Green Wave find end zone early in shutout

Malden scored touchdowns on each of its first five possessions and rolled over host Chaffee 41-0 Friday night.

Malden (3-4) used the speed of tailback Jamall Kilgore and quarterback Scott Matthews to roll up more than 200 yards rushing in the first quarter. And when Kilgore and Scott weren't turning the corner on defenders, senior fullback John Sutton was using his 240-pound body to run over Red Devil linemen up the middle.

Kilgore, who ran for 100 yards in a little over a quarter, said his team proved that they could run the ball.

"Teams think we can't run the ball," he said.

Malden kept the ball on the ground throughout the game, running the ball 45 times while throwing only four passes. The Green Wave finished with 327 yards on the ground with five different players rushing for 20 or more yards.

Malden coach Kevin Collier said the Green Wave exploited their backs' speed advantage.

"We feel like we do have some speed, and we were able to utilize it tonight," he said.

For Chaffee (1-6), which played without several key starters, nothing was working on offense. With the game getting out of hand in a hurry, the Red Devils were forced to go to the air often, which allowed Malden to key in on the pass.

Collier said his team was expecting Chaffee to pass, but not as much as they did.

"They surprised us by throwing so much," he said. "We feel we can play good pass defense."

After rushing the ball nearly 50 times a week earlier against East Prairie, the Red Devils put it on the ground only 18 times against the Green Wave. Chaffee finished with 49 yards rushing, with the majority of those yards coming in the final quarter.

Chaffee coach Allan Horrell said his team had bright spots despite the loss.

"Defensively we played fine in the second half," he said. "Offensively we just couldn't get anything going."

Chaffee was forced to go with backup quarterback Daniel Robertson in the second half when starter Sam Burnett left the game after reaggravating a shoulder injury. Burnett finished 1-for-12 with one interception, while Robertson went 2-for-7 with two interceptions.

With district games starting next week, Horrell said his team needs to put this game behind it and rebound.

"We just want to be able to compete," he said.

jjoffray@semissourian.com

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