CARTHAGE — The Carthage football team opted to keep the suspense out of the equation in its district championship on Friday.
On a night that saw the Tigers jump out to a 35-point lead before Nixa could convert a first down, Carthage cruised to a 35-0 triumph over the Eagles in the Class 5 District 6 title game at David Haffner Stadium.
The Tigers have now been crowned district champions for six consecutive seasons.
"It feels unbelievable, to be honest," Carthage head coach Jon Guidie said. "Like I said last week, competing for district championships never gets old. To do it this with this group, I think it's pretty special and pretty gratifying."
With the win, Carthage punched its ticket to the Class 5 state quarterfinals to take on Glendale, a 42-28 victor over Waynesville, next Friday or Saturday in Springfield.
The Tigers scored all of their points in the first half as they tallied 307 yards of offense while limiting Nixa to just 18 yards. Carthage also generated a pair of takeaways and recovered one onside kick before intermission.
"A lot of things happened in the first half," Guidie said. "We had two picks, had one onside kick recovery, we hit some home runs, we scored every possession and we played outstanding defense. A lot happened, and it went well. And that's what should happen when you get this far. You need to be playing really well, and I thought that was maybe the best half of football we've played all season."
Defensive back Justin Sneed logged Carthage's second interception late in the second quarter on a Nixa pass attempt in the red zone. Then, five plays later, wide receiver Marcus Huntley beat a defender in a foot race to haul in a 64-yard touchdown pass that put the Tigers up 35-0 with 2:02 remaining in the half.
At that point, the Nixa offense had registered just 1 yard of offense with no first downs.
"Our coaches did a great job of getting us prepared, but these kids came out and played extremely hard," Guidie said. "That first week we saw (Nixa), the big thing was we were struggling to just get lined up right. Tonight, our guys recognized things immediately and really did a nice job."
The second half was completed with a running clock as both teams went scoreless with two drives apiece. Carthage subbed in its reserve players in the latter stages of the third quarter.
Linebacker and fullback Kale Schrader was among the standout performers for Carthage with a pair of touchdowns and one interception in the first half.
Schrader's takeaway came on Nixa's second drive when he made a diving catch to haul in a tipped pass near midfield. The senior was rewarded for his takeaway seven plays later, when quarterback Patrick Carlton connected with him for a 16-yard touchdown pass that extended the Carthage lead to 14-0 with 4:06 showing in the first quarter.
"As a whole, we just played well as an offense," Schrader said. "I can't credit the touchdowns to just myself. My receivers were out there blocking for me. Our line was giving Pat the time he needed to make those throws. It was a group effort. That said, it was a lot of fun to get in the end zone a couple of times."
Schrader logged his second touchdown reception on a 27-yard pass midway through the second quarter to widen the Tigers' advantage to 27-0. He finished with 80 yards on four catches.
Running back Tyler Mueller led Carthage in the run game with 69 yards on 14 carries. He scored touchdowns on runs of 1 and 4 yards.
Carlton recorded 142 yards and two touchdowns on 8-of-10 passing, and he also rushed for 65 yards on 13 carries.
-Jared Porter, Joplin Globe Sports Online

Carthage Tigers 35, Nixa Eagles 0
Nixa              0      0   0     0 - 0
Carthage    14    21    0    0 - 35

Scoring
First Quarter
C-Tyler Mueller 1 yard run, Marcus Huntley kick
C-Kale Schrader 16 yard pass from Patrick Carlton, Huntley kick
Second Quarter
C-Muller 4 yard run, Huntley kick
C-Schrader 27 yard pass from Carlton, kick failed
C-Huntley 64 yard pass from Carlton, Carlton run