Conference games are hard. The first three quarters of Kirksville’s win over Fulton Friday proved challenging before the Tigers blew the game open in the fourth and rolled to a 33-0 win over the Hornets. KHS found the end zone first after a 16 play drive which included three 4th down conversions. Logan Bickhan capped the drive with a one yard run with 2:53 to play in the first quarter. The PAT was no good and the score remained 6-0 Kirksville. On the last play of the first quarter, Kirksville’s Sam Thomas scored on a nifty 31 yard run to give the Tigers a 13-0 lead. Fulton adjusted their offense by including more rushing plays to maintain a few more drives, but Kirksville’s defense prevented Fulton from scoring. In the fourth quarter, the floodgates opened up for the Tigers. Sam Thomas found the end zone for the second time on a 16 yard run with 8:08 to play to give the Tigers a 19-0 lead. Noah Copeland caught an 8 yard touchdown pass from Jaden Ballinger with 4:12 to play to extend the lead to 26-0. Then on Fulton’s ensuing possession, Kirksville’s Brock Burchett came up with an interception on a deflection which Burchett returned 31 yards for a touchdown with 3:09 to play to give the Tigers an insurmountable lead and the 33-0 victory. Burchett finished with two picks which were returned a total of 96 yards. KHS totaled 334 yards of offense, compared to 179 for Fulton. The Tigers ran the ball for 139 yards, 77 of those by Landon Yardley. Ballinger threw for 133 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Kirksville climbs to 5-3 overall and will finish 2-3 in the NCMC. Next, the Tigers are scheduled to travel to Jefferson City for the regular season finale against Capital City High. The Cavaliers have been quarantining for two weeks, but are expected to return for week 10 action Friday night.