The Kirksville Tiger defense answered the bell time and time again Friday as KHS beat Marshall 20-7, spoiling Marshall’s Homecoming. Both teams had trouble moving the ball in the first quarter until Kirksville’s Randon Baumgartner scored on a 54 yard catch and run down the right sideline with a minute and a half to play in the first quarter to give the Tigers a 7-0 lead, a lead which Kirksville would take into halftime, thanks to a huge goal line stand at the end of the second quarter. After Kirksville’s Jaden Ballinger threw an interception in the waning moments of the first half, which set up Marshall at the Tiger five yard line, the Tiger defense kept the Owls out of the end zone, as a Marshall team out of time outs, helplessly watched the clock run out on them. Marshall took the opening kickoff of the second half, but the Tiger defense forced a three and out. The Tigers then struck quickly on another long touchdown catch and run down the right sideline by Baumgartner, this time from 53 yards out to give KHS a 14-0 lead. The Owls would cut it in half with a long 37 yard touchdown pass to Malik Evans with 7:13 to play in the fourth quarter. Kirksville then marched the ball down the field, milking massive amounts of clock, capping off the drive with a 5 yard pass from Ballinger to Noah Copeland on fourth and goal with a minute and half to play. The PAT failed, but the Tigers sealed the game with that touchdown and won the game 20-7. The Tigers finished with 329 yards of total offense, 162 yards on the ground. Ballinger was 14 out of 20 passing for 167 yards, three touchdowns, and three interceptions. Ballinger ran the ball for 112 yards. The Tiger defense held Marshall to just 175 total yards. The Tigers picked off Marshall quarter back Ben Haug twice. The Tigers climb to 4-1 overall, 1-1 in the conference. Marshall dips to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the NCMC. Next, the Tigers celebrate Homecoming next Friday as they welcome third rated Hannibal to Spainhower Field. Hannibal beat Mexico Friday 34-13.