The Glendale Falcons faced down one undefeated opponent on Friday, defeating a shorthanded Lebanon team, 48-28, and setting up a Week 5 showdown against its undefeated rival, Kickapoo, next Friday in Springfield.
On Friday, Glendale junior quarterback Alex Huston threw for seven touchdowns and 595 yards and helped the Falcons score 22 straight points in the second half to turn a 20-14 Glendale lead into a 42-14 Falcon lead.
Although Huston found nine different receivers, his favorite target throughout the contest was senior Luke Montgomery, who hauled in 12 passes for 319 yards and four scores.
Lebanon (3-1 overall, 3-1 Ozark Conference) was coming off a 28-19 Week 3 win over its rival – Camdenton — on the road, but entered Friday's game against Glendale without junior running back John Berry, who had rushed for 415 yards and six touchdowns in three games.
Without Berry, who was nursing an injured knee, the Lebanon running attack stalled after its opening possession.
Early in the game, it looked like the 'Jackets might repeat a Week 3 performance on the ground against Camdenton in which LHS rushed for 308 yards and attempted just two passes in the entire game.
The 'Jackets took the opening kick and marched the ball from its own 36-yard line all the way to the end zone on a 12-play, 64-yard drive. Cole McBride capped the drive with a nine yard touchdown run with 6:38 remaining, giving the LHS an early 7-0 lead.
But from there, the Glendale defense was up to the task.
The Falcons held LHS on the 'Jackets next four possessions of the first half and went to the break holding a 14-7 lead.
"We are very fortunate," Glendale head coach Mike Mauk said. "This was a close game, and they had a game plan from the start. They are a running team, and it’s tough when you don’t have a running back. It really hurt them, but the other kid came in and did a great job. Their quarterback also played a heck of a game.
"It was a tough game until late in the fourth quarter, but they made a lot of plays, and we were able to score as well. They are a very good football team, and we are a very fortunate tonight."
Glendale (4-0, 4-0) opened the second half by taking the opening possession and marching the ball from its own 24 all the way to the Lebanon 2-yard line where Huston hooked up with Spencer Wester on a fade route for a 20-7 lead.
But the 'Jackets answered right back, finding success through the air themselves as Cole Breeden hooked up with Jack Ehrhardt on a fourth-and-long play at the Glendale 39 for 27 yards, then went right back to the senior on the very next play for a 12-yard touchdown. Lakiah Capps' extra point brought the 'Jackets within 20-14, but it was as close as they would get.
"There are a couple of teams on our schedule still remaining that throw (the ball) well, but not like (Glendale)," Lebanon head coach Will Christian said. "I thought we had moments where things went well. We were defending them well in the first half. Certainly not perfect, but we did some things and got a few stops. Four quarters of that is very difficult.
"They punched one in, and we did answer, but we couldn’t find a way to get a stop in the second half. That’s frustrating and difficult, but it’s just one of those things. We’ll look at film. This team is in our district, so we’ll do quite a bit of breakdown, and we’ll study this before we move on to our next opponent."
Glendale scored three unanswered touchdowns and held a 42-14 lead before sophomore Ry Evans scored on a 25-yard run with 4:03 remaining in the game for LHS.
The contest ended with the two teams trading scores and a slew of personal fouls and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.
"They had us in the first half, but we kept with it in the second," Mauk said. "We’re very happy with the outcome, but there are a lot of things that I wish I could do over again. It wasn’t a perfect game, but our guys stayed with it, and we were able to get a win in Lebanon, which is a very difficult thing to do."
