Fort Osage erases gap to win over Staley 17-14

Fort Osage junior placekicker Kegan Lammering took full advantage of his second opportunity and nailed a 24-yard field goal in overtime, lifting the Indians to 17-14 victory at Staley.

“I was nervous,” Lammering said. “I just wanted to put one through and get us out of here happy. I did that for my team.”

The game between two of the top teams in Missouri Class 5 lived up to expectations. Fort Osage, which improved to 5-0, overcame a 14-0 deficit eight minutes into the game.

Staley dropped to 4-1 but showed why it remains one of the top schools in Class 5. In fact, it looked like Staley, which was stopped in its first drive in overtime, was going to get another opportunity. Lammering first attempted a 33-yard field goal in overtime and it sailed wide left, but a personal foul gave Fort Osage a new set of downs.

Staley coach Fred Bouchard refused to blame one call for the loss. He told his players there were 160 other plays in the game they could have made a difference in the outcome.

The Falcons came close to forcing more plays. But Lammering hammered the ball through the goalpost, making the second time a charm for him and the jubilant Indians.

Trailing by 14 at the start of the second half, Fort Osage senior linebacker Jonah Tuimaseve completely flipped the momentum to the Indians’ side when he intercepted a pass and raced 34 yards for a touchdown 17 seconds into the third quarter.

“We had to get things done,” Tuimaseve said. “Coach told us in the locker room to get to work and take care of business.”

Staley blocked the extra point, but the touchdown lifted the Indians’ spirits on both sides of the ball.

The first time Fort Osage touched the ball in the third quarter, it started at its 6. It seemed unlikely the Indians could move 94 yards into the wind against Staley. Behind the arms and legs of Fort Osage senior quarterback Skylar Thompson, the Indians did exactly that.

Once on third and 13, Thompson scrambled for a 15-yard gain. Another time on the drive, Fort Osage faced third and Thompson completed a 31-yard pass to senior Matt Smith. Thompson finished off the drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass to senior Donte Dodson. The two-point conversion on a shuttle pass from Thompson to sophomore Isaiah Iloilo tied the game 14-14 with 3:43 left in the third quarter.

“We were kind of scrambling around in the first half,” Thompson said. “There was a lot of hype going into this game. I feel like we were kind of caught up in the moment. Our defense settled down. We won tonight because of our defense.”

A couple of big offensive plays, a stingy defense and the wind helped Staley score two quick touchdowns in the first quarter and carry that 14-0 lead into halftime.

“I thought our guys competed all night,” Bouchard said. “We were pretty good that first quarter. Things started rolling. We knew they would make adjustments. They are a well-coached team.”

The game started with the Fort Osage offense going into a stiff north wind. Staley stopped the Indians in three plays and got the ball on Fort Osage’s side of the field.

Staley only needed to go 31 yards to score. On the first play, quarterback Michael Kilpatrick broke off a 25-yard run. A holding penalty pushed the Falcons back to the 19. On the next play, Kilpatrick hit Connor McCullough on a 19-yard touchdown pass. The extra point by Tre Thomas gave Staley a 7-0 lead with 9:41 left in the first quarter.

Fort Osage managed one first down on its next drive on a 19-yard run by Iloilo. Staley tightened on defense and forced another punt.

The big play by Staley on this drive was a 32-yard run by Darion Thomas that put the ball on Fort Osage’s 18. Three plays later, Julian Ross scored on a 10-yard run, giving the Falcons a 14-0 lead with 4:03 left in the first quarter.

From that point on, Fort Osage defense started flexing its muscle, picking off two passes and forcing a fumble. The recovered fumble late in the second quarter gave the Indians the ball at Staley’s 24. Fort Osage moved to the 11 and then had to go for a 33-yard field goal that missed.

This story was originally published September 18, 2015 at 10:54 PM with the headline "Fort Osage erases gap to win over Staley 17-14."