College Sports

By TRAVIS YOESTING
Staff Writer

KILGORE -- Kilgore College scored three touchdowns in the third quarter to break open a first-half defensive battle for a 31-0 victory over Tyler Junior College on Saturday at R.E. St. John Memorial Stadium.

On the first drive of the second half, Kilgore went 69 yards on nine plays, capped off by a Cornelius Shackelford 1-yard TD run to grab a 14-0 lead.

On the next Ranger drive, quarterback Lane Johnson found Cortez Smith for a 58-yard touchdown pass on third-and-13.

One drive later, Johnson again found a receiver deep on third-and-long. This time the Ranger quarterback hooked up with Edward Victorian for a 27-yard touchdown on third-and-18 to give Kilgore a 28-0 lead with 1:20 to play in the third quarter.

In a first half with little offense, a blocked punt gave Kilgore a 7-0 at the break.

TJC punter Rex Petty fumbled the snap and by the time he got the kick off, a swarm of Rangers surrounded him. Joseph Shumpert blocked the punt attempt and Victor Carmichael recovered the ball in the end zone for a Rangers touchdown.

In the fourth quarter, Kilgore kicker Rico Casas went out to kick what he thought would be a 35-yard field goal. Instead, two consecutive penalties forced him to try it from 45 yards out. It didn't matter

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Casas nailed the kick to give the Rangers a 31-0 lead.

Shackelford finished the game with 124 yards on 14 carries. TJC's Ira Duckworth ran 21 times for 87 yards. Teric Williams grabbed eight passes for 74 yards for the Apaches to lead all receivers.

Late in the first half, Kilgore lined up to punt on fourth-and-1 at its own 17. A slew of penalties on the punt, however, gave the Rangers first-and-10 from their own 14 with a minute to play in the half.

Using a fresh set of downs, Kilgore raced to the 8-yard line with 13.1 seconds left in the second quarter. Shackelford ran for 20 yards and Shane Fry threw passes of 31 (to Victorian) and 27 (to Kendrick Johnson) for the Rangers.

However, the Apache defense stiffened. Thanks to a James Spady pass breakup in the end zone, TJC forced Kilgore to attempt a field goal, which Casas missed wide right to end the half.

Kilgore outgained TJC 345-193 for the game, though at halftime the total yards were much closer. The Rangers racked up 129 yards to the Apaches' 102 in the first half.

The two teams combined for 19 penalties for 126 yards. TJC had nine penalties for 62 yards.

Both teams had a hard time holding on to the ball. TJC fumbled five times, losing three; Kilgore lost two of their three fumbles.

On the second play of the game, Apache running back O'Bryan Bell fumbled the ball to Kilgore. Bell stayed flat on the ground for five minutes before being helped up to his feet. He was able to walk off on his own, but did not return.

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Kilgore 31, TJC 0

At R.E. St. John Memorial Stadium, Kilgore

TJC 0 0 0 0 0

KIL 7 0 21 3 31

First Quarter

KIL -- Blocked punt, Victor Carmichael recover in end zone (Rico Casas kick), 9:50.

Third Quarter

KIL -- Cornelius Shackelford 1 run (Casas kick), 10:48.

KIL -- Cortez Smith 58 pass from Lane Johnson (Casas kick), 6:54.

KIL -- Edward Victorian 27 pass from Johnson (Casas Kick), 1:20.

Fourth Quarter

KIL -- FG Casas 45, 8:42.

JUCO FOOTBALL: Tyler Junior College sophomore quarterback Steven Schwark passes the ball to receiver Jamaal Johnson Saturday against Kilgore College in Kilgore.
(Staff Photo By Mark Roberts)