The Chillicothe Hornets football team was on the road at Excelsior Springs Friday night in a Midland Empire Conference game. The Hornets entered the contest at 3-1 with both teams sporting a 1-1 MEC record.
In the first half both defenses won out. Chillicothe held Excelsior Springs to just 55 yards of offense in the half and the Tigers only crossed midfield once. The one promising drive for Excelsior Springs still resulted in a punt that was blocked by Paxton Keith, the Hornets also recovered a fumble with Ethan Mercer diving on the loose ball. However on offense the Hornets failed to capitalize, three time a drive ended with Chillicothe turning the ball over on downs in the red zone, as the Tigers defense continued to tighten up against their own goal line. The half ended with both teams scoreless.
To begin the 3rd quarter, Excelsior Springs quickly ended the shutout. On the first play from scrimmage Nick Mubanga took a handoff 68 yards to the house putting the Tigers ahead 6-0. Chillicothe quickly responded with an impressive drive that culminated in a 1 yard quarterback sneak from Burke Beetsma for a touchdown. With the score tied, the Hornets forced a stop, then attacked through the air. Beetsma dropped back and delivered a perfectly thrown ball deep downfield that was caught by Kale Oliver who shook off a defender and ran it in for a 64 yard score. The Hornets defense once again rose to the occasion, forcing a 3 and out to return the ball to their offense. This time on a direct snap to Henry Hurtgen, a hole opened up and Hurtgen took advantage sprinting in a 51 yard run to go ahead 20-6 at the end of the 3rd quarter. It was another big night for Hurtgen on the ground who ran for over 200 yards in his 4th straight game.
In the 4th quarter Mubanga ripped off another long run, this time taking the ball down the left sideline and raced away from defenders for a 78 yard touchdown to make it a one possession game at 20-12. The Hornets burned a lot of clock but were ultimately forced to punt with 3 minutes remaining. The Chillicothe defense then provided the necessary stop, turning Excelsior Springs over on downs to preserve the 20-12 victory.
With the win, Chillicothe improves to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in the conference while Excelsior Springs falls to 1-2 in the MEC. Chillicothe will travel to Father Tolton next Friday in a non-conference game.