The Branson Pirates picked up a Class 5 District Football win Friday night though a look at the first half stats would have told a different story.
The Willard Tigers had success moving the ball, but kept turning the ball over and giving the Pirates short fields, which helped build a 21-0 halftime lead that morphed into a 49-8 win at Pirates Stadium.
The Tigers moved into Pirate Territory only to see the drive end on the first of two Tred Houston interceptions. He returned the ball into Willard Territory which gave the Pirates a short field that led to the first of three Quarterback Keepers by Vincente Pastrana.
The second of those Pastrana runs came on the next drive, setup by another Houston interception. A blocked punt led to the final Pirate score of the half ending in a eight-yard run by Blake Weber.
The Pirates blew the game open in the second half as the Pirates started a drive at their own 39-yardline, one of only three drives to start in their own territory in the game, capped off by a Weber 17-yard run. Pastrana had a 38-yard scoring run later in the quarter with fourth quarter touchdowns by Noah McCright and backup Quarterback Fernando Valenzuela closed out the scoring.
Overall the Pirates forced four turnovers and a blocked punt in earning the win and moving on to the District Semifinals for the third time in four years as the Pirates will travel to Neosho next Friday.
