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Caruthersville: Class 2 District 1 Champions!
District finals. The beginning of the end. Each step forward brings the teams that much closer to the big goal: The State Championship. Caruthersville and Malden have been the door to each other’s advancement to that coveted goal for the past several years. Who would advance and who's season would be over? Caruthersville beat Malden early in the year. To beat them twice in a year would be the feather in the proverbial cap and allow Caruthersville to advance to State quarterfinals. The 2017 Tiger football team showed everyone they are made of tough stuff, beating Malden 38-20 to claim the Class 2 District 1 championship and advance to state play.
Malden won the toss and deferred until second half allowing the Tigers to receive the kickoff in the final game of the District 1 bracket. Right away, the Tigers started a march toward the end zone. The Moore-Goliday tandem which was so successful the previous week allowed the Tigers to gain a quick first down. The next series saw Goliday’s pass intercepted, but a fumble by Malden allowed the Tigers to recover and continue their possession. Goliday continued with short passes and the aid of some Green Wave penalties gets closer and closer to the end one. One final pass, a 26-yard reception by Demarco Slaughter, saw the Tigers score first. Unfortunately, the point after attempt was no good. With 8:58 left in the quarter the Tigers led 6-0.
The Tigers kickoff was returned to near the 50-yard line. Malden had good field position but was unable to capitalize on it. They made no gains on the ground and tried to pass the ball, but it was intercepted by Tanner Cobb. This allowed the Tigers to head back toward their end of the field. After a few runs by Nick Moore, Goliday threw a pass to Bryce Strawn who took the ball to the house. With the missed PAT earlier, the Tigers decided to go for a 2-point conversion, which was good. 6:01 left in the quarter saw the Tigers extend their lead to 14-0. The kick-off was only returned to the 33-yard line. Malden was unable to make a first down and had to punt back to Caruthersville. The Tigers also were unable to gain the needed yardages for a first down. They too had to punt the ball. This went back and for a couple times. The quarter ended with no additional points scored. The end of the first quarter, Tigers led 14-0.
| Malden had possession of the ball as the second quarter opened. The Tiger defenses made Malden take a loss when they took the ball carrier down in the backfield. This prompted Malden to attempt a pass to make up lost yardage. The Malden pass was intercepted by Charles Goliday. Goliday and Moore again made a great duo and march the ball downfield. Malden showed some frustrations and penalties allowed the Tigers to gain additional yardage. Unfortunately, the Tigers ball carrier was stripped of the ball, giving Malden possession of the ball. The Tigers did not allow Malden to capitalize on their possession, forcing a three-and-out. Malden's punt was deep, and the Tigers had to start from the 14-yard line. The Tigers also had a three-and-out. Unfortunately, their punt was short, giving Malden excellent field position, this allowed Malden their first opportunity to make a run at the end one. The Malden center snapped the ball high and the QB could not control the ball. | Caruthersville recovered the fumbled ball, keeping Malden from an almost guaranteed score. The Tigers took over near the 5-yard line. A series of passes and carries, interspersed with Malden penalties, allowed Caruthersville to move the ball steadily downfield. A 49-yard reception by Chris Smith finished the Tiger drive in the end one. The extra point was good. With 1:17 left in the half, the Tigers were up 21-0. The resulting kickoff was returned to near the 45-yard line. Malden quickly took the ball back toward their end zone. The Green Wave showed steady consistent progress and kept the Tigers off course. Their quick progress resulted in a Green Wave touch down with only 6 seconds left in the half. Their 2-point conversion was good. The half ended with the Tigers leading 21-8. |
The second half saw Malden with a new resolve. Malden received the Tiger kick and returned it to the 40. Just as they had done before the end of the half, Malden played strong against the Tigers and made a quick rushing touchdown. With 9:48 left in the third quarter and an unsuccessful 2-point conversion, Malden narrowed the Tiger lead to 21-14. The Tigers returned the Malden kickoff to the 41-yard line. Just as in the first half, Goliday and Moore move the ball steadily downfield. Some additional passes to receivers kept the ball in play as the Tigers made a final push into the end zone for their first score of the second half. The final push was a pass to Bryce Strawn who took the ball 15 yards into the end zone. The point after was good. The Tigers had a 14-28 lead with 7:23 left in the quarter.
The kickoff was returned to near the 35-yard line. The first play would not have allowed the Green Wave a first down, but a Tiger penalty assisted Malden, giving them the first down and continued forward movement. The Malden success was short-lived as they had to punt the ball after the next series. Unfortunately, the Tigers were unable to make any progress either. After a couple back and forth three-and-outs, Malden managed a good series and ran the ball into their end zone. Again, the extra point was no good. Malden was one again within a score of the Tigers. With 33 seconds left in the third quarter, the Tigers led 28-20. The ball was kicked off and there was a short return. The Tigers were near the Malden 45-yard line when the horn sounded for the end of the third quarter. Score 28-20 Tigers.
The fourth quarter saw the Tigers passing to Bryce Strawn, but unable to make much gain due to some penalties. Malden was expecting the same play, so Goliday kept the ball and ran past the Green Wave defenders for about 40 yards, gaining a first down and a chance at the end zone. Unfortunately, the Tigers were unable to make a touchdown, so they settled for a field goal. With 7:46 left in the game, it was again a 2-score lead for the Tigers; 31-20. The kick off went through the back of the end zone bringing the ball to the 20 for Malden to try to match the points scored. The Tiger did not allow Malden to gain any yardage, in fact, caused them to take a loss. Malden had to punt. This put the ball near midfield for the Tigers to start. Again, Goliday called his own number and ran for about 45 yards, putting the Tigers in striking distance of the end one. Goliday called his own number again and finished the run into the end zone for the final scoring drive of the game. The point after as good. With 5:53 left in the game, the Tigers led 38-20. All that was left was for the Tigers to keep Malden from making any progress of their own, which they did successfully. The Caruthersville Tigers won over the Malden Green Wave to become the 2017 Class 2 District 1 champions.
“It feels good to beat Malden twice in one year. I’m just proud of the boys. We have a good football team. They show up, focused ready to go, putting their minds on what they wanted to achieve, they were focused, they wanted this. When they want something, and they want it together, I don’t think nothing can stop them...The running game was good for us. We did something good things in the passing game, but everything really played off the running game,” said Coach Jimmy Jackson
The Tigers will host Lutheran North in the State quarterfinal on Friday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m. at Hopke Field.