MONTGOMERY CITY, Mo. - The South Callaway Bulldogs received a variety of support to spark their offensive rampage.
Senior running back Kaden Helsel ran for a pair of scores and also caught a touchdown pass as South Callaway steamed past the Montgomery County Wildcats in a 56-21 Eastern Missouri Conference blitz Friday night.
Senior quarterback Landon Horstman threw two touchdown passes for the Bulldogs, who rebounded with a decisive display after last week's emotional 33-29 loss at North Callaway. South Callaway is now 4-1 on the season and 2-1 in the EMO.
"You never take a win for granted, it's alway nice," Bulldogs head coach Zack Hess said. "There again, you never want to be satisfied or complacent, either, and just always strive to get better."
Helsel carried the ball only three times but still erupted for a game-high 133 yards rushing. He bolted 80 yards for a touchdown with 3 minutes, 20 seconds left in the first quarter to put South Callaway on top 14-0.
Montgomery County (1-4, 1-2) made it an eight-point game on senior quarterback Aubrey Nelson's 2-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter, but the Bulldogs needed just 16 seconds to answer. On the first play of its ensuing possession, Helsel raced 54 yards for a score to stretch South Callaway's advantage to 21-6 at the 11:40 mark.
Helsel then snagged a 35-yard touchdown pass from junior running back Peyton Leeper - playing quarterback at the time - with :28.6 to go in the first half. That score sent the Bulldogs into the break with a comfortable 42-13 lead.
Horstman supplied South Callaway's first score on a 5-yard touchdown pass to senior Jarrett Livengood with 7:45 remaining in the first quarter. The pair then capped off the Bulldogs' scoring on a 9-yard touchdown pass with 10:44 to play in the game.
Senior wide receiver Austin Meyer added a 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter for South Callaway. Senior running back Dalton Stone also accounted for a 30-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter.
Leeper gained 71 yards in only seven attempts as the Bulldogs rushed for 272 yards as a team. Horstman was 6-of-8 passing for 88 yards, the two scores and no interceptions, while Livengood finished with four catches for 44 yards and Meyer had two receptions, also for 44 yards.
"I felt like our ball distribution was pretty good - we got a lot of guys involved and had a lot of success," Hess said. "The big play was nice tonight to see, we had several big plays.
"Just overall execution, offensively, was great and we ran the ball really well. Our passing efficiency was a lot better tonight than it was last week. It's just something that we have to continue working with the chemistry and the timing, and just keep getting better at it."
The South Callaway defense limited the Wildcats to a sparse 44 yards rushing on 23 carries and was also responsible for a score. Stone - from his inside linebacker spot - picked up a Nelson fumble and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs' pass defense, though, remains troublesome. Nelson - who also had a 12-yard touchdown run - completed 22-of-33 passes for 274 yards, including a 59-yard score to senior wide receiver Tim Hall in the second quarter.
Horstman, from his outside linebacker position, did pick off a Nelson pass in the fourth quarter.
"Our pass defense was leaky," Hess said. "I think part of it is just technique and part of it is just a lack of focus. We're lacking that killer instinct to just go up and be a ball hawk and make a play.
"We're just lacking that right now and that's something we've got to find."
South Callaway returns home this week for an EMO matchup against Mark Twain (1-4, 0-3). The Tigers suffered a 38-6 EMO home loss to Bowling Green on Friday night.
Ryan Boland can be reached at (573) 826-2422, or on Twitter @FultonSunSports.