NEOSHO, Mo. — The Neosho football team built an early lead and staved off a late Ozark comeback attempt to claim its first win of the season with a 20-14 victory on Friday night at Bob Anderson Stadium.
The Wildcats improved to 1-6, while the Tigers slipped to 1-6.
Neosho led by as many as 14 points in the game but had to lean on its defense late after Ozark had trimmed the deficit to six points in the fourth quarter.
The Tigers were held in check for much of the second half but managed to break the scoring lull when running back Jack Bowers recorded his second touchdown of the night on a 2-yard plunge to make it a six-point game with 2:25 remaining in the contest.
A successful onside kick recovery by Drake Swift set the Neosho offense up at its own 47-yard line, and the Wildcats managed to get a first down and milk precious seconds off the clock before turning the ball over on downs in Ozark territory.
With just 23 seconds remaining, Ozark took over at its own 31 before an errant snap to quarterback Peyton Russell resulted in a Neosho fumble recovery. The Wildcats then went into their victory formation to officially claim their elusive first triumph of the season.
The Neosho defense managed to keep the Ozark offense scoreless on eight of its 10 drives on the night, generating a pair of takeaways and forcing three turnovers via downs.
The Wildcats got off to a quick start offensively in the game as they built a 14-0 lead in the opening quarter with scoring drives of 80 and 83 yards.
First blood was drawn by Neosho just over two minutes into the game when a fourth-and-4 play saw quarterback Quenton Hughes connect with running back Denton Welch out of the backfield for a 47-yard TD.
Ozark seemed poised to respond to the Neosho score with one of its own on its first offensive possession of the night. But after advancing into Neosho territory, a fumble by Bowers was recovered by Neosho’s Virgil Rosier for a turnover at the NHS 17.
The Wildcats capitalized on the takeaway with a methodical 13-play drive fueled by a balanced attack with seven rushes and six completed passes. The drive was capped by a three-yard TD run by Welch, putting Neosho up two TDs with 3:48 left in the first quarter.
The Tigers managed to claim their first points at the 7:30 mark of the second quarter when a 49-yard drive was punctuated by a 20-yard TD scamper by Bowers, trimming the NHS lead to 14-7.
Neosho capped the scoring in the first half with a 35-yard field goal by Juan Blancarte to take a 17-7 advantage into halftime.
Neosho’s final score of the night, a 23-yard field goal by Blancarte, came at the end of a drive that started at the NHS 10-yard line and gave the home team a 20-7 lead with 5:02 to play in the third quarter.
UP NEXT
Neosho will hit the road to take on Webb City next Friday at 7 p.m. while Ozark plays host to Branson.
SCORING SUMMARY
Ozark 0 7 0 7—14
Neosho 14 3 3 0—20
FIRST QUARTER
Neo—Denver Welch 47 pass from Quenton Hughes (Juan Blancarte kick), 9:56
Neo—Welch 3 run (Blancarte kick), 3:48
SECOND QUARTER
Oza—Jack Bowers 20 run (Sam Clark kick), 7:30
Neo—Blancarte 35 field goal, 5:44
THIRD QUARTER
Neo—Blancarte 23 field goal, 5:02
FOURTH QUARTER
Oza—Bowers 2 run (Clark kick), 2:25
Records—Neosho 1-6, Ozark 1-6
