Midwest City shocks previously unbeaten Lawton MacArthur with decisive rout
MIDWEST CITY, OKLAHOMA - Lawton MacArthur headed to Midwest City exactly where the Highlanders wanted to be.
With an undefeated record, they sat atop District 5A-1 tied with Elgin and in complete control of their playoff path.
With a matchup with the Owls in two weeks for the outright lead in the district, all the Highlanders needed to do was get past third-place Midwest City, which was coming off a 13-point loss the week before.
Unfortunately for the Highlanders, the Bombers weren’t in the mood to just roll over. They pummeled MacArthur, 42-7, on Friday and forced them to take the long bus ride back to Lawton with the first defeat of the season.
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At the same time, MWC was now in the fight for the district title as well.
Both teams opened the game on shaky ground as they combined for three turnovers in the first 12 minutes. However, it was the Highlanders who were unable to calm down and find their game.
Along with two turnovers, they had trouble just getting a clean snap from the center to the quarterback.
The Bombers jumped on the scoreboard in the second quarter when Lasiera Laviolette scored on a 1-yard run into the end zone. MWC missed the ensuing PAT, but still led 6-0 with more than 11 minutes left in the first half.
MacArthur stalled on offense once again and was forced to punt the ball back to Midwest City, which took over on its own 15-yard line.
Laviolette broke free for a 75-yard run down the Highlanders' sideline before he was pushed out of bounds at the 10-yard line. Four plays later, Jaylan Woody went up the middle for a Bombers touchdown and a 14-0 lead.
MacArthur had its chances to answer back, but once again, an off-target snap put the Highlanders in bad field position. When quarterback Aivan Locklin did have time to get a pass off, he found Dominic Collins in the back of the MWC defense on a deep throw down the middle of the field.
However, the pass went off the senior's fingertips for an incompletion.
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The Bombers led, 14-0, at halftime.
Midwest City didn’t let up in the second half. Laviolette scored on the opening drive to push the lead to 21 points. Then Kenneth Colston hit Jarvis Nash for a 64-yard touchdown pass on its next possession.
Laviolette and Jahhim Mahmoud each scored one more time to close out the third quarter and put the Bombers ahead, 42-0.
MacArthur (6-1, 3-1) will host El Reno Oct. 19 at Cameron Stadium in Lawton. The Bombers (4-3, 3-1) will hit the road to face Ardmore.
-- Michael Kinney | @SBLiveOK
