Republic pulls away from Branson for district championship

Republic ended Branson’s undefeated season with a big second half, notching a 35-10 victory in the Class 5 District 6 championship game at Branson Friday night. Preston McCracken rushed for 274 yards and four touchdowns to lead Republic (10-2) into the state quarterfinals for the second straight year.
McCracken repeatedly broke into Branson’s secondary throughout the game. “They weren’t pursuing really good, so we could get on the outside,” McCracken said. “Whenever we started running those plays outside, they started over-pursuing, so there was a cutback lane and I just found the hole, and we just blocked it really well.”
Branson (10-1) scored first when quarterback Luke McCormick ran 63 yards for a touchdown to cap an 80-yard drive. But Republic answered with a 16-play, 80-yard march, ending with McCracken’s first one-yard touchdown. McCracken added another one-yard score just before halftime to give Republic a 14-7 lead.
After Branson cut the lead to 14-10 with a third-quarter field goal, Republic’s ground game took control. Izaiah Hull’s one-yard touchdown run made it 21-10, set up by McCracken’s 33-yard burst.
The game turned in Republic’s favor for good with the Tigers backed up to their own four-yard line. McCracken broke free for 49 yards, and a personal foul penalty moved the ball deeper into Branson territory. Three plays later, McCracken scored from 26 yards out to extend the lead to 28-10.
“They all thought I was in the pile. They didn’t realize I cut back and they were just wide open,” McCracken said of his 49-yard run to open the drive. “We had some good big-on-big blocks and we did good.”
Republic’s offense churned out 389 rushing yards while holding Branson to 223 yards of total offense. Mason Fleetwood added 51 yards on nine carries, and Hull finished with 55 yards and a touchdown on 19 attempts.
“I felt like our defense did an amazing job of keeping them out of the end zone,” coach Ryan Cornelsen said. “We’re not very big. We’ve got a couple of guys over 200 pounds trying to stop that style of offense. You’ve got to go full tilt every play.”
McCracken’s fourth touchdown late in the fourth quarter, another one-yard run, provided the final margin.
The Tigers will host Jefferson City Helias in the state quarterfinals for the second season in a row. Kickoff is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m.