Baldwyn was a nemesis for Ron Price and his East Webster Wolverines in 2021 and 2022, but the coach and his team have gotten their revenge. After losing threestraight games against the Bearcats over that two-year span, the Wolverines blew Baldwyn away in a 49- 0 victory last year. This season, EWHS left no doubt yet again as they built a massive lead in the first quarter and never looked back in the 55-6 victory. “We preach to our kids to do your best and to be in the right position at the right time and good things will come your way. Friday night, our kids just made some really special plays on offense, defense and special teams,” Price said of the Wolverines. “We made some big plays early in the game to get a big lead and once we got that lead we built on that momentum while Baldwyn took a step backwards. I never expected the game to play out like that but I was proud of our kids.” It was truly a balanced affair for the Wolverines as the team scored in all three phases. The Wolverines were leading 7-6 early in the game after the two teams traded scores and then things would get out of hand. It was a 28-6 at the half that was built to 42-6 in the third quarter to issue the running clock. The game saw touchdown returns in the punt game from Daygan Crowley and kick return from Lakendrick Potts and an interception returned for a score by RT Moye. The offense was efficient still with Cooper Stidham going 4-for-7 for 75 yards and three carries for 30 yards and a score. Kross Avent got time in the game again and finished 4- for-4 for 65 yards. Crowley led the wide receivers with two catches for 60 yards and the ground game was again dominated by Dee Bingham with six carries, 65 yards and his fourth-straight game with at least two touchdowns. Elijah O’Briant led the team with six tackles while Crowley finished with four tackles, 1.0 sack, an interception and the punt return touchdown. Despite dealing with injuries over the first four games, the Wolverines continue to battle through and put together impressive showings. Two-way star Jer’Kel Ivy is cleared to make his debut this season on Friday night but will be a game time decision while Jordan O’Briant is expected to be back from injury and both could give the team a major lift. “We have had some injuries, and I’ve tried hard to brag on our kids. You teach next man up mentality and when you actually have to do those things it’s been really neat to see those guys step up in those roles,” Price said. “Not only have they stepped up but they’ve performed. You feel like you’ve got some depth. Hopefully, we’ll have our whole entire football team that can play on a Friday night at some point.” Through four games, EWHS (4-0) has been one of the most impressive 3A programs in the state. The team has amassed an incredible 185-18 output against Eupora, Nanih Waiya, Noxapater and Baldwyn, but business is about to pick up in a major way. The Wolverines now travel down the road to take on a Calhoun City team that has delivered many heartbreaking results to EWHS over the years. In the last 16 tries, the Wolverines are 1-15 in this series. Seasons have ended and district titles have been decided by the Wildcats in this ball game, but now the two are foes in a different classification. The 2A Wildcats haven’t become any less formidable. This year’s team is 4-0 and have taken out two of the Wolverines’ Class 3A, Region 4 opponents the last two weeks in Aberdeen and Nettleton by a combined score of 68-15. It’s a mega challenge for an EWHS team that is a week away from starting division play at Choctaw County. “As a coach here, I’ve tried to approach this game from so many different angles to try to motivate our kids. This year I’ve just told them that it’s the next game on the schedule. We’re going to find out this week how good of a ball club we are. The things that has hurt us over the years is giving up big plays at the wrong time. We have got to eliminate big plays on Calhoun City’s part and when we have the opportunity to do something big with the football, we’ve got to capitalize on that.”
