Republic cruises past Willard again to open district play

Republic rolled past Willard for the second straight week, advancing in Class 5 District 6 with a 62-14 win Thursday night. The Tigers built a 35-7 halftime lead and never looked back, turning four interceptions, two of them for touchdowns, into a runaway victory.
Republic’s first possession set the tone with a 64-yard drive capped by a one-yard touchdown run from Izaiah Hull. After the defense forced another turnover, Matthew Pelfrey finished an 85-yard march with an eight-yard score late in the first quarter. Hull struck again early in the second, then linebacker Kaleb Norman picked off a screen pass and returned it for a touchdown to make it 28-0.
Willard answered with a long touchdown pass from Kaiden Snyder to Keshawn Close, but Republic responded immediately. Hull’s third touchdown pushed the margin back to four scores, and Pelfrey later ripped off a 63-yard touchdown run. Safety Keiran Govan followed with another interception return to give Republic a 48-14 halftime lead. It was the second consecutive week that Govan had picked off a pass and returned it for a touchdown.
The Tigers added two more short touchdown runs in the second half, one by Treyton Gray and another by Trenten Coleman, to close out the scoring. Republic finished with more than 400 rushing yards, led by Pelfrey’s 95 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries.
“There were a lot of reasons to come out flat, but we stayed consistent and kept our composure,” coach Ryan Cornelsen said. “It wasn’t our best game, but we handled the situation the right way.”
Republic (8-2) will host the district semifinals on Friday against Webb City (7-3).