BENTONVILLE -- Special teams play proved to be the difference for Bentonville in its 7A-West Conference opener at Tiger Stadium.

Bentonville (1-3, 0-1 7A-West) jumped out to a 7-0 lead on Easton Hughes' 1-yard quarterback keeper with 4:21 left in the first quarter, five plays after a 5-yard Har-Ber punt attempt gave the Tigers the ball on the Wildcats' 27. Har-Ber (2-2, 0-1) was forced to punt again on its next possession, then Noah Fetherolf blocked John Delmotte's kick out of the end zone for a safety and a 9-0 Bentonville lead.

Preston Crawford had a 56-yard return on the ensuing kickoff, and that led to Harrison Campbell's 4-yard touchdown run with 11:15 before halftime. Campbell's 21-yard punt return moments later and Hughes' 41-yard pass to Devin Hearn set up Crawford's 8-yard run touchdown run with 7:41 left in the first half, then Crawford added a 1-yard touchdown run to give Bentonville a 30-0 halftime cushion.
