By Rod Shetler
sports@joplinglobe.com
ROGERSVILLE, Mo. — When Cassville coach David Large, who already has one state championship to his credit, starts talking about Saturday’s state quarterfinal as being the best high school game he has ever been a part of, it’s worth listening to.
After the dust settled on an unseasonably warm November afternoon, a estimated crowd of more than 7,000 fans would probably agree.
A blocked PAT and a critical fourth-down penalty helped Cassville edge Rogersville 21-20 in a highly emotional Class 3 quarterfinal.
“The (semifinal) against Chilicothe last year was a great game, but the way this game went, the way the game played out, I think it was the best high school game I’ve ever been a part of,” said Large. “This was a great win, and two great teams played their hearts out. Now it’s back to work.”
Kansas City O’Hara topped Pleasant Hill 50-49 in the other Class 3 quarterfinal. Cassville, which has won 12 straight games after an opening loss, will host O’Hara on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. in the Class 3 semifinal.
Saturday’s contest pitted a Cassville team that is most comfortable in a power running package against a No. 1-ranked Rogersville team that found little success with the run, but went to the air in the second half with consistent success.
After leading most of the first half, Rogersville regained the lead 20-14 with 11:18 to play on a 26-yard pass, the 11th play of a 56-yard drive, from quarterback Colton Dill to Sam Zimmer.
But Cassville’s Devin Linenbrink broke through the right side of the line and blocked Gabe Zapata’s PAT attempt.
“(Linenbrink) has made big plays all year,” said Large. “When he blocked the kick, we knew we had a chance to win if we could score.”
Cassville had scored on its first possession of the second half on a 66-yard toss from Trevor Tanner to Josh Lewright to go ahead 14-7, but after that score the Rogersville defense had shut them down on two three-and-out possessions. Dill tied the game 14-14 on a 57-yard TD pass to Grant Clouse with 5:04 left in the third quarter.
After falling behind, Cassville took over on its own 14 with 11:16 remaining, and began to methodically work its way down the field. On the sixth play of the drive, Rogersville committed its first defensive pass interference penalty of the drive giving, Cassville a first down at its own 47. Three and four yards at a time, Cassville continued to move with running back Joseph Gouvion getting the majority of the work.
Cassville moved to the Rogersville 29, where the drive stalled. Two straight runs by Gouvion netted no yards and the Wildcats were left with a fourth-and-seven with 3:24 left.
On fourth down, Tanner lofted a high pass into the corner intended for Travis Northern, who was blanketed by a pair of Rogersville defenders. The ball fell untouched in the end zone, but the officials flagged the play for defensive pass interference giving the Wildcats life and a first down at the Rogersville 15.
“Our thought was we had a couple of timeouts left and we’d seen their safety come up tight on our receivers,” said Large. “Our receiver did what he should’ve. He got behind their defense, and they weren’t expecting it and they had to scramble. We were taking a big gamble there.”
With new life in their drive, Cassville used Lewright to run the ball twice for 4 and 10 yards, and Tanner, on the 20th play of the drive, kept the ball on a 1-yard dive to tie the game. Matt Angel’s PAT proved to be the game winner. The 86-yard drive ate up 9:38.
“Being in a situation like that — needing a score — the biggest thing is not to panic, and just go do what you do,” said Large.
Rogersville had 1:54 and three timeouts to attempt a comeback in its final drive.
Dill hit tight end Dillon Lassley for a 21 yard gain and Ben White for 16 yards on a third-and-10 play from the Cassville 44, but on a fourth-and-4 play from the Cassville 35 with 8.3 seconds left, Dillon’s pass across the middle landed short of its target, turning the ball back over to Cassville for a kneel-down.
Rogersville took its opening drive of the game 80 yards on 14 plays and scored on a 3-yard run by Clouse. Zapata’s PAT made the score 7-0 with 5:06 left in the first quarter.
The 7-0 lead by Rogersville held until Cassville took the ball with 2:42 left before halftime and picked its way down the field. On a second-and-10 from the Rogersville 21, Tanner hit wide receiver Ricky Nichols for a 20-yard gain. Gouvion crashed through the line on the next play for the TD. Angel’s PAT tield the game at 7-7 at halftime.
“That was big,” said Tanner of the score before halftime. “It let us know we could play with them, and move the ball against them, and that we were still in it. I started doubting just a little before that, but in the second half we stepped up.”
Cassville’s ground game was led by Gouvion’s 63 yards on 20 carries and one touchdown. Tanner added 61 yards on the ground with a touchdown rushing and one through the air. Tanner hit 7 of 11 passes for 135 yards.
Rogersville was limited on the ground, especially in the second half when it gained only six yards on 10 attempts. But Dill picked apart the Cassville secondary for 235 yards on 15-of-25 accuracy and two touchdowns.
Rogersville, which finished 11-2, entered the game as the No. 1-ranked team in a poll conducted by the Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association. Cassville was No. 3 in the final regular-season poll.
No. 4-ranked O’Hara improved to 12-1 with its third straight down-to-the-wire playoff win. The Celtics beat Chillicothe 32-29 and Savannah 21-16 in the first two rounds.
