The Cashion Wildcats are chasing state championship No. 6 as they prepare to play in the Class A state quarterfinals, Friday versus Pawnee.
Amidst the program’s 21st-consecutive playoff appearance, head coach Lynn Shackleford hopes to bring his team to its first state semifinal game since its state title-winning 2021 season. Cashion has been knocked out of the first round in each of the last two seasons.
They’ll have their work cut out for them when they make the trip to Pawnee High School, home of the 8-3 overall and top district A-3 finishing Black Bears. Led by head coach Karey Jones, Pawnee has won their last eight games after starting the season 0-3 and have allowed a stellar 5.1 points per game in those wins.
The Black Bears have also put up big numbers on the offensive side of the ball during their winning streak. After averaging 17.3 points in their three losses, they finished the regular season just shy of 50 points per game with their biggest victory coming in an 80-0 beatdown of Caney Valley back on Oct. 11.
Pawnee won their opening-round game against Panama last week, 30-7.
Friday’s matchup will be the fourth all-time between the Wildcats and Black Bears and first since 2019. Cashion has won all three previous games, including a 34-16 victory in that 2019 state semifinal contest.
Cashion also comes in with an 8-3 overall record and are fresh off of a big first-round win. They dismantled Walters last Friday, 42-14, after entering the Class A tournament as the No. 3 seed in the District A-1 standings. Two of the Wildcats’ three losses this season came to teams that finished above them in the standings, that being Hooker and Fairview. Velma-Alma took them down in week one, 28-20.
Cashion has been susceptible to giving up big point totals this season. Despite boasting a formidable offense that averages over 31 points a game, the Wildcats have seen losses of 45 and 40 points to Fairview and Hooker, respectively, which bodes well for a Pawnee team that has scored 40-plus in five games thus far.
The Wildcats battle with Pawnee in the Class A quarterfinals on Friday, Nov. 22, at 7 P.M. from Pawnee High School. With a win, Cashion will advance to the state semifinals to face the winner of Hooker and Pocola.