Eagles start fast, hold off Buffaloes in 35-21 win

By Jeff Harrison
Midwest City Beacon

Del City built a huge lead in the first half Friday night against McAlester.

And they needed every bit of it.

The Eagles raced to 28-0 at halftime but saw the Buffaloes chip away in the second half. Del City was outscored 21-7 in the second half but held on for a 35-21 win over the two-time Class 5A state finalists.

“I feel like as we progressed in the second half, we got lackadaisical,” said coach Robert Jones during an interview with Oklahoma Sports Network. “We did the same thing last year against this team. We need to learn how to be a champion and finish the game… But I’ll always take district win especially against a state runner up type team.”

River Warren and Ladanian Fields again proved a winning connection. Warren was 13 of 17 passing for 212 yards and three touchdowns. Ladanian Fields had two of those touchdown catches along with a 53-yard reception that set up another score.

Standout running back Rodney Fields left the game with an injury in the first quarter. Shayden Green, Ricklan Holmes and Braelon Adamah helped fill the void. Green ran for 64 yards and one score. Holmes had five rushes for 47 yards and Adamah scored once.

Both teams started the game with a turnover. Del City got the ball back on an interception by Blake Barker. Two plays later, Warren found Kedarrius Palmer for a 34-yard touchdown catch in the end zone. Warren later connected with Ladanian Fields on a seven-yard screen pass for a 14-0 lead.

Ladanian later set up another score with a 43-yard catch down the far sidelines. Two plays later, Shayden Green banged it in from two yards out. That made it a 21-0 score with 5 minutes left in the first.

Warren continued to work the ball Ladandian Fields’ way. The senior wideout took a screen near midfield and blazed past defenders for a 53-yard touchdown catch and run.

Del City led 28-0 at halftime.

“We wanted to come out fast on both sides of the ball, and we did,” Jones said. “Rodney Fields sustained an injury and Shayden Green and Ricklan Holmes stepped up and ran the ball well. Our offense flowed well. We threw the ball well. And we were balanced like we wanted to be.”

It was a different story in the second half as McAlester charged back.

The Buffaloes got on the board late in the third quarter. Quarterback Caden Lesnau lofted the ball down the sideline for a 38-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Clark.

Braelon Adamah ran for a seven-yard touchdown early in the fourth, pushing Del City’s lead to 35-7.

McAlester delivered a scare with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to make it a 35-21 final score.

Del City is on the road again this week to take on Sapulpa (3-2, 1-1). The Chieftains lost at Coweta 24-19 last week, snapping a three-game winning streak.