CHAFFEE WINS, BULLDOGS TAKE SEMO SOUTH

Entering the end of his second season as head coach of the Chaffee football team, it finally happened for Brian Horrell.

The Red Devils won their first game in nearly two seasons Saturday with a convincing 36-8 Class 1A, District 1 victory at Hayti. Both Chaffee and Hayti had the benefit of forfeit victories over Malden earlier in the season, but entering this game neither team had won a game on the field.

Chaffee improved to 2-6 overall, 2-3 in the SEMO South Conference and 1-1 in district. Hayti, fell to 1-8, 0-2, and 1-4.

"It feels great," said Horrell following his first coaching victory. "I feel great for the kids most of all because they've been hear longer than I have."

Chaffee fullback Nick Swinford scored four times and rushed for 196 yards on 34 carries. Chaffee rolled up 346 yard rushing and totaled 466 yards in all. Tailback Tommy Stidham added 82 yards rushing.

"We've been struggling with our running game, but we wanted to get our linemen back to run blocking and knocking people off the ball," said Horrell. "They responded after a slow start. Gabe Pfefferkorn, our only senior linemen, lead the line. He takes pride in it."

Swinford scored three times before halftime to give the Red Devils a 22-8 lead entering the second half. Two more scores -- one by Swinford and the other by Stidham -- put the game away in the fourth quarter.

"The kids played outstanding," Horrell said. "I'm so excited for them. We've been pretty competitive all year, but this feels a lot better than being competitive."

Portageville also played Saturday and clinched the SEMO South title with a 44-0 Class 2A, District 1 victory over East Prairie.

Indians can, can't lose

Chaffee's victory kept the St. Vincent Indians from claiming their second consecutive 1A, District 1 title this weekend.

But the Indians (7-2, 2-0) should likely claim that crown after playing the Red Devils this Friday in Chaffee. If Valle (6-3, 1-1) beats Hayti by 13 points Thursday night, which is a likely possibility, the Indians won't even have to beat the Red Devils to win the district. St. Vincent could lose by eight points to Chaffee and still claim the district because of the 13-point playoff scoring system.

St. Vincent, Valle and Chaffee would all end with 2-1 district marks, but the Indians would have more scoring differential points in the district with 16. Valle would have 15 and Chaffee eight.

If Hayti were to beat Valle, the winner Friday in Chaffee would earn the district title and host a playoff game against the District 2 winner Nov. 12.

Remember when ...

St Vincent's 14-3 victory over rival Valle on Friday in Perryville was significant for several reasons:

* The home team had lost the last four meetings. The last time a home team won in the series, Valle beat the Indians 47-12 in Ste. Genevieve.

* St. Vincent had not beaten Valle at home since a 21-0 victory in 1985. The Indians went 10-0 that season before losing their opening playoff game to John Burroughs.

* Valle had not lost consecutive district titles since the 1986 season when the Warriors were shutout of districts three years in row from 1984-1986.

* St. Vincent is on the verge of claiming its second consecutive playoff berth. The last time the Indians were in the playoffs two straight years, was the 1984 and 1985 seasons when they qualified under the old computer-ranking system.

* If St. Vincent does win the district, the Indians will host their first state playoff game since the 1985 season. Last year, St. Vincent lost on the road to Marionville 21-20 in the opening round.

* Because of district realignment next year, these long-time parochial rivals won't play each other again in the regular season for at least the next two years. St. Vincent will stay in District 1 with Hayti and Chaffee. Valle is moving to District 2 with two other teams.

District rundown

Heading to the final week of district gridiron action, here's a rundown of what's at stake next week:

Class 5A, District 1

State-ranked Jackson (9-0, 2-0) and Poplar Bluff (6-3, 2-0) will play for both the district and SEMO North Conference titles Friday night at Jackson. Cape Central (6-3, 0-2) and Sikeston (3-5, 0-2) will play for pride Thursday night at Houck.

Class 4A, District 1

State-ranked North County (9-0, 2-0) and Farmington (4-5, 2-0) will decide this district Friday. Perryville (3-5, 0-2) hosts Potosi (3-6, 0-2) on Thursday night.

Class 3A, District 1

New Madrid (7-2, 2-0) wins the district with a victory over Dexter (3-6, 1-1), but the Bearcats can also claim the title with an 11-point win over the Eagles. Kennett (6-3, 1-1), despite a 15-8 win over Dexter Friday, cannot win the district. Caruthersville (1-7, 0-2) is also eliminated.

Class 3A, District 1

Just like last season, this district will come down to the final game between state-ranked Ste. Genevieve (8-1, 2-0) and Charleston (5-4, 2-0). Fredericktown (1-8, 0-2) and Park Hills (0-9, 0-2) complete its seasons Thursday.

Class 2A, District 1

Portageville (7-2, 2-0) may have clinched the SEMO South, but Malden (6-3, 2-0) can claim the district with a road win over the Bulldogs Friday. Scott City (6-3, 0-2) and East Prairie (3-6, 0-2) finish up Friday.

Class 1A, District 1

Three teams still have a shot, but unless St. Vincent (7-2, 2-0) loses by more than eight points at Chaffee (2-6, 1-1) this Friday, the Indians will defend last year's title. A big Valle (6-3, 1-1) win over Hayti (1-8, 0-2) Thursday will eliminate Chaffee.