Lometa's Sam Pauly (3) hangs on to the ball with both hands. Lometa appears to be back on track.

On the heels of a three-game losing streak, the Hornets outscored their last two opponents 97-6, including a 45-point shutout victory over Prairie Lea last Friday.

The district-opening victory improves Lometa's overall record to 4-3 and sets up a Halloween night, road showdown with the orangeand black-clad Buckholts Badgers (3-5, 0-1 district).

"They'll probably have people scattered along the trip over there throwing Black Cats out [at us]," head coach Wendell Bradley said. "Jack-o-lanterns in the road; there's no telling what all they'll have for us."

Lometa comes into the pivotal game as a 13-point favorite, according to SixManFootball.com. Should the Hornets escape with a victory, their next game -- against the state's top team, Calvert -- likely will be for the district championship.

The Hornets disposed of the winless Indians with ease last week, needing just a half to build up a 45-point advantage, invoking the game's "mercy" rule.

PHOTOS BY CHERI JAY-WIENECKE A swarm of Hornets surrounds the ball-handler in last Friday's win over Prairie Lea. "It was good for our kids," Bradley said. "It was a confidence boost to come out and get one over with by halftime."

Seven different players contributed touchdowns in the contest, with five scores coming on the ground. Sam Pauly led the Hornets' rushing game, gaining 20 yards and a touchdown on four carries.

Lometa did not need to utilize its air attack, completing just two of three passes including David Cruz's 44-yard touchdown toss to Brandon Faubion.

Prairie Lea (0-8, 0-1) produced only 19 total yards of offense in the loss.

With two games remaining on the regular-season schedule, Lometa cannot afford to slip up against the Badgers, who lost decisively to Calvert, 54-6, last Friday.

Buckholts comes into the contest producing similar stats to Lometa on offense, scoring 271 points on the season compared to Lometa's 285. The Hornets, however, have played one less game after their contest against Star earlier in the month was canceled because of poor weather.

Brandon Young, left, attempts to drag down an opponent in the Hornets' convincing win over Prairie Lea last Friday at home. The glaring difference comes on the defensive side of the ball where the Hornets allowed 156 fewer points on the season.

"They've got some talented players, and they're going to score some points," Bradley said of the opponents. "We've got to take advantage of our opportunities on offense.

"We don't want to get into a trading-touchdowns war with them."

In addition to playing for a possible district title shot, a Lometa victory would almost ensure the Hornets a playoff berth. The top two teams from the four-team district advance to the postseason.

"We look at it as whoever wins makes the playoffs for sure," Bradley said. "We're sure going to try and take care of business.

"It's going to be a tight one."