Four different Ozark players scored touchdowns in the first half, on the way to a 42-15 win over Republic Friday night.
Ozark scored quickly on its first drive when Austin Adams ran the ball into the end zone from 20 yards out to give the Tigers a 7-0 lead with 10:39 left in the 1st quarter.
After Republic was forced to punt, Ozark took advantage of a short field and made it 14-0 on a 16-yard run by David Salazar, with 6:24 left in the 1st quarter.
Republic finally got on the board on its next drive. The Tigers kept the ball mostly on the ground, driving the length of the field until Jake Laswell broke through the line on a 5-yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion was good, and the Ozark lead was 14-8.
But the Republic defense couldn’t find an answer for Ozark, which scored again early in the 2nd quarter on a 1-yard dive by Cody Lindsey. Ozark went for 2 on the extra-point, and got it, and that made the score 22-8.
Another Ozark touchdown — this time on an 8-yard run by Salazar –made the lead 29-8 with 8:03 left in the half. The Tigers scored again on a 48-yard run by Austin Roberts with 1:52 left, and they took a 35-8 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Ozark tacked on a 3rd-quarter touchdown, and Republic scored again on a 2-yard touchdown by Jake Laswell, accounting for the final score of 42-15.
Republic falls to 2-3. Ozark improves to 4-1. Republic plays at home next week against Webb City.