HENDERSON — Henderson quarterback Del Barnes threw five touchdown passes to lead the No. 2-ranked Henderson Lions to a 58-27 win over Pine Tree on Friday at Lions Stadium.
Barnes hit on 9 of 13 passes attempts and two of his TD passes went to Lamarcus Brown, who caught three passes for 85 yards and ran five times for 87 yards. Brown’s touchdown grabs covered 49 and 20 yards.
Henderson running back Jay O’Neal carried seven times for 114 yards — including five carries for 101 yards in the first half — and caught four passes for 62 yards, including a 42-yard screen-pass touchdown with 5:30 remaining in the third quarter that gave Henderson a 51-20 lead.
The Lions (2-0) led 37-20 at halftime behind Barnes’ second-quarter passing performance, but Pine Tree rushed for 224 first-half yards. The Pirates finished with 406 yards on 70 attempts. However, four fumbles hurt the Pirates and the Lions returned two of the miscues for TDs. Arquez Walton caught a pitch in mid-air and rumbled 26 yards for a score to give Henderson at 14-2 lead. Also, two minutes into the fourth quarter, Jamie Anthony returned a fumble 43 yards for a 58-20 Lion advantage.
PT fullback Victor Butler had 138 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries, while quarterback Jake Oden rushed for 99 yards and two scores on 25 carries. Xavier McCoo carried seven times for 67 yards, and freshman Douglas Morgan picked up 80 yards on six late-game carries.