WARDSVILLE - The Fulton Hornets owned a 29-26 edge over the second-ranked Blair Oaks Falcons going into what was anticipated to be a dramatic fourth quarter in Friday night's Class 3, District 6 championship.
Blair Oaks, though, asserted itself and took control by putting up 22 unanswered points over the final 12 minutes as the top-seeded Falcons finally pulled away for a 49-26 win over No. 2 Fulton.
"It was just kind of a helpless feeling," Fulton head coach Pat Kelley said of the Falcons' fourth-quarter outburst. "Until five minutes left in the game, we still had a shot."
The Hornets - who also bowed to Blair Oaks in the District 6 semifinals last year - ended their season with a 9-3 record. The Falcons (12-0) will play at seventh-ranked Centralia (11-1) in the Class 2 quarterfinals on Nov. 14. Centralia advanced with a 43-12 win over Wright City for the District 5 title Friday night.
Blair Oaks struck quickly to start the fourth quarter. Senior quarterback Jordan Hair punctuated a two-play, 34-second possession when he hit senior wide receiver C.J. Closser on a 57-yard touchdown strike with 11 minutes, 40 seconds to play.
Hair also ran in the two-point conversion to put the Falcons in front 34-29.
The Hornets were forced to punt on their next series, but Fulton sophomore defensive back Cameron Vaughn appeared to come up with a big interception on Blair Oaks' ensuing drive. On a Hair pass to senior wide receiver Adam Schell along the Falcons' sideline, it looked like Schell and Vaughn both came down with the ball.
The officials conferred and gave Schell a 21-yard catch at the Hornets' 29-yard line.
"It looked like we had an interception on their sideline and we didn't get that call," Kelley said. "He (Vaughn) did have it, we just didn't get the call; it happens.
"That's a huge turning point in the ballgame."
Later in the drive, Fulton forced two consecutive plays for losses to force fourth-and-3 at its own 10 with 5:01 left. Following a Blair Oaks timeout, junior running back Cody Alexander picked up the first down and then followed that with a 6-yard touchdown run with 4:26 to play.
"They came out in the wildcat (formation on fourth down) and it was probably going to be a power run," Kelley said. "We had him (Alexander) wrapped up behind the line of scrimmage and nobody filled in behind.
"They were able to score and go up two (scores), and then we were just desperate and chucking it, trying to make something happen, but it just didn't work out."
The Hornets faced a fourth-and-12 on their own 12 on their next series and called a timeout with 3:11 remaining.
"We were trying to regroup," Kelley said. "We were trying to set up a hook-and-ladder and we just couldn't execute."
After the Falcons intercepted Fulton junior quarterback Devin Masek for a third time, Alexander's 21-yard touchdown run with 2:59 to play sealed Blair Oaks' title victory.
"I don't know if we were tired, I don't know," Kelley said of the Hornets' fourth-quarter defense. "There were a couple of times there on their end of the field where we had a chance to make tackles behind the line of scrimmage and that didn't happen."
Kelley said earlier in the week that he wanted to go back to establishing the run early in the game, but Fulton managed just 94 yards on 33 carries Friday night.
"We just didn't run the ball very well," Kelley said. "They (Blair Oaks) were really good up front."
Despite having a narrow 21-20 lead at halftime, Kelley explained that the Hornets made too many mistakes in the first half. Fulton twice had the ball inside the Falcons' 15 in the second quarter, but Masek was picked off both times by Schell in the end zone.
The latter interception set up a Blair Oaks scoring drive that resulted in a 3-yard touchdown pass from Hair to senior tight end Owen Luebbering with :03 left in the half. Alexander's run for the two-point conversion brought the Falcons within a point at the break.
"We could have been up more at halftime," Kelley said. "We were inside on the 10 once and didn't score, and inside the 30 another time and didn't score. In a game like this, you have to take advantage of those situations and we didn't do a good job of it."
After forcing the Hornets to punt, Blair Oaks took the lead on Hair's 12-yard touchdown pass to Alexander with 5:54 to go in the third quarter. Fulton regained the lead at 29-26 on its next possession when junior wide receiver Alec Fleetwood made a leaping catch of Masek's 36-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-7 at the 2:39 mark.
That set the stage for a fourth quarter where the Falcons gained the upper hand and dashed the Hornets' title hopes after a valiant battle.
"I said there's nothing I can tell them tonight that's going to make them feel any better," Kelley said. "The sun's gonna come up tomorrow and we'll give it a few days and reflect on a 9-3 season.
"All three of our losses came to state-ranked teams, so that's a pretty good season."