Waskom Wildcats. (Michel Alfaro/Tyler Morning Telegraph)

BIG SANDY — Waskom rode a wave of big plays, including two punt returns for a touchdown and a Pick-6 as the squad scored 27 points in the first quarter on their way to a 55-16 win over Big Sandy at Wildcat Stadium.

Waskom (6-2, 5-0 District 10-2A Division I) got on the scoreboard early when the Wildcats blocked a punt and Nate Espy caught the deflection and returned it 25 yards for a score to make the score 7-0 early in the first quarter.

Big Sandy (5-3, 3-2) went three-and-out on its next possession then Waskom’s special teams’ unit struck again when Kelton Williams scooped up a punt and returned it 63-yards down the left side for a touchdown to make the score 14-0.

Big Sandy put together a nice drive that saw them march inside the Waskom 20-yard line when quarterback Kayden Smith hit Key Williams on a 33-yard pass. But once again Waskom came up with a big play when Montez Thompson intercepted a tipped pass and returned it 88 yards for a touchdown to make the score 21-0 with 4:17 left in the first quarter.

Waskom managed to score 21 points without their offense taking a single snap in the game.

Things went from bad to worse for Big Sandy on the team’s next possession when Chris Hernandez intercepted Smith’s pass and returned it to the 35-yard line. Waskom took advantage of the miscue two plays later when Joe Irving got around the edge and scored on a 37-yard run down the left side to make the score, 27-0.

Waskom came up with another big defensive stop and added another score when Hernandez tossed a 59-yard touchdown pass to Williams, who made an acrobatic catch as he juggled the ball to himself for the grab to make the score 34-0 early in the second quarter.

Waskom continued to pile it on as Espy added a 31-yard touchdown run to make the score, 41-0, midway through the second quarter. Things began to get chippy as both teams had to be separated a couple of times and both coaches agreed to a running clock, midway through the second quarter.

Big Sandy was able to score just before halftime when Brown hauled in a 12-yard touchdown pass from Smith. The same duo connected on the 2-point conversion to make the halftime score 41-8.

Waskom picked up where they left off in the first half as Williams took the first carry of the second half for a 45-yard touchdown run down the middle of the field to make the score, 48-9, early in the third quarter.

Big Sandy added a late score when Malijah Francis reeled off a 20-yard touchdown run, but it was too little, too late as Waskom walked away with an impressive, 55-16 victory.

Waskom will play rival Elysian Fields next week, while Big Sandy takes on arch-rival Hawkins in a game with major playoff implications riding on the outcome.