By Greg Morse (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Two district rivals met on Friday night to decide which undefeated team would continue that streak into week four.
With only three teams left in the Central Ozark Conference with a perfect record going into the night, Neosho came to Webb City looking for an upset. They knew it would be a challenge to stop the defending state champion Webb City Cardinals.
“We knew we were facing a team much like ourselves, a very physical team,” said Cardinals Head Coach John Roderique. “We knew the game would be won or lost there at the line of scrimmage. Our kids played well and our defense put our offense in some good positions.”
Webb City drew first blood on the second drive of the game with a 5-yard rushing touchdown by senior running back Durand Henderson. Henderson would finish the night with more than 100 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
“We really wanted to set the tone with that first drive, so I was fighting as hard as I could to get in there,” said Henderson.
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The drive came after a 10-yard punt by Neosho set up the Cardinals on the Neosho 40-yard line. Punting woes would be a reoccurring theme for the Wildcats for the rest of the game.
Webb City would go on to score on every possession for the rest of the second half, capped off by a 30-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Kade Hicks to senior wide receiver Alex Gaskill. With a single missed extra-point, Webb City headed to the locker room with a 27-0 lead.
This was Hicks’ first game as the starter after filling in for injured starting quarterback Cade Beason, who went down last week with a knee injury. Coach Roderique praised his quarterback, saying, “I thought Cade did excellent, and could be our starter any week. I thought the running backs and offensive line really helped that transition out this week.”
Hicks finished the game with the 30-yard passing touchdown to Gaskill as well as a 6-yard rushing touchdown.
It was a true team effort for Webb City with five different players scoring the six touchdowns. Henderson was the lone Cardinal with multiple scores.
Neosho junior quarterback Gage Kelley continued his strong season with tough running, but was unable to find the end zone on Friday.
“You don’t go into a game thinking about a shutout, but that’s a credit to our defense,” commented Coach Roderique.
Webb City will travel to Branson next week to try and continue their undefeated streak. Neosho returns home to face Carthage.
