It took a little while, but the Kirksville Tigers found the right gear and beat Excelsior Springs Friday in the first round of district play 28-13. Excelsior Springs scored first on a bad snap on a Kirksville punt which Excelsior Springs recovered in the end zone to make it 7-0 with 5:06 to go in the first quarter. But on the ensuing kickoff, Malik Rodriguez returned the ball to the Excelsior Springs 30. Cole Kelly capped off the short drive with a 5 yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7 with 1:45 to play in the the first quarter. Early in the second Jace Kent scored on a 28 yard run to make it 14-7 Kirksville. The Tigers squandered two good scoring chances by turning the ball over twice late in the second quarter. But the Tiger’s Carter Pinkerton blocked a 31 yard field goal attempt at the end of the half to keep their 7 point lead.
KHS took the opening kick of the second half and overcame several false start penalties by finding Kelly with a 52 yard scoring pass to make it 21-7 early in the fourth for his second touchdown of the game. Kent scored his second TD on a nifty 44 yard shovel pass to make it 28-7 with 4:34 to play in the 3rd. Exclesior Springs scored on the last play of the game on a QB sneak to make it a bit more respectable, but KHS wins their fifth straight first round district game under the current format 28-13. Kent finished with 124 rushing yards on 19 carries and had 58 receiving yards. The 5-5 Tigers head to top seed and number one rated Smithville in the district semifinals Friday. Remember Highway 92 is closed between Kearney and Smithville, so you’ll need to exit at Highway 116 near Lathrop, head west, and come into Smithville from the north on Highway 169. Coverage on KIRX and the page at 6:40.