CARTHAGE, Mo. — There’s an old adage that states, “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
The well-known expression definitely rang true for the Webb City Cardinals on Friday night.
Overcoming an early 14-point deficit with an inspired effort, second-seeded Webb City knocked off top-seeded and previously undefeated Carthage 28-21 in the championship game of the Class 5 District 6 tournament at David Haffner Stadium.
The game was deadlocked at 21 when Webb City senior quarterback Cohl Vaden scored the game-winning touchdown with 27 seconds left.
“It feels good to get a win like that,” Vaden said. “The feeling is crazy. I lost my nana in the past year and that’s what I was thinking about (after the late TD). And with all of Webb City behind me, that was really fun. This means everything to us.”
Webb City (8-3) captured a district championship for the 22nd straight season and the Cardinals will host Lebanon (10-1) in next Friday’s quarterfinals.
“There have been a lot of great players and a lot of great coaches that have been here in 22 years,” Webb City coach John Roderique said. “People always want to talk about that and I think that puts a lot of pressure on our players. But we’re really proud of it…no question. I would have never guessed that it would have happened.”
The district title streak was clearly in jeopardy early in the contest, as the hosts took advantage of two Webb City turnovers to take a 14-0 cushion.
At the 6:35 mark of the first period, the Tigers had all of the momentum and a two-score lead.
But the Cardinals finished strong, outscoring the Tigers 28-7 the rest of the way.
Carthage handled Webb City 42-14 on September 17.
Of course, another old saying states, “It’s always tough to beat a team twice in one season.”
“When we played here before, we weren’t a very good football team,” Roderique said. “Through the course of the season we’ve become a little bit better. I told them, ‘It’s like life, you have to show up and battle everyday. It’s not going to be easy…you’re going to have setbacks. You have to keep battling. That’s what life is about.’ We try to make this game a microcosm of life. Our kids kept battling. We were able to make one more play than they did tonight. And I thought we played a lot harder than we did earlier in the season. And we found some things we could do.”
Vaden said the humbling regular season setback to the Tigers gave the underdog Cardinals plenty of extra motivation.
“We had a chip on our shoulder,” Vaden said. “It gave our guys something to go for.”
Carthage coach Jon Guidie noted the Cardinals won the battle in the trenches in Friday’s rematch.
“I thought they (Webb City) were definitely the more physical team up front on both sides,” Guidie said. “Our defense played fantastic. Our defense played well enough to win the football game. Offensively, we were not the same team up front that we have been. We missed a few opportunities, we had some guys open and we missed some shots. That happens sometimes.”
STELLAR SEASON ENDS FOR TIGERS
Carthage ends a stellar season at 10-1. The Tigers, ranked second in Class 5, went undefeated through the always-tough Central Ozark Conference.
“This group of kids is one of the most special groups I’ve ever coached,” Guidie said. “And I’ve been coaching for 29 years. So that says a lot. I miss them already to be honest. I love them and I’d do anything for them. I hope they don’t view tonight as a reflection on the season they had. What they did this year was very special.”
The Tigers had 13 seniors on this year’s roster.
GAME RECAP
Webb City fumbled on the second play from scrimmage, with the Tigers recovering with great field position.
Senior Caden Kabance’s 1-yard QB keeper capped a 33-yard drive and gave the Tigers an early 7-0 cushion.
Next, the Cardinals lost a fumble on the first play of the ensuing drive, with Carthage’s Max Williams picking up the loose ball and sprinting 33 yards to the end zone. The scoop and score gave the Tigers a 14-0 cushion.
“I couldn’t imagine our start would be that bad,” Roderique said. “That’s what we’re most proud of…overcoming that and just getting the game tied.”
The Cardinals responded nicely to the early adversity.
Capping a 9-play, 67-yard drive, Webb City’s Cade Wilson scored on a 1-yard plunge to get the visitors on the board with 3:16 remaining in the first quarter.
Webb City tied it up with 11:28 left in the second period on a nifty 38-yard touchdown strike from Vaden to Dante Washington and Dupree Jackson’s 2-point conversion.
The 14-14 score held up at the break and neither team scored in the third quarter.
Vaden’s 4-yard QB keeper gave Webb City a 21-14 lead with 6:36 left. Vaden’s 49-yard scamper on third and 43 set up the score.
After failing to score on six straight possessions, Carthage tied it up on Luke Gall’s 24-yard run and the PAT kick by Chris Mejia with 5:08 left.
Following a Webb City punt, Carthage lost a fumble, with Lucas Ott forcing it and Cooper Crouch recovering with 3:22 left.
Finishing off a methodical 8-play, 40-yard drive, Vaden’s QB keeper from 3 yards out with 27 seconds left was the game-winner.
A last-second hail mary by the Tigers was picked off by Washington.
The Tigers had been averaging more than 43 points per game. The Cardinals held them to one score after the first quarter.
“Our coaches have done a great job on the defensive side,” Roderique said. “They had our kids prepared. And the kids made the plays on the field. What a great effort by our defense.”
NAMES & NUMBERS
Webb City finished with 327 yards on 61 plays, with 240 yards on the ground and 87 through the air.
Wilson ran 25 times for 146 yards, while Vaden had 66 yards on 12 carries. Vaden completed 4 of 11 passes, with three to Washington (65 yards) and one to William Hayes (22 yards).
Defensively, Kaylor Darnell was credited with nine tackles and Brentan Wilson had seven stops.
Carthage had 286 yards on 48 plays, with 247 rushing yards and 39 passing.
Gall ran 18 times for 133 yards, while Kabance added 98 yards on 16 carries. Kabance completed 3 of 10 passes, with Cale Patrick (26 yards), Hudson Moore (12 yards) and Gall (1 yard) with one reception apiece.
Antony Deleon had nine tackles for the Tigers, while Micah Lindsey and Zach Lansford had eight tackles apiece.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Webb City will entertain Lebanon on Friday in the quarterfinal round.
Lebanon hammered Glendale 56-26 for the District 5 championship.
The Cardinals beat the Yellowjackets 42-14 in last year’s quarterfinals.
WEBB CITY 28, CARTHAGE 21
Webb City 6 8 0 14—28
Carthage 14 0 0 7 —21
SCORING SUMMARY
CAR: Caden Kabance 1 run (Chris Mejia kick)
CAR: Max Williams 33 fumble recovery (Mejia kick)
WC: Cade Wilson 1 run (Kick failed)
WC: Dante Washington 38 pass from Cohl Vaden (Dupree Jackson run)
WC: Vaden 4 run (Washington kick)
CAR: Luke Gall 24 run (Mejia kick)
WC: Vaden 3 run (Washington kick)
FULL STATS: Webb City HS (webbcitycardinals.com)
