The Wortham Bulldogs fell behind 20-0 at the half and could not come back and the Bulldogs were all but eliminated from playoff contention with a 40-2 loss to the winless Meridian Yellowjackets.
After a scoreless first quarter, Meridian took off on a nine-play drive to put in the first score of the game. Quarterback Derek Malott weaved through the Bulldog defense on a 19-yard touchdown and the failed point after putting the score at 6-0 with the Yellowjackets in the lead.
Wortham had one of their most impressive drives of the season on their next possession. Wortham used nine plays to move from their 35 to the Meridian 37 before losing possession on fourth down.
Meridian went to work, and Danny Cassidy ripped off a 42-yard run to the Wortham 23-yard line. Three plays later, Malott scored on a four-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to 12-0.
The Bulldogs were forced to punt, and the special teams had a four-yard punt and the Yellowjackets began at the Wortham 32-yard line. In the final seconds of the half, Malott scored on a one-yard run for his third score of the half, Mallott hit Cassidy for the two-point conversion and Meridian led 20-0 at the half.
Wortham recovered the kickoff to begin the third quarter but could not gain a first down and Brandon Coker punted the ball inside the five-yard line to pin the Yellowjackets deep. Meridian could do nothing and punted out of their end zone, but the Bulldogs fumbled the punt and the Yellowjackets recovered at their own 45-yard line.
Jonathon Gomez took off on a 40-yard run inside the 20 and Malott scored his fourth touchdown of the night on a two-yard run. The point after was no good and the lead grew to 26-0.
The Bulldogs offense suffered an interception and the Yellowjackets made quick work with a big lead. On fourth down from the Bulldog 32, Malott passed to Gomez for a 32-yard screen pass score and a 32-0 lead. The extra point was high and short, and K.J. Jackson picked it out of the air and raced 108 yards for the defensive score on a touchdown and cut the lead to 32-2.
Nathan Lira added a fourth quarter touchdown to close out the first win of the season for the Meridian Yellowjackets.
Wortham has two games remaining on the season and their hopes of making the playoffs were dashed with a third loss in the district race. They travel to Hubbard to take on the Jaguars and the Bulldogs are 4-28-1 all time against Hubbard. They finish the season at home against rival Dawson.
Mart pitched their third straight shutout in district play with a 66-0 win over Hubbard and Dawson lost to Frost. Mart is 3-0 and Frost is second at 2-1. Hubbard is 1-2 along with Meridian and Wortham is last at 0-3.
