MOKANE - Dillon Stone might not win many foot races, but try catching him on a football field.
The South Callaway senior linebacker returned an interception 10 yards for a touchdown with 3 minutes, 48 seconds left in the game to seal the Bulldogs' 18-7 Eastern Missouri Conference victory over Wright City on Friday night.
Stone's two interceptions were part of five turnovers forced by South Callaway, which won for the third straight time in improving to 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the EMO.
"Dillon Stone played a heckuva game; he set the tone and our defense was huge," Bulldogs head coach Zack Hess said. "Dillon has a knack for the ball, he finds it and goes attack.
"He's not very fast as far as straight-line running, but he has a quick first two or three steps."
South Callaway's defense posted a shutout while limiting Wright City (3-2, 2-1) to 158 yards of total offense, including minus-6 rushing. The Wildcats' lone score came on senior wide receiver Tyler Brittain's 40-yard punt return for a touchdown with 2:09 to play in the third quarter, bringing Wright City within 9-7.
The Bulldogs, though, tallied their second safety of the game when they tackled senior Kyle Tuepker in the end zone with 6:02 to play, then put away the win on Stone's decisive pick.
Junior cornerback Brandon Ashley also had an interception for South Callaway, which recovered two fumbles. The Bulldogs' other safety occurred when the Wildcats snapped the ball over the punter's head and out of the back of the end zone at the 7:31 mark of the second quarter.
"The defense really played well and we talked about stopping their running attack at the start of the game," Hess said. "We put pressure on the quarterback, our pass drops (from linebackers into coverage) were better and our secondary did a good job."
South Callaway rushed for 204 yards as a team, but its only offensive score came on a 1-yard touchdown run by sophomore running back Kaden Helsel with 6:01 to play in the first half. Helsel returned after missing two games with a medial collateral ligament injury in his knee.
Senior running back Patrick Barnard led the Bulldogs with a game-high 102 yards rushing on 24 carries and senior running back Cameron Richardson supplied 40 yards in 14 attempts. Senior quarterback Ethan Livengood was just 2-of-9 passing for only 14 yards and an interception.
Despite the lack of points, Hess liked the way the South Callaway offense monopolized the clock.
"I thought we did really well with ball control and getting first downs, and we dominated time of possession," Hess said. "That helped out our defense by keeping Wright City's offense off the field."
The Bulldogs travel to North Callaway this week for the annual Callaway Cup clash. The Thunderbirds (2-3, 1-2) lost at state-ranked, unbeaten Mark Twain 49-12 in EMO play Friday night.
"We have to be careful of not letting our guard down and be satisfied or complacent," Hess said of his squad's win streak. "We can't let these kids settle; we have to continue to get better and we still have work to do.
"Right now, we're not the best team we could be."
Ryan Boland can be reached at (573) 826-2422, or by email at [email protected].