By Jared Lankford monettsports@gmail.com

Basketball season in Missouri is still two months away, but casual fans might be confused with the Friday night final that saw Seneca defeat Monett, 68-52.

The Indians (4-0) led 32-24 at halftime and took a 40-24 lead with quarterback Brodie Probert’s run of 9 yards with 10:07 left in the third.

The Cubs answered with a 14-play, 75-yard drive, with Brayden Seitz scoring from 4 yards out to make it 40-32 with 6:37 on the clock.

That would be as close as the Cubs could claw, as Seneca increased the lead to 46-32 on Probert’s 9-yard scamper.

The Indians broke the Cubs’ back when Monett failed to jump on the ensuing kickoff. That error gave Seneca the ball at Monett’s 25.

Roman Miller needed just one carry to reach the end zone and give Seneca a 54-32 lead.

It was a wild first half that saw Monett catch early breaks.

Seneca turned the ball over on the Cubs’ 1-yard line, then watched as the Purple and Gold matriculated the ball down the field 99 yards in 14 plays, with Collin Umfleet scoring one 3-yard reception and then recording the 2-point catch with 8:23 left in the first quarter.

Monett caught the Indians off guard on the ensuing kickoff, as the Cubs recovered an onside kick.

Six plays and 45 yards later, Antoine Smith found paydirt with a 5-yard run and 2-point run with 7:02 left in the first quarter.

Seneca would not be kept down, ripping off four-straight scoring drives.
Roman Miller scored on consecutive drives with runs of 4 and 6 yards, respectively.

Probert added a pair of scoring runs of 11 yards each, with each 2-point attempt successful.

After having four drives end with turnovers on downs, Monett found its legs, going 56 yards in just five plays. Alex Meeks scored from 30 yards out to send the teams into the intermission with Seneca leading 32-24.

Monett hits the road on Friday, entering Anderson to face the Mustangs of McDonald County. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.