, quarterback David Chapple launched a deep pass to receiver Aaron Griffin. Griffin caught the ball in stride near the Northside 35 and outraced the secondary for an 80-yard TD.

Savana Melton’s PAT increased the lead to 10-0 with 1:31 remaining until halftime.

The Charging Wildcats then got the ball to start the second half and marched 80 yards in 12 plays, converting a first down on third-and-long and a fourth down. Chapple, who converted the fourth down with a 2-yard run to the Northside 8, took a bootleg around the left side from 5 yards out, and Melton’s PAT made it 17-0.

Northside was forced to punt on its next series. Deontae Montgomery returned the kick 36 yards to the Grizzly 34, and three plays later, took a receiver screen 8 yards for a TD, as NLR extended its lead to 24-0 with more than five minutes left in the third.

The Grizzlies advanced inside the NLR 35 on their next series, but were forced to turn the ball over on downs. NLR proceeded to go 68 yards in 12 plays, and Chapple finished it off with a 1-yard sneak and a 31-0 advantage with 8:41 remaining.

Melton capped the scoring with a 35-yard field goal with 1:25 showing on the clock.

NLR out-gained Northside, 386-154, as the Grizzlies were held to 124 yards on the ground and 30 yards passing. Northside junior quarterback Deuce Wise rushed for 69 yards on 18 carries, while completing 8-of-16 passes for 30 yards.

Senior receiver DeAron Robinson and sophomore tailback Jackson King each caught three passes for a combined 31 yards. King also had 41 yards on 10 carries.

Chapple connected on 11-of-15 passes for 225 yards and two TDs, while he added two rushing TDs. Tailbacks Oscar Adaway and Brandon Thomas combined to rush for 110 yards.

Northside junior linebacker Anthony Travis stopped a lengthy Charging Wildcat series on their first drive by recovering a fumble at his own 26. Travis also got a third-down sack with NLR on the move early in the second quarter, which led to Melton giving the Charging Wildcats a 3-0 lead on a 31-yard field goal.
