It was evident from the beginning of the game that a healthier and determined Dexter Bearcat football team had stepped onto the field Friday night, and they were ready to show the home town crowd what they are capable of.

The Bearcats used a well balanced offensive attack, coupled with a strong defensive showing to lead them to their first victory of the year, as they soundly defeated Kennett by the score of 26-7. "This was a total team effort," explained Dexter coach Aaron Pixley.  "They played much better tonight.  That's what we are trying to do here...get better every week." 

The Bearcats amassed 376 yards of total offense, which was their best offensive output of the season.  Junior QB, DJ Dowdy, completed 10 of 15 passing attempts for a season high 206 yards, and Senior RB Ryan Joyner ran for a season high 135 yards on 19 carries.  The Bearcats were led in receiving yet again by Senior WR Chase Young.  Young hauled in 5 catches for a total of 79 receiving yards.  Foels, Joyner, Stevens and Page also had receptions in the game.  Pixley praised his receiving corps performance by saying, "Our wide receivers, tight-ends and full backs made some outstanding catches.  Chase Young comes up big every week and now we've got Jonathan Page back.  We also had a huge catch on the sideline by (freshman) Ethan Stevens that kept the clock going in our favor."

"Offensively, we really got things going tonight, and we moved the ball well," said Pixley.  Last night's victory was his 13 consecutive win against the Kennett Indians.  Pixley addressed the importance of a balance offense, "If you can't run the football then you are not going to be able to throw effectively, and we proved that the first four weeks."  Pixley went on to say that, "Tonight we proved that when we run the ball well, then our play action passes open up.  I was really proud of my offensive line tonight and I felt that they really got some good push against a bigger and faster opponent."

After Dexter fumbled the snap on the first play of the game, Kennett quarterback Declan Wallace methodically moved the ball down the field deep into Bearcat territory.  However, on 4th and 6 from the Dexter 13 yard line, with the Indians threating to score the Bearcat defense came up with a huge stop and forced the Indians to turn the ball over on downs.

The Bearcats were unable to capitalize on the turnover, and with neither team able to mount a sustaining offensive drive, the game remained scoreless at the end of the opening quarter. 

Things quickly changed in the favor of the Bearcats in the second quarter, beginning with Sophomore DB Austin Aldridge stepping in front of the Kennett receiver and intercepting a pass from Wallace, enabling the Bearcats to start their next drive from the Kennett 20 yard line.  A 15 yard rush from Joyner moved the ball down near the Indians goal line, and two plays later Dexter QB DJ Dowdy scampering in from 2 yards out. Following the successful PAT by Brad Wick, the Bearcats moved out to an early lead of 7-0.

After forcing Kennett to turn the ball over on downs for the second time in the Red Zone, the Bearcats attempted to mount one more scoring drive before half time.  The Bearcat offense began to find it's groove and started moving the ball down field quickly.  With less than 3 minutes until the half, and out of timeouts, the Bearcats offense was forced to go "no huddle". A 20 yard pass to Jonathan Page, followed by 12 and 13 yards rushes by Joyner and Wick, quickly moved the ball to mid-field.  Next, a phenomenal sideline catch by Chase Young advanced the ball another 18 yards downfield and set up a last second shot at the end zone, which resulted in an interception by Kennett defensive back Brandon Meek. Going into the field house at half-time, the Dexter Bearcats held a 7-0 advantage over Kennett.

The Dexter defense opened up the 2nd half with two consective stops. Following a very short punt by the Indians, the Dexter offense took over on the Kennett 37 yard line.  On the first play from scrimmage, DJ Dowdy found Jonathan Foels open on a quick strike and Foels galloped down the field for 30 yards.  On the next play, Foels' number was called again, and he found the end zone on a 7 yard rushing touchdown.  With the score, the Bearcats extended their lead to 13-0.

On the ensuing kickoff, a solid Kennett return postioned the Indians near mid-field.  The seven-play scoring drive ended when Kennett's Wallace scampered around the left side and scored Kennett's sole touchdown from 26 yards out, his longest run of the evening. Wallace, a dual-threat quarterback, ended the game with a total of 71 rushing yards and 51 passing yards.

On the kickoff, Trevor Waldner had a solid 15 yard return, bringing the ball out to the 44 yard line.  On the first play from scrimmage Ryan Joyner broke free on a great block by Drew Mason and accelerated right through the Kennett defense covering 56 yards for the touchdown.  Coach Pixley was pleased with his team's ability to maintain focus and immediately counter the Kennett score.  "That was huge," said Pixley.  "We had a really nice run that was well executed."  The Joyner run pushed the Bearcats lead to 19-7.  

In the fourth quarter the Bearcat defense continued to play very well, and stopped all 3 Kennett drives in the quarter.  On Kennett's final offensive possession, a failed fourth and long attempt allowed the Bearcats to take over on the Kennett 10 yard line.  Following a 9 yard rush by Chase Young, DJ Dowdy punched it in from the 1 yard line and secured the victory for the Bearcats by the final score of 26-7. 

The Bearcats limited Kennett to 200 yards of total offense, the fewest yards given up to an opponent all year.  The Bearcats were led in tackling for the second straight week by Trevor Waldner with 15 tackles.  Foels and Chase Noe has 11 tackles apeice, and Joyner had 9 tackles.

Coach Pixley was quick to praise his defense, "Defensively, I felt that our kids played very well, and we gave up very few big plays."  Pixley went on to say that, "They had a few big runs, but we swarmed to the football and our kids were in the right spots to make a play."  Pixley praised the Kennett squad, saying that "we knew this was going to be a tough game, and it was.  It was good to get a win out there tonight."

The Bearcats will return to action next Friday night, as they travel to New Madrid to take on NMCC Eagles in another SEMO Conferance battle. Kickoff is set for 7:00 pm.  Next week's game will be yet another face-off between two head coaches that share the last name of Pixley.  The Eagles are led by Aaron Pixley's brother, Arlen.  Pixley had this to say about his team's preperation for next week, "I want the boys to enjoy this win over the weekend, but then we have to come back here Monday and get ready to play a very good team next Friday.  We still need to practice better, and we still need to improve in several areas."