Central football team upsets Sikeston in district semifinals

SIKESTON -- Chris Martin wanted redemption, and he got it.

The Central senior scored on a 4-yard touchdown plunge with 45 seconds remaining to lift the Tigers to a thrilling 17-14 victory over No. 1 seed Sikeston in a Class 4, District 1 semifinal Wednesday night.

Martin's score capped a wild ride for both the Central senior and the Tigers (5-6), who move into the district championship game Monday night at Hillsboro, 34-26 winners over North County on Wednesday.

Martin, despite rushing 27 times for 178 yards, had fumbled three times, losing two of them, including a potential back-breaker with the Tigers driving midway through the fourth quarter.

"I just let it go," Martin said. "I said, ‘All right, it happened.' I just had to put it out of my mind."

Central’s Joseph Wolsey, right, celebrates with Zachary Stagner in the final seconds of the Class 4 District 1 semifinal Wednesday in Sikeston, Mo. Central won 17-14. (Fred Lynch)

The Tigers are glad he did. The Bulldogs (9-2) took the lead 14-10 on quarterback Kyland Gross' 65-yard scamper down the right sideline with 6 minutes, 14 seconds remaining. After an exchange of possessions, Central took over on its own 26-yard-line, 74 yards and 2 minutes, 18 seconds away from the end of its season.

"I just said, ‘This is it,'" Martin said. "We didn't want to go home. We just had to put it all on the line."

That they did. Junior quarterback Dennis Vinson completed just three passes in the game, all on the final drive. Facing fourth and 13 from his own 23, Vinson found junior running back Mikey Jones down the middle for 26 yards to the 49. Two plays later, on third and 10, he hit tight end Jacob Boerboom across the middle, and the lanky junior took it down the sideline for 29 yards to Sikeston's 20.

Three incompletions later, Central again faced fourth down. This time Vinson found senior receiver Garan Evans on the left sideline for 12 yards to the 8. Following a Sikeston offsides penalty, Martin plowed over behind the block of senior tackle Joseph Wolsey for the winning score.

Sikeston's last gasp ended when Kyland Gross' pass across the middle was intercepted by Evans at midfield. Vinson took a knee, and Central's celebration began.

Central’s Garan Evans runs after intercepting a long Sikeston pass during the closing seconds of the Class 4 District 1 semifinal Wednesday in Sikeston, Mo.

"Our kids did not want it to be over," Central coach Nathan Norman said. "To hold [Sikeston] to 14 points, that's doing something."

Norman called the final drive one of the team's best of the season.

"We went to our two-minute offense and [Vinson] did a great job," Norman said. "That was just a great job for a high school quarterback."

Both teams had shots to put the game away, but neither took advantage of the opportunities. One Central turnover set up Sikeston on the Tigers' 20, but three plays later the Bulldogs' Chris Word fumbled just short of the goal line, the ball squirting through the end zone for a touchback.

Then, with a chance to ice the game facing a fourth-and-7 on Central's 32, Word was stopped a yard short of the first down, setting up the Tigers' late heroics.

"It's a game of inches," Sikeston coach Kent Gibbs lamented. "We had a couple turnovers that hurt us, then we were a foot away from the first down that would've clinched it.

"My hat's off to Cape. They made the plays at the end to win it."

Norman credited his defense for giving his Tigers a chance to win at the end.

"At the half I told our staff we were very fortunate to be in this thing," Norman said about the Tigers' 7-3 defcit at halftime. "We put the ball on the ground way too many times."

Central opened the scoring early in the first quarter, turning a Sikeston fumble on the opening kick off into a 22-yard Calvin Lovig field goal before many of the spectators had reached their seats.

Sikeston responded with a 16-play, 85-yard drive culminated by Kyland Gross' 3-yard scoring pass to Patrion Gross to put the Bulldogs up 7-3.

It stayed that way until Martin's first touchdown of the game, a 5-yard run at 5:37 of the third put the Tigers on top 10-7.

Central 17, Sikeston 14

Central 3 0 7 7 -- 17

Sikeston 7 0 0 7 -- 14

First Quarter

C -- Calvin Lovig, 22 field goal (4:23)

S -- Nathan Hampton, 2 pass from Kyland Gross (Hampton kick) 1:42

Third Quarter

C -- Chris Martin, 5 run (Lovig kick) 5:57

Fourth Quarter

S -- Gross, 65 run (Hampton kick) 6:14

C -- Martin, 4 run (Lovig kick) :45

C S

First downs 11 14

Total yards 308 347

Rushes-yards 46-241 44-292

Passing yards 67 55

Comp-Att-Int 3-11-0 5-12-1

Punts 4-35.3 2-16

Fumbles-lost 3-2 3-3

Penalties-yards 3-26 6-29

Turnovers 2 4

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING -- Central, Chris Martin 27-178, Jacob Campbell 10-31, Kyle Thompson 4-32, Dennis Vinson 5-(-11). Sikeston, Chris Word 22-152, Kyland Gross 20-135, Nick Nichols 1-11, Patrion Gross 1-(-6).

PASSING -- Central, Vinson 3-11-0-67. Sikeston, K. Gross 5-12-1-55.

RECEIVING -- Central, Jacob Boerboom 1-29, Mikey Jones 1-26, Garan Evans 1-12. Sikeston, P. Gross 2-14, Reese Porter 1-17, Austin Brown 1-15, Audrea Golden 1-9.