McKenzie, TN – The Webber International Football team fell on the road at Bethel (TN), 24–7, on Saturday afternoon. The Warriors pulled level late in the first quarter but the Wildcats answered with two second-quarter scores and a third-quarter field goal to put the game out of reach.
Webber International fell behind early as Bethel cashed in on a short field late in the first quarter. After the Wildcats worked inside the red zone with a pair of underneath throws and a Stockton run, Destin Chance hit Jayden Pressey on 4th-and-3 for a 13-yard touchdown at 5:01; Zachary Clutch added the PAT for a 7–0 Bethel lead. Special teams pinned the Warriors on the ensuing kickoff (fair catch at the WIU 25). Defensively, Webber got stops from Edward Austin and Omar Goosby on goal-to-go snaps before the TD, but Bethel's quick strike on fourth down broke through.
The Warriors answered with their best drive of the night to open the second quarter: a 9-play, 75-yard march lasting 9:31, capped by D'Markus Mathis two-yard rush at 10:30 to tie it 7–7. Dorian Manuel's 6-yard burst to the BU19 set up the scoring play, and AJ Hitt's PAT was true. Hitt then boomed a 65-yard kickoff for a touchback. Bethel responded with a ground-heavy 8-play, 75-yard drive, as Jordan Cason ripped runs of 20 and 11 yards before punching in a 7-yard TD with 5:00 left (Clutch PAT), and the Wildcats added a late TD pass with :06 remaining to take a 21–7 halftime lead. Webber's defense flashed earlier in the quarter when Javier Frazier notched a 4-yard TFL, but Bethel's balance closed the half strong.
Webber's special teams sparked the third with Hitt's 64-yard kickoff, and the defense immediately flipped momentum: Matthew Smiciklas intercepted Chance at the BU48 at 13:57. The offense moved the chains as D'Markus Mathis ran for a yard and Birchler found Tobijah Semper (3 yards) and Mathis (6 yards) to the BU38 before the drive stalled in a turnover sequence that defined the quarter. Jaxson Rivera later flipped the field with a 40-yard punt to the BU30 as both defenses forced multiple changes of possession; Bethel's Jarvis Stockton broke a 32-yard run in the final minute before the period ended.
Early in the fourth, Bethel's drive reached the WIU 4 on a short completion to Pressey, and Clutch converted a 4-yard field goal at 12:41 to make it 24–7. Webber mixed in Johnny Lewis Jr. under center on the next series—picking up 3 yards on a keeper and a 1-yard completion to Terrell Holt—but the Wildcats' front limited chunk plays the rest of the way. Special teams remained steady for WIU (no return miscues; Rivera's earlier punt and Hitt's kickoffs were clean), while the defense finished with several open-field tackles from Caden Morrell and Tyler Powell to keep Bethel out of the end zone in the final frame.
By the Numbers
- Final: Bethel (TN) 24, Webber 7
- Total Offense: WIU 167 yds (53 plays) | BU 327 yds (58 plays)
- First Downs: WIU 12 | BU 15
- Passing: WIU 17-of-33, 145 yds, 1 TD | BU 21-of-26, 198 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
- Rushing: WIU 20-22 | BU 32-129
- Punts: WIU 6 for 39.3 avg (long 49; 1 I20)
- Turnovers: WIU 0 | BU 1 (INT)
- Scoring by Quarter: WIU 0-7-0-0 | BU 7-14-3-0
Webber Leaders
Bethel (TN) Leaders
- QB: Destin Chance 21-of-26, 198 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
- RBs: Jarvis Stockton 18-75; Jordan Cason 8-46, TD
- WRs: Jayden Pressey 10-74, 2 TD; Ethan Bunch 4-54; Ray Harvey 3-49
- K/P: Zachary Clutch 24-yd FG; 3-for-3 PAT; Logan Miller/Zachary Clutch combined for 5 punts (long 61)
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