It was another great day for the NEP Wildcats on Saturday as they traveled to Pace to battle both the heat and the Patriots to come away with a 7-1 record on the day.
The Wildcats pulled out wins in the 6U, 7U, 8U, 9U, 10U, 11U and 14U age groups. The 12U Wildcats suffered a setback to the Patriots for NEP’s only loss on the day.
The highlight of the day came in the 9U age group, where the Wildcats knocked off three-time champ Pace 28-0.
6U Wildcats roll to another shutout win
The Bobby Behr-led Wildcats continued to get it done on both offense and defense as they rolled to a 30-0 win over the Patriots in the opening game of the day.
The Wildcats got touchdown runs from Dylan Thompkins, Josiah Miller and Carson Behr, while Tompkins also had two interception returns for touchdown.
The 6U Wildcats improved to 4-0 on the year with the win and has outscored opponents 92-0 in the first four games (one of those was a forfeit win over Perdido).
7U Wildcats remain unbeaten with 30-0 win
The 7U Wildcats pulled away from Pace on Saturday to improve to 4-0 on the season with a 30-0 win over the Patriots.
The Wildcats jumped out to an early lead in the contest and never looked back in shutting off the clock in the second half.
The 7U Wildcats will face Navarre in a rematch on Saturday in hopes of moving to 5-0.
8U holds off pesky Pace team for 12-6 win
The 8U Wildcats found themselves in a tough battle against the Pace Patriots, ultimately holding on for a 12-6 win over the Patriots.
The Wildcats got a monster day from Kaden Posta, who led the team with 110 yards and two touchdowns on six carries.
Pace’s defense was able to solve what has been an unstoppable NEP offense, holding the Wildcats to only 106 yards of total offense.
Fortunately for the Wildcats, the NEP defense was up to the task, coming up with huge second-half stops to hold on for the victory.
9U Wildcats make statement with 28-0 win
The matchup of the day going into it was definitely the 9U Wildcats against three-time defending champ Patriots.
The teams have been destined to meet up the last two years, but never quite got a chance to play each other. When the Wildcats caught them on Saturday, NEP did its best to send a message to the rest of the league that they’re definitely a contender for the 9U title.
The Wildcats set the tone early in the contest with a touchdown on their opening possession and didn’t stop there, taking a 22-0 lead over the Patriots before wrapping up with a 28-0 win.
Zayvion Davis scored twice in the contest and the Wildcats also got touchdown runs from Dax Brooks and Nate Filbert.
10U squeezes out 14-12 win over Patriots
Following the 8U lead, the 10U Wildcats used a strong defensive effort at the end of the game to hold off Pace for a 14-12 victory.
The Wildcats seemed destined for an easy win in the early going as Jayden Abney returned the opening kickoff the distance for a touchdown and quick 8-0 lead.
But Pace was up to the task on the day, and the back-and-forth contest was a two-point game in the final seconds after the Patriots stripped the ball out of a Wildcats’ players’ hands and took it the distances for the touchdown.
The extra point attempt by Pace was no good and the Wildcats held on to the 2-point win.
But one play later, Pace was back on offense after a fumble by NEP. But the Wildcats defense stood strong to preserve the victory.
11U overcomes heat, adversity to win
The 11U Wildcats faced a formidable foe in the Patriots and it took a while for the NEP offense to get going as the teams went into the second quarter scoreless at 0-0.
But the Wildcats’ offense eventually hit its stride and the result was a 30-0 win for the Wildcats. NEP got touchdown runs from Kobe Howard, Nigel Nelson and CJ Nettles in building a 24-0 lead.
The dagger came in the third quarter, when Nelson hit a streaking Howard on a 45-yard touchdown pass to shut off the clock.
The NEP defense, which has been solid all year long, held Pace to only 11 yards of total offense and one first down on the day.
12U struggles continue with loss to Pace
The 12U Wildcats, playing without several players due to injury, dropped to 1-3 on the year with a 30-0 loss to the Patriots.
The Wildcats and Patriots seemed to match up well early in the contest, but depth prevailed in the end as the Patriots pulled away in the second half for the easy win.
Juniors cap off day with 34-6 win
Early on, the 14U Wildcats were locked in a tough battle with the Patriots, but the overall multitude of weapons for the Wildcats were too much for Pace as the Cats rolled to the 34-6 victory.
The Wildcats got touchdown runs from Jaylen Lewis, Clifton Quiggins and Shamane Walker, as well as a touchdown pass from Aiden Byrd to Jackson Perryclear.
NEP improved to 3-1 on the year heading into Saturday’s matchup with Ensley.