The Pirates rallied for

a 47-41 victory over Dexter in triple overtime.

~ Southeast Missourian

Unbelievable.

Unforgettable.

Incredible.

Those words do not even begin to describe Perryville's thrilling 47-41 triple overtime win Friday over Dexter in the Class 3 District 1 championship game at Perryville.

Kirk Luckey capped off a big Perryville comeback with a 25-yard touchdown catch from Cory Buerck in the third overtime to give the Pirates their first district title since 1998. Perryville (5-5) will travel to Ste. Genevieve (6-4) for a 7 p.m. sectional matchup on Wednesday.

Perryville's first district title in six years had a little bit of everything in it. There was a last-second, game-tying touchdown pass, a game-saving fourth down touchdown pass, a missed extra point, a potential game-winning extra point that hit the crossbar and a key interception. And that does not even include most of regulation.

Perryville's season seemed all but over before Clinton Rice went 87 yards on a Buerck pass with 16 seconds remaining in regulation. Buerck added the extra point to tie the score 28-28. Rice's score capped off a 21-point comeback after Dexter had led 28-7 early in the third quarter.

Once the game entered overtime, the real drama began. Dexter converted on a fourth and two on the first possession of overtime and ended up in the end zone on a 15-yard pass from Kyle Espey to Aaron Lavender.

Perryville's first possession was no less dramatic. The Pirates were facing a third and eight when a Matt Unterreiner run and a facemask penalty made it a fourth and two at the 5. Greg Wibbenmeyer caught a 5-yard touchdown pass to tie the score and send it to a second overtime.

This time Perryville started off on offense and wasted no time getting into the end zone. Cory Buerck hit Phillip Buerck on a 25-yard strike on the first play for the score. For the second time in the game Perryville's extra point was blocked, though.

Dexter followed Perryville's lead, scoring on its first play. Espey hit Jake Smith on a 25-yard pass to tie the score. Dexter's fans had one foot in front of the other ready to storm the field, but Derek Roberts' lofty kick hit the crossbar and fell short.

Dexter had the ball first in the third overtime, but Unterreiner intercepted Espey on a second and long to set up the game-winning score.