Norman North beats Westmoore in key Oklahoma District 6AI-1 football clash
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA - When Westmoore and Norman North faced off Friday night, both teams still had a lot riding on the game.
With just two weeks left in the regular season, playoff positioning was still on the line.
It was Norman North which ran out to a big lead early in the night and was able to hold on for a 30-14 victory at Harve Collins Field.
The victory pushed the Timberwolves into a tie for third place with the Jaguars at 4-2 in District 6AI-1. But they now own the head-to-head match-up with just one game left on their schedule.
Norman North jumped on the scoreboard first when quarterback Owen Eschelman and receiver Mason James connected on a touchdown pass with 3:55 left in the opening quarter.
The Jaguars did almost everything possible to hurt themselves to start the game. They had a penalty wipe away a recovered fumble and then turned around and gave the ball away when they fumbled on their own punt attempt.
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The Timberwolves recovered the turnover inside the Jags' 5-yard line and were poised to go up by two touchdowns. But Westmoore linebacker Conner Cavner came up with a sack on third down to force a North field goal.
Westmore’s offense continued to struggle as they were unable to get anything going in the passing game. The Timberwolves' front seven attacked the line of scrimmage and shut down the run game as well.
Eschelman and James hooked up once more in the second quarter for a touchdown and a 16-0 halftime advantage.
Westmoore came out rolling on the opening possession of the second half and scored to close the gap to nine, 16-7.
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The Timberwolves got the points right back on a 9-yard touchdown pass from Eschelman to Luke Freeland.
Cavner picked off Eschelman at the 27 and returned it to the 3-yard line. On the next play, the Jaguars scored and got back into the contest, trailing 23-14 with 2:48 remaining in the third quarter.
However, that would be as close as they would get as the Timberwolves shut them down for the rest of the game.
Westmoore (5-4, 4-2) ends the regular season against Southmoore on Nov. 3. Norman North (7-2, 4-2) travels to Enid.
-- Michael Kinney | @SBLiveOK
