Republic is headed to the state quarterfinals in football for the first time since 1995 after defeating Lebanon 35-32 in the Class 5 District 6 championship. This Saturday, Republic will match up against Jefferson City Helias with a 1 pm start at Republic to see who will advance to the Class 5 semifinals.
312
Rushing yards for Republic’s offense against a stout Lebanon defense that had held their opponents to 13.2 points before the game Friday. The Tigers were led in rushing by Wyatt Woods (162) and Kanon Krol (124) and averaged 6.9 yards per carry.
28
Total tackles by the Republic linebacking corps against Lebanon. Braydin Casey led the way with eight takedowns, followed by Kendell Curbow and Cole Gimlin with seven apiece, and Kaleb Norman with six.
4
Tackles for loss by Cole Gimlin, who flew around from sideline to sideline for Republic’s defense on Friday night. He leads the team in tackles for loss on the year with 18.
16
Yards for the only reception of the night for the Tiger offense. The lone reception, however, was a strike from Wyatt Woods to Caide White for a momentum-shifting touchdown on fourth down. The touchdown put Republic up 28-17 partway through the third quarter and forced Lebanon to play the rest of the game from behind two scores. The reception was only the second touchdown thrown by Woods all season to someone other than James Rexroat. (The first was to Cory Craigmyle at Ozark.)
5
Successful extra point attempts for kicker Mason Cole. Cole went 5/5 on the evening and improved his extra point percentage to 90.6% on the season. He is 48/53 on the year.
2
Sacks for the Tiger defense on Lebanon’s last possession of the night, essentially putting the game out of reach for the Yellowjackets. Kendell Curbow and Braydin Casey were able to take down quarterback Gavin Smith on second and third down of the final Lebanon drive, forcing them to attempt a fourth and very long with the game on the line.
0
Matchups between Republic and Jefferson City Helias before they face off on Saturday afternoon for the first time.