Street Smith’s Four Touchdowns Power Guntersville Past Boaz, 34-17

GUNTERSVILLE, AL – The Guntersville Wildcats, ranked No. 9 in Class 5A,  clinched the second seed in Class 5A, Region 8 with a decisive 34-17 victory over Marshall County rival Boaz on Friday night, fueled by a dominant ground game. The running back duo of Garrett Christie and Street Smith was unstoppable, combining for 235 rushing yards.

Smith was the star of the evening, finding the end zone four times to lead the Wildcats’ offensive attack. With the win, Guntersville improves to 7-1, 4-1 in region play. Boaz drops to 6-2 overall and 3-2 in the region.

The Wildcats lit up the Chorba-Lee Stadium scoreboard late in the first quarter with a 27-yard field goal from Brandon Manganeris. Early in the second quarter, Smith punched in his first touchdown from the 1-yard line, extending the Wildcat lead to 10-0.

Boaz responded midway through the second when Acson Aristhene successfully kicked a 41-yard field goal, narrowing the score to 10-3.

However, Guntersville dominated the final minutes of the first half. Smith scored on a 7-yard run with 2:17 remaining. After a quick defensive stop, the Wildcats got the ball back, and Smith scored again on a 13-yard run with just 36 seconds left before the break, sending Guntersville into the locker room with a commanding 24-3 lead.

Coming out of halftime, Boaz put together an impressive drive capped by a 6-yard touchdown run from Presley Fant, cutting the deficit to 24-10. Guntersville answered back with another field goal from Manganeris, this time from 43 yards out, to make it 27-10.

The Pirates scored again on the final play of the third quarter when quarterback Beau Bennett connected with Dayton Porter for a 43-yard touchdown pass, bringing the score to 27-17.

In the fourth quarter, Smith sealed the victory for Guntersville with his fourth and final touchdown of the game, a 6-yard run with 4:11 left on the clock.

Next Friday, Guntersville will travel to face Douglas (5-3, 2-3). Meanwhile, Boaz will host the Arab Arabian Knights (4-4, 3-2) in a crucial region showdown that will determine playoff seeding.