Waskom had a tough time pulling away from Arp in Friday's Class 3A Division II regional round game against its District 8-3A Division II rival.

It's a good thing the Wildcats had safety Jason Jinks on their side.

The junior stopped two Arp runs that reached the third level of the defense and broke up a long pass over the top of the defense as part of an 11-tackle night, and a 35-18 win, for ETSN.fm + Dairy Queen Defensive Player of the Week. Without him, Arp might have gone all the way to avenge a 55-23 regular season loss.

Waskom and Arp traded one touchdown apiece through the first and third quarters, including a 41-yard Kayce Medlock run that gave Arp an 18-14 advantage early in the third quarter prior to Chan Amie's 14-yard score in the Wildcats followup drive for a 21-18 lead.

The only separation in the score were three failed Arp two-point conversions.

Jinks' team managed to pull away with two unanswered fourth-quarter touchdowns to cap 21 straight points.

But Arp threatened at other times. Jinks and company managed to hold off the opposition off in a highly defensive game overall.

Waskom finished the night with 275 yards on 57 plays. Arp put up 230 yards through 49 snaps. Their average yards per play difference was about .2 yards, an advantage going to the Wildcats.

Jinks (5-9, 141) has played well beyond his size for his team through 13 games. He has 82 tackles, including five for loss, in an addition to three takeaways and four pass breakups.

Waskom has another District 8-3A Division II rematch this week. It will take on West Rusk in the Class 3A Division II, Region II championship game, a 7:30 p.m. kick Friday at Longview's Lobo Stadium.

ETSN.fm/Dairy Queen Defensive Players of the Week

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