SportsSeptember 15, 2023
Kelly sends a bruising message with 34-14 win over Charleston
BENTON, Mo. — Nothing silences critics quite like success. Kelly showcased this, securing a strong 34-14 victory over their SEMO-South Conference rival, Charleston, at Lambert Field on Thursday, September 14. Are the whispers of a ‘soft schedule’ now nothing more than baseless noise?...
By Dennis Marshall ~ Standard-Democrat
BENTON, Mo. — Nothing silences critics quite like success.
Kelly showcased this, securing a strong 34-14 victory over their SEMO-South Conference rival, Charleston, at Lambert Field on Thursday, September 14.
Are the whispers of a ‘soft schedule’ now nothing more than baseless noise?
“These young men love bulletin board material and it drives them to be better,” said Kelly coach Lance Powers.
Observing the Hawks’ (4-0) imposing performance against the Bluejays (1-3), it’s evident the team is not to be taken lightly. With a versatile offense and a robust, ball-hawking defense, they’ve harnessed a game plan that is commanding respect on every front of the field.
“We played well in all three phases,” Powers said. “We capitalized as much as we could on the offense when we had the opportunities. On defense, there was a lot of bending in that first half, but they never broke totally. They kept us in a very competitive spot.”
Despite the firm grip that Kelly demonstrated for most of the game, Charleston opened the game with a nearly 10-minute drive, converting multiple fourth downs. Notable plays featured a 12-yard pass from Ko’Terrion Owens to J Robinson on 4th-and-5 at midfield, and a designed quarterback run by Owens on 4th-and-2 near the red zone.
The drive concluded with Owens throwing a 7-yard touchdown pass to DeShaun Henderson on 4th-and-goal with two minutes and 12 seconds left in the first quarter.
The Hawks countered quickly. Reece Eftink seized a weak point in the defense’s left side, taking off for a 31-yard touchdown run. This swift response came with just 9.6 seconds left in the first quarter.
However, both teams faltered on the extra point tries, leaving them locked in a 6-6 tie as the quarter came to a close.
Charleston’s next drive stalled out after a penalty, leading to a punt. Kelly, too, punted on its subsequent drive after Robinson swatted away a crucial third-down pass.
The Hawks’ punt was exceptional, boxing the Bluejays in at their 5-yard line. Charleston did manage to maneuver out to about midfield, but Landon Crisel executed a timely sack on third down, causing another Bluejays punt.
Kelly secured the lead on its next possession. Skylar Still connected with Ethan Graham for a 37-yard completion on the drive, and despite an initial setback when a touchdown was called back for holding, Still righted the situation by barreling over a defender for a 9-yard touchdown run with just 40.1 seconds left in the second quarter
Still then located Grant Burleson for the two-point conversion, which extended the lead to 14-6 at halftime.
Starting the second half, the Hawks came out swinging, putting points on the board and landing a metaphorical body blow by marching down the field and scoring on a 4th-and-goal at the 4-yard line when Still spotted Graham in the end zone.
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The Hawks widened their lead to 21-6 after kicking the extra point with 9:17 left in the third quarter.
The Bluejays situation worsened when they fumbled the ensuing kickoff. Kelly quickly capitalized on the turnover with another score to increase the lead to 28-6 after a 4-yard touchdown pass from Still to Burleson.
The bad luck snowballed from Charleston on the next drive when Burleson intercepted a pass and returned it about 50 yards for a touchdown, extending the lead to 34-6 with 6:38 left in the third quarter.
“Charleston did a great job limiting our offensive opportunity,” Powers said. “But when we came in the second half, we were able to capitalize and just do a lot of good things on offense, defense and special teams.
“We got on a roll and put the ball in the end zone at a good rate,” he continued. “Every game this year so far, we’ve had really strong second halves. That helps a lot.”
As the last moments of the third quarter rolled around, Charleston’s Tayshon Clark scored on a 4-yard touchdown run to make 34-14.
A scoreless fourth quarter saw some defensive highlights. Charleston’s Kieshaundra Orr had a strip sack, causing a fumble that was recovered by Zamarion Quinn, and a late Bluejays’ drive was cut short when Still intercepted a pass in the end zone.
Kelly gained 278 total yards while holding Charleston 193 yards.
“This is Jackson Rushin’s second year as the defensive coordinator and he’s doing a phenomenal job,” Powers said. “The boys love playing for him. When you have kids buying like ours, it translates to the plays you saw out there tonight like our second pick 6 of the season.”
Still was the Hawks’ standout performer on offense, completing 10-of-12 attempts for 148 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 12 yards and another score.
Graham made three receptions for 61 yards and a touchdown, while Burleson had four catches for 57 yards and a touchdown.
Although Eftink may not be replicating his exceptional rushing numbers from last season, It’s clear that the Kelly offense has become much more dangerous due to the increased diversity of weapons at the team’s disposal.
Eftink did rush nine times for 81 yards and a touchdown and also caught two balls for 23 yards.
“Reece Eftink is the biggest fan of any guy that is going to score and help this team win,” Powers said. “He wears that ‘C’ for a reason and is the biggest supporter of his teammates. With that being said, when you have multiple guys scoring, yeah, it helps a lot. They can’t just key on [Eftink], they have to worry about whether Skylar Still is going to run or throw, Ethan Graham and Grant Burlison on the outside and some other guys like Hunter Carlyle, who ran the ball well for us tonight.”
“We also put the ball in Ethan Hurley’s hands a few times tonight and he did a great job with it,” Powers continued. “If we’re able to mix the pace up with a few different guys it helps out, where [Eftink] isn’t bearing the load every Friday night.”
Owens finished Charleston’s top rusher, running for 63 yards on 17 carries. He also completed 8-of-12 attempts for 75 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
CJ Kimble made the most of his opportunities, rushing six times for 47 yards. Robinson was the team’s top pass catcher, grabbing four receptions for 43 yards.
“I thought our guys played hard,” said Charleston coach Justin Hutchings. “We just had those blunders in the third quarter, but our defense played the run a lot better tonight and our offense put some things together. We were just trying to play catch up and it got us.”
Kelly travels to Principia with Whitfield (0-1), while Charleston is on the road at Portageville (2-1).
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