Rangers go to Little Rock, return with 21-7 win

The defenses wouldn't bend against the run, so Kilgore College took to the air to beat Arkansas Baptist, 21-7, in a Southwest Junior College Football Conference contest in Little Rock on Saturday at Quigley Stadium, getting three touchdown passes from Shane Fry.

The win gives the Rangers a 3-2 overall record, and a 2-1 record in conference play (Arkansas Baptist is in its first year in the SWJCFC). It was the Rangers' first road win of the season, and second straight win. The Rangers are in a pack of 2-1 teams in the conference. Also at 2-1 are Blinn, Trinity Valley and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.

KC will visit Tyler Junior College (2- 3 overall, 1-2 in conference) at 3 p.m. this Saturday at Rose Stadium in Tyler. It will be the second meeting between the two this season — the first, won by KC here on Sept. 6, didn't count in conference play. The Rangers return home Saturday, Oct. 18 to host Trinity Valley. That's also homecoming this season.

At Little Rock on Saturday afternoon, KC built a 14-0 lead on ABC. The Buffaloes didn't score until the fourth quarter, cutting KC's advantage to 14-7 on a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Micah McDonald.

But the Rangers held off ABC to hand the Buffaloes their fourth straight loss. KC quarterback Fry, a freshman from Hallsville who has been sharing time at QB with fellow freshman Lane Johnson, capped off a drive with a 38- yard pass to Kendrick Johnson for an insurance score. Kicker Rico Casas kicked the extra point, and the Rangers led 21-7 with about three minutes left. ABC wouldn't threaten again. That score was Fry's third touchdown pass of the game. He helped put KC on the scoreboard with a 17-yard pass to tight end Woody McClendon less than two minutes after the game kicked off. In spite of the quick touchdown, the score would remain 7-0, thanks to strong play by both defenses, until the fourth quarter. Then there were fireworks. Fry hit teammate

Darius Perkins for a 15-yard touchdown with 6:30 left, and on the ensuing kickoff, McDonald put the Buffs on the board with his 98-yard sprint for a score.

Fry went 12-of-20 for 198 yards and the three touchdowns. In addition to those who scored, fullback Frank Rodriguez of Leander had three catches for 66 yards. Neither rushing game accounted for much in the game. Combined, the two teams only rushed for 130 yards. KC's leading rusher was Tyler native Cornelius Shackelford, who had 47 yards on 14 carries.

• Notes: In other scores from the weekend, Blinn blasted TJC, 52-3; Navarro beat Trinity Valley, 35-6; and NEO beat Cisco, 28-22, in overtime. ...Blinn began the season at No. 2, then moved to No. 1 after knocking off topranked Butler. But Blinn's stay at No. 1 was short, thanks to the Rangers. Coach J.J. Eckert's team beat the Buccaneers here, 20-17, on Sept. 27. ... Cisco and Arkansas Baptist are the only two teams that don't yet have a conference win — both are 0-3. ...Other games this weekend have Blinn at Trinity Valley, Navarro at NEO, and Cisco at Arkansas Baptist.