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By Jim Connell
As Joplin High School receiver Spencer Cornett drifted past the Kickapoo secondary late in the fourth quarter on Friday night, he had a feeling of terror grip him.
“I saw the ball, and I was like, ‘If I drop this, I’m done,’ ” he said. “But I caught it and came through.”
Cornett hauled in the 44-yard pass from Blake Tash and cruised into the end zone, capping a comeback from a 10-0 first-half deficit and giving the Eagles a dramatic 18-17 road victory over the Chiefs.
The game-winning play came from the Joplin offense, but it was a big defensive effort that keyed the victory.
Joplin (2-1) limited Kickapoo to 219 yards of total offense, recorded two safeties and had two takeaways – the biggest one a forced fumble and recovery near midfield with 1:54 to play.
The Chiefs (1-2) were leading 17-12 and nearing a first down on a run along the Joplin sideline, which would have iced the game, but the ball was stripped from the ball-carrier’s hands and hauled in by the Eagles.
“I don’t know if we can do any more strip drills and punch drills,” Joplin coach Curtis Jasper said. “Whatever turnover drill you can do to get the ball out, we do it and the kids work at it and believe in it.”
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A holding penalty helped put the Eagles in a third-and-23 situation and just over a minute left. Tash and Cornett hooked up on a 14-yard completion to bring up a fourth-and-nine play.
Tash dropped back, rolled to his left and stepped up as Cornett slipped behind the Kickapoo secondary. Tash let it fly, dropping it into Cornett’s arms at about the 5-yard line, and the senior receiver strolled into the end zone.
Kickapoo had one last shot after a big kickoff return from Dalton Coates gave the Chiefs possession on the Joplin 49-yard line.
But Joplin’s defense came through again, forcing a sack and then an incompletion on fourth-and-19.
“It shows when a lot of people put in a lot of hard work and care a lot about each other, what you can do,” Jasper said.
Defense was the theme of the night for Joplin, which spotted the Chiefs a 10-0 lead in the first quarter.
Josh Scheiderer booted a 37-yard field goal, then Coates ran for a 19-yard touchdown.
The Eagles tied it in the second quarter, tackling Coates in the end zone for a safety, then Tash and Zach Westmorland hooked up for a 50-yard TD pass. Jay Ellis converted the two-point conversion and the game was tied at 10.
A fumbled punt inside the Joplin 10-yard line set Kickapoo up late in the first half, and Coates scored on a 5-yard run for a 17-10 Kickapoo lead at the break.
The only points of the second half came from Joplin, first on a blocked punt that was recovered in the end zone by Kickapoo for the second safety of the night, then the winning touchdown pass.
Tash finished 28-of-37 for 251 yards and two touchdowns, and Jay Ellis had 106 yards rushing on 17 carries. Westmorland caught eight passes for 104 yards.
Joplin had 421 yards of offense, overcoming two lost fumbles.
For Kickapoo, Coates had 95 yards rushing on 14 carries, with quarterback Mason Auer throwing for 92 yards and rushing for 32.
Joplin 18, Kickapoo 17
First quarter
K: Josh Scheiderer 37 FG
K: Dalton Coates 19 run (Scheiderer kick)
Second quarter
J: Safety, Coates tackled in end zone
J: Zach Westmorland 50 pass from Blake Tash (Jay Ellis run)
K: Coates 5 run (Scheiderer kick)
Third quarter
J: Safety, Kickapoo recovered blocked punt in end zone
Fourth quarter
J: Spencer Cornett 44 pass from Tash (run failed)
