Hawthorne Dominates All Three Phases to Beat Hardee

HAWTHORNE – The Hawthorne Hornets executed in all three phases of the game Friday to crush the Wauchula Hardee Wildcats 38-3 on homecoming, their 17th consecutive win.

Hawthorne (9-0) forced Hardee (8-1) into a three-and-out on its opening possession before Maverick Jones returned the ensuing punt inside the Wildcats’ 25-yard line. Treston Jones capped things with a 24-yard touchdown run to give the Hornets an early 6-0 lead after the blocked extra point. 

The Wildcats stalled again on the next series in leading to another punt. Maverick Jones took it 65 yards for a Hawthorne touchdown for a 12-0 lead after another missed extra point. 

Hardee punted yet again on its next possession, but this time Maverick Jones didn’t get an opportunity to run it back as it was sent out of bounds. 

The Wildcats, however, couldn’t stop the Hornets, who have won 45 consecutive games at home.

Receiver Willie Sutton took a screen pass from Treston Jones 40 yards for yet another Hornets touchdown. Mikel Sesler hauled in a two-point conversion pass from Jusiah Roundtree to make it 20-0 with 45 seconds remaining in the first quarter. 

Hawthorne’s defense took over from there, helping turn the game into a beatdown before halftime. 

The Hornets stuffed Hardee on a fourth-down attempt early in the second quarter, giving their offense the ball at the Hornets’ 47-yard line. Cameron Woods eventually capped the drive with a rushing touchdown to extend Hawthorne’s lead to 26-0 with 6:37 remaining in the half.

The dominance continued, as on Hardee’s next offensive series, running back Jerome Hodges fumbled, giving the ball back to Hawthorne at the Wildcats’ 40-yard line. 

Dakarai Wiggins capitalized on the turnover, running in for a touchdown to make the contest 32-0 with 3:12 left in the half. 

Hawthorne recovered yet another Wildcat fumble to set up inside Hardee’s 20-yard line. This time the Wildcats held by picking off Treston Jones in the end zone to keep Hawthorne from adding to its lead before halftime. 

The first play out of halftime also went in the Wildcats’ favor.

A Hawthorne fumble gave Hardee the ball inside the Hornets’ 20, but the Wildcat offense sputtered out to  settle for a field goal to make the score 32-3.

From there, both teams struggled to find any offensive production. Hawthorne orchestrated lengthy drives, pushing deep into Wildcat territory before stalling. 

Hawthorne got back in the end zone late in the fourth quarter to make it 38-3. 

“Our confidence hasn’t wavered,” Hawthorne coach Cornelius Ingram said. “Our kids just believe, they work extremely hard, I’m super proud of them.”

Now the Hornets get to rest during an open week before hosting the Dunnellon Tigers (7-0) on Oct. 30 at 7:30 p.m. 

“We want to take care of business, of course,” Ingram said. “There’s something about playing here, it’s a special place.”

Category: Hawthorne High School, High School Sports