Turnovers were the difference Saturday night as Arkansas-Monticello capitalized on six Ouachita Baptist miscues for a 44-24 Gulf South Conference victory at A.U. Williams Field.
The Tigers had a chance to rally from a 20-point deficit late in the second half as Lance Parker connected with Julius Pruitt for a 26-yard score with 3:29 remaining to cut the Monticello lead to 37-24.
However, the onsides kick was recovered by a Boll Weevils player and Monticello got a 24-yard touchdown pass from Casey Cathcart to Lindsey Spinks to put the game away 44-24 with 1:33 left.
The Boll Weevils (4-2 overall, 2-1 GSC) took the opening kickoff and went 78 yards in 13 plays as Johnny Polite scored on a 6-yard run with 9:18 remaining in the first quarter.
Ouachita cut the Monticello margin to 7-3 as Zach Wright booted a 26-yard field goal with 2:53 left in the first.
The Tigers (2-3, 1-3) grabbed a 10-7 advantage as Boll Weevils quarterback Scott Buisson was hit in the backfield hard by Frank Espy at his own three, knocking the ball into the end zone. Jimmy Pinkney recovered the loose ball for the first Tiger touchdown of the night with 10:58 remaining in the first half.
The Boll Weevils took the lead for good with 3:52 left in the first half as Buisson hit Clarence Denmark in stride as he broke past the Ouachita secondary for a 69-yard score, giving Monticello a 13-10 advantage. On the extra point, the snap was bad, forcing Buisson to throw an incomplete pass.
Both teams had opportunities late in the first half to add to the score, but both quarterbacks were intercepted. Bryan Church got his first collegiate interception with 16 seconds remaining in the first half to stop a Monticello scoring opportunity.
Buisson gave Monticello a 20-10 lead with 13:31 left in the third quarter after a Ouachita turnover. The sophomore quarterback went off the left tackle and 46 yards for the score.
Another turnover turned into points for the Boll Weevils as Monticello went 42 yards in just five plays as Buisson scored on a quarterback keeper to increase the lead to 27-10.
Ouachita responded by putting together a 9-play, 72-yard drive as KJ Johnson scored on a 7-yard run to cut the deficit to 27-17 with 7:40 left in the third.
However, after Monticello turned the ball over on downs, Johnson coughed up the football, which resulted in seven points as the Boll Weevils went 28 yards in four plays with Jywin Ceaser scoring on a 4-yard run with 2:11 remaining in the third quarter to give Monticello a 34-17 advantage.
The Boll Weevils increased the margin to 37-17 with 12:28 remaining as Nick Green booted a 42-yard field goal.
Despite throwing five interceptions, Parker was 17-of-33 for 200 yards and one score. Pruitt finished the night with nine catches for 112 yards and KJ Johnson led all Tiger rushers with 16 carries for 60 yards.
Defensively, Terrence Garrett finished with 13 tackles in three for a loss of nine yards. Blake Burkett chipped in with eight.
Buisson, who had 113 yards on 17 carries, was 20-of-32 for 227 yards in the air. Tim Harris caught seven balls for 51 yards and Ceaser added six catches for 69 yards.
The Tigers return to the road as Ouachita travels 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 11 to Searcy, Ark., to take on Harding. The game can be heard on the Ouachita Football Network through the following stations: Arkadelphia (KYXK-FM 106.9); Hot Springs (KBHS-AM 1420); Magnolia (KVMA-AM 630); El Dorado (KELD-FM 106.5); Nashville (KNAS-FM 105.5); Mena (KQOR-FM 105.3) or on the Web at: mms://rain.obu.edu/tigerathletics/
