Hornets cruise behind second-half burst

Travel to No. 8 Blair Oaks for District 6 semifinal tilt

Fulton junior free safety Andy Baysinger shows off the ball to the crowd at Robert E. Fisher Stadium after recovering a fumble in the Hornets' 65-28 romp over Eldon in the Class 3, District 6 quarterfinals on Friday night.
Fulton junior free safety Andy Baysinger shows off the ball to the crowd at Robert E. Fisher Stadium after recovering a fumble in the Hornets' 65-28 romp over Eldon in the Class 3, District 6 quarterfinals on Friday night.

The Fulton Hornets had the momentum and a 24-14 advantage over the Eldon Mustangs at halftime of their Class 3, District 6 quarterfinal.

Following the break, Fulton head coach Pat Kelley wanted the absolute two best quarters the Hornets had in them.

"We just talked about coming out and playing the best 24 minutes we've played," Kelley said. "... At halftime, we didn't have to make any adjustments. We knew what they were going to do on both sides of the ball.

"We just had to play better than we really did in that first half."

Behind the surge of seven second-half touchdown drives that accounted for 41 points, No. 3 seed Fulton dismantled No. 6 Eldon 65-28 on Friday night at Robert E. Fisher Stadium.

Fulton (6-4) will now play second-seeded and state-ranked Blair Oaks in the District 6 semifinals next Friday night in Wardsville. The Falcons (8-2) -ranked No. 8 - thumped No. 7 seed Boonville 37-7 at home Friday night.

The Hornets' offense moved at will against the Mustangs, scoring on their final nine possessions and racking up season highs in points and total yards (571).

Eldon junior Levi Shinn's punt from the Mustangs' 47-yard line on the opening possession of the third quarter pinned Fulton at its 5.

On second down, Hornets junior wide receiver Radarion Glover took a screen pass from senior quarterback Sam Christensen. Glover bolted past Shinn - playing cornerback - and darted down Fulton's sideline for a 95-yard touchdown with 8 minutes, 17 seconds left in the quarter.

Kelley made special mention of senior wide receiver Devin Gibson, who threw the block that freed Glover's path. Gibson - the Hornets' leader in catches and receiving yards - was held without a catch for the first time this season.

"Devin deserves as much credit," Kelley said. "His name's not going to be anywhere near the yardage or score, but Devin sealed the edge for him and had a great block, and (Glover) did the rest."

The Mustangs (3-7) punched back with a quick two-play drive, capped off by Shinn's 68-yard touchdown run to cut Eldon's deficit to 31-21 at the 7:38 mark.

Fulton then answered with a seven-play, 51-yard drive that culminated with Christensen bowling over a Mustangs defensive back on a 23-yard touchdown run with 5:34 to go in the quarter.

After the Mustangs went three-and-out on their next series, Fulton junior running back Travis Dean sliced through the Eldon defense on first down for a 62-yard gain. On the next play, senior running back Dominique Ford scored on a 14-yard run to stretch Fulton's lead to 44-21 at the 2:52 mark.

Hornets junior free safety Andy Baysinger then recovered a fumble at the Mustangs' 39 on the first play of Eldon's following possession. Two plays later, Dean dashed 39 yards for his second touchdown of the game with 2:14 to go in the quarter.

Dean eclipsed the 1,000-yard barrier for the season, finishing the night with 208 yards on 13 carries. It was the third career 200-yard outing and second such effort this season for Dean, who opened the night's scoring on a 58-yard touchdown burst with 3:53 left in the first quarter.

"He's got incredible balance, he's got incredible vision and, again, nobody gets a clean shot on him," Kelley said. "... A lot of times, he turns, he twists and he's able to make good plays."

Sophomore quarterback Austin Kempker logged Eldon's final touchdown on a 78-yard connection with sophomore tight end Jacob Whittle with :41 to play in the third quarter.

Christensen entered the end zone for a fourth and final time on the next Fulton drive, racing 40 yards for a touchdown to push the Hornets' cushion to 58-28 with 9:58 remaining in the game.

He also ran for touchdowns covering 1 and 8 yards, respectively, in the second quarter to finish with a career-best 145 yards on just 11 carries. Christensen connected on 9-of-11 passes for 180 yards.

"I think he's a little frustrated from last week (at Kirksville), having a couple of touchdowns called back, but he's gotten better and better each week running the ball and keeping on the zone read, and those things," Kelley said.

Ford tallied Fulton's final touchdown on an 11-yard run with 3:55 left. Ford rushed for 53 yards in eight attempts as the Hornets produced a season-best 391 yards on the ground.

"That goes back to the five guys up front (on the offensive line)," Kelley said. "They did a fantastic job. We got off to a slow start and kind of had to adjust to the pressure and speed they were coming (with), and we were able to start walling guys off and getting some big chunks."

Shinn paced Eldon with 151 yards rushing on 20 carries, while coming up with a team-high three catches for 67 yards. He and Kempker hooked up on a 13-yard touchdown pass with 6:11 left in the second quarter.

"It's a big win for us; we wanted to prove we were a better football team," Kelley said. "I think we did that tonight and we just have to move forward."

Top-seeded California (10-0) - ranked No. 2 - will host No. 5 seed Southern Boone (4-6) in next Friday night's other District 6 semifinal. California rolled past No. 8 seed Versailles 56-7 on Friday night, while Southern Boone prevailed at No. 4 seed Owensville 40-26.