MONTGOMERY CITY - Ethan Abercrombie and the Montgomery County Wildcats kept the South Callaway Bulldogs trapped in a tailspin.
Montgomery County's senior quarterback constantly tormented South Callaway, throwing four touchdown passes and running for two scores as the Wildcats humbled the winless Bulldogs 53-21 in the Eastern Missouri Conference opener for both teams Friday night.
South Callaway - sliding to 0-3 on the season - managed a feeble 54 yards of total offense in the first half as Montgomery County (2-1) opened up a 34-0 lead at the break. The Bulldogs' three scores came late in the contest after the Wildcats began to pull their starters.
Head coach Zack Hess was troubled by the continuing signs of regression he witnessed from his squad.
"This is new territory for us - we're not used to this (type of start)," Hess said. "The thing that concerns me the most is that it seems like we've taken a little step back each week - from week one.
"It wasn't in their (players') hearts tonight, for whatever reason. It's been a while since I've seen that."
Abercrombie was almost flawless when putting the ball in the air Friday night, completing his first five passes before finishing 13-of-15 for 201 yards, the four touchdowns and one interception. He added 54 yards rushing on eight carries.
"What he (Abercrombie) did on film translated tonight," Hess said. "He's just a good player, a special player. He's got a good burst, he's a big boy and he made some really good plays.
"We were trying to put a lot of pressure on him, get guys in the backfield and make him uncomfortable, and he took off a couple of times. He can run the ball, obviously, really well, and he throws a good ball, too, especially when he's got time back there."
Abercrombie hooked up with senior wide receiver Bailey Sontag on a short pass in the flat that went for a 38-yard touchdown on Montgomery County's first possession. Abercrombie then punched in a 1-yard touchdown run on the Wildcats' second series to make it 12-0 with 4 minutes, 18 seconds left in the first quarter.
After being picked off near the goal line early in the second quarter on Montgomery County's third possession, Abercrombie scored again on a 1-yard keeper with 5:17 to go in the half. He then delivered a 45-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Carson Parker at the 1:39 mark to give the Wildcats a 26-0 edge.
Montgomery County was able to force a quick three-and-out by South Callaway at its own 22-yard line. After a short punt and a personal-foul penalty against the Bulldogs for a late hit, Abercrombie connected again with Sontag on the first play for a 15-yard score with :26.2 remaining.
Abercrombie then punctuated an eight-play, 66-yard scoring drive to open the third quarter by lobbing a 2-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Drake Smith at the 7:59 mark to make it 40-0.
"You can see a lot of improvement in (Abercrombie's) game from the previous years to this year," Hess said. "He's taken a step forward and did a really nice job for them tonight."
With the Wildcats turning the game over to their reserves, the Bulldogs' offense finally found some traction. Senior quarterback Cole Shoemaker topped off a 10-play, 77-yard drive with a 28-yard touchdown run to put South Callaway on the scoreboard with :54.7 to play in the third quarter.
Senior running back Devin Borghardt then supplied touchdown runs of 44 and 65 yards in the fourth quarter as the Bulldogs finished with 322 yards of total offense. Borghardt rushed for 141 yards on just nine carries as South Callaway gained 268 yards as a team.
"We won the (coin) toss (to start the game), we wanted the ball, we felt like we could drive the ball and that did not happen," Hess said. "(Montgomery County) was physical, they closed down the gaps really fast.
"We had some creases there, but they didn't stay there for very long. That's a credit to their defense and their plan, and they were ready for us."
South Callaway returns home this week for an EMO matchup against the Mark Twain Tigers (1-2). Mark Twain started EMO play with a 26-14 home loss to Bowling Green on Friday night.