Greenbrier's second trip in three weeks to Northwest Arkansas turned out better than the first.
Greenbrier scored on its first two series Friday and rolled to a 50-21 victory over Siloam Springs in a 6A-West Conference opener at Panther Stadium. Greenbrier has posted wins over Vilonia and Siloam Springs after falling 37-27 at Farmington in the season opener for both teams.
Greenbrier led 26-14 at halftime and 44-14 after three quarters against Siloam Springs.
Greenbrier got off to a fast start Friday after making a 3 1/2-hour bus ride. Greenbrier went 80 yards on its first possession and scored on a 5-yard run by Eli Weaver. Enoch Assan caught a short pass on Greenbrier's second possession and weaved past defenders for a 14-yard touchdown and a 13-0 lead after a run-failed extra-point attempt.
"I'm happy we came out and started fast because that was important," Greenbrier Coach Randy Tribble. "Overall, I was proud in the way we handled the long trip. We came out with some energy and life."
Quentin Motsinger excited the Siloam Springs crowd when he returned a kickoff past the 50-yard line, and the cheers continued when Cameron Stafford caught a pass and stepped out of a tackle attempt by a defender to complete 38-yard touchdown. Greenbrier increased its lead to 26-14 before Siloam Springs scored again in the second quarter on a 3-yard touchdown run by Jed Derwin.
Siloam Springs was in a better position than it was last week when the Panthers fell behind 35-0 at halftime and lost 38-14 at Alma. But any chance of a comeback quickly evaporated early in the third quarter when Miles Miller avoided a tackler near the line of scrimmage after catching a short pass and raced 50 yards to put Greenbrier ahead 36-14.
"It's a consistency thing for us," Siloam Springs Coach Brandon Craig said. "We cannot sustain what we're trying to do. Overall, we played hard and we've got to try and keep getting better."
The lead for Greenbrier grew to 44-14 in the third quarter following a safety and 1-yard touchdown run by Assan. Dane Marlatt scored on a 1-yard run for Siloam Springs before Greenbrier added another touchdown to set the final margin at 50-21.
The Panthers finished with a season-high 290 yards of offense -- 135 rushing and 155 passing.
Marlatt finished 8 of 20 for 148 yards and one touchdown. Stafford caught six passes for 122 yards and a score.
Jonathan Hyde completed 2 of 5 passes for 7 yards and rushed six times for 32 yards. Mikey McKinley had 12 carries for 52 yards, while Derwin had 19 carries for 44 yards.
Greenbrier will try for its third consecutive win when the Panthers return home next week to face Van Buren.
Siloam Springs' quest to break its 20-game losing streak becomes even more challenging next week at Greenwood, which finished 10-3 last season after losing to Pulaski Academy in the Class 6A state final at War Memorial Stadium. Greenwood beat Siloam Springs 61-7 last year.
"Our message to the kids is you have two choices," Craig said. "You can run and hide, or you can be accountable and keep trying to get better."
Mark Ross/Special to Herald-Leader
Greenbrier's Enoch Assan runs with the ball as Siloam Springs' Victor Toledo (middle) and George LeRoy defend on the play.