CARTHAGE –– The Lebanon offense seemed poised to make an early statement.
But then Alex Martini played spoiler to all of the Yellowjackets' fun.
The first drive of the game saw Lebanon go 68 yards on eight plays. But before it could punch it in the end zone to hand Carthage its first deficit of the playoffs, Martini picked off a screen pass and returned it 85 yards for a momentum-swinging score.
"I got the ball and I was just thinking, 'Run as fast as you can Alex,' " Martini said. "I saw there was one more dude to beat, and I just did my best to get him off of me. The rest just happened."
The defensive end sidestepped the last potential tackler, Lebanon quarterback Ty Glendenning, on the return to reach paydirt for an early 7-0 Carthage lead.
"What a time for that (pick-6)," Carthage coach Jon Guidie said. "He just read the screen and made a great play on it, but then his run after the catch was just something else. If we had a game ball to give, we'd give it to him. That was just huge."
"If they go down there and score, then who knows what would have happened. They had us on our heels on that opening drive, and we needed something to happen. Alex just made a great play."
Martini's score sparked a 21-0 first-half run for Carthage en route to a 43-8 state quarterfinal triumph on Friday night at David Haffner Stadium. The win advanced the Tigers (11-1) to the Class 5 semifinals on Nov. 24 to take on either Vianney (8-3) or Jackson (11-0), who clash today in St. Louis.
"It feels great," Guidie said. "I'm so happy for our players, for our coaches, for Carthage. It was a great night and a great atmosphere out here. These kids deserve to be here. They've played really, really hard all year long. Our fans deserve to have this because they've spent a lot of time and money, and have invested a lot into our program. To give this back and to be in this position is really special."
An unusual first half included 41 offensive plays for Lebanon while the Tigers had the same number of offensive plays — 14 — as the Yellowjackets had first downs.
But thanks to Martini's pick-6, a pair of touchdown drives by the Carthage offense and a Carthage defense that recorded stops on four of Lebanon's first five drives, the Tigers were able to take a 21-8 advantage into halftime.
The Yellowjackets had a 212-116 advantage in offensive yards at the break, but the scoreboard told a different story.
"I know it felt at times like we were having a hard time (defending), but they only got in the end zone one time," Guidie said. "And that's what I was trying to tell the kids. You know, as bad as it felt, you only let them cross the goal line once. And these guys are averaging 45 points a game."
After the break, Carthage gained control of the game for good.
The final 22 points were all scored by Carthage as it shut out Lebanon in the second half.
Running back Tyler Mueller set the second-half tone for Carthage on the first play of the third quarter, breaking free for a 61-yard run to bring the Tigers to the Lebanon 2-yard line. Two plays later, he punched it in the end zone for a 28-8 lead.
"That was 12 straight games that we scored on our first possession coming out of halftime," Guidie said. "That was big."
Following a Lebanon turnover, Carthage put together a 14-play, 76-yard drive capped by a short touchdown run by Mueller. The drive lasted nearly seven minutes and increased the Tigers' advantage to 35-8 with 1:15 left in the third quarter.
"That's what we've been waiting on," Guidie said. "That's what we wanted to do, and finally our offensive line bowed up and we started knocking off six, seven, eight yards a pop. And then we scored and finished it, which is the biggest thing. You can drive down there like that and come away with points."
The momentum continued on the ensuing kickoff when Carthage recovered a fumble to set up its offense at the Lebanon 19. Jayden Morgan broke a 19-yard touchdown run on the first play.
Morgan followed that with a 2-point conversion on a pass from Patrick Carlton, giving the Tigers a 35-point lead to prompt a running clock with 1:07 left in the third.

-Jerod Porter, Joplin Globe Sports

Schedule Note: The Tigers will host Vianney at Haffner Stadium in the 5A Semifinals on Saturday, November 24 at 3:00. Vianney defeated Jackson on Saturday by a score of 69-28 to advance to the semifinals game against Carthage. On the other side of the 5A bracket, Battle defeated Ft. Zumwalt North 26-14 and Fort Osage beat Staley 33-3.  Winners of the semifinals will play for the 5A State Championship on Saturday, December 1 at Faurot Field on the campus of the University of Missouri in Columbia. The game time is 7:00 pm.

Carthage Tigers 43, Lebanon Yellowjackets 8
Lebanon       0    8      0    0 -   8
Carthage    14    7    22    0 - 43

Scoring Plays
C - Alex Martini 85 yard interception (Marcus Huntley kick)
C - Patrick Carlton 10 yard run (Huntley kick)
C - Carlton 1 yard run (Huntley kick)
L - Ty Glendenning 1 yard run (Jayden Ivey run)
C - Tyler Mueller 3 yard run (Huntley kick)
C - Mueller 1 yard run (Huntley kick)
C - Jayden Morgan 19 yard run (Morgan pass from Carlton)