The varsity basketball team fell in their second game on Monday, dropping a 48-44 decision to East Peoria (IL). With the loss, the team claims sixth place in the Carbondale holiday tournament.

Trailing by as much as 12 points in the second half, the Owls cut the Raiders' lead to 1 point twice in the fourth quarter. However, they could never take the lead as East Peoria hit two free throws in the closing seconds to take the victory.

Jordan Brown, Robert Counce, and Taylor Reed each finished with 9 points, and Joseph Amagliani added 8 for the Owls.

With the loss, MUS falls to 7-7 on the year as they went 2-2 in Carbondale.

With a 21-1 run starting in the third quarter, the varsity basketball team extended their stay in the 45th-Annual Carbondale Holiday Tournament by defeating Nashville Christ Presbyterian Academy, 58-35, to earn a spot in the fifth-place game, to be played at 5:30 p.m. today at Southern Illinois University.

Trailing by one point, 21-20, at the half, the Owls came out more aggressive in their zone defense and gave the Lions trouble. And Jordan Brown and Taylor Reed would score 12 of the team's first 13 points in the third quarter to break open the close game.

CPA would make only two field goals in the second half as they could not keep up with the energetic Owls.

Brown and Reed each scored 12 points, and Robert Counce added 11 in the win.

MUS (7-6) will conclude their stay in Illinois in the fifth-place game against East Peoria (IL) High School. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. at SIU.

The MUS varsity basketball team stayed close throughout but could not overcome the host Terriers as they fell to Carbondale, 61-54, last Sunday evening at Southern Illinois University.

MUS trailed by two points at the half but took a one-point lead at 34-33 late in the third quarter. However, that lead would be their last as Carbondale made just enough free throws late in the game to hold off the visitors.

Taylor Reed led the Owls with 17 points, and Jordan Brown added 10. Yet MUS shot only 4-21 from the three-point line as they fell to 6-6.

MUS now will battle for fifth-place with an early-morning game against Christ Presbyterian Academy from the Nashville area. Tipoff is set for 9:00 a.m. at SIU.

The varsity basketball team advanced in the 45th-annual Carbondale Holiday Basketball Tournament as they defeated Cairo (IL) High, 80-61, in the first-round this Saturday, December 27. With the win, the Owls will take on the host school, Carbondale, Sunday at 6:30 p.m. at Southern Illinois University.

MUS had five players in double figures, led by Jordan Brown's 17 points. Robert Counce added 13, while Stephond Allmond and Taylor Reed had 12, and Joseph Amagliani had 11 points. 

The Owls took advantage of 27 Pilot turnovers as they led throughout.

With the win, MUS improves to 6-5.

The MUS varsity football team claimed its fourth state title in school history this past Tuesday evening as they convincingly defeated rival Brentwood Academy, 38-18, at Floyd Stadium on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. 

With the win, the Owls completed a perfect season, going 13-0, their first undefeated season since 1967.

In the first half, MUS created and recovered 4 Brentwood Academy fumbles, scoring 21 points off those miscues to build an early lead.

The Owls scored first midway through the first quarter following a defensive stand and BA punt.

Taking over at the BA 48-yard line, MUS needed only 3 plays to score.

On first down, QB Barry Brunetti hit WR Taylor Reed for a 40-yard reception to get the ball to the BA 8-yard line. Then following a offensive penalty and incomplete pass, Brunetti found David Tillman on a perfectly executed middle screen pass, and Tillman rumbled easily into the endzone for the 13-yard score. Christian Kauffman's PAT gave MUS a 7-0 lead with 4:58 remaining in the first quarter. 

The Owls struck again just over 2 minutes later following the Eagles' second fumble of the game.

From the BA 17, the offense needed 4 plays to go the 17 yards as Keith McBride powered into the endzone from 11 yards out. Kauffman's PAT doubled the lead with 2:39 left in the quarter.

But MUS was not done.

After a quick Eagle punt, the Owls began driving again with their balanced offense. Using 6 runs and 4 passes, they advanced into BA territory and faced third-and-8 at the Eagle 12. But an mishandled snap kept them out of the endzone and forced a field-goal attempt. Kauffman's 40-yarder was good as the Owls extended the lead to 17-0 early in the second quarter.

But just 2 plays later, the MUS defense forced another turnover as Joel Moss sacked QB Cody Nelson, forced a fumble, and recovered it to give the offense possession at the BA 16.

From there, the Owls scored on the third play of the drive as Brunetti found Stephond Allmond from 12-yards out for the score. Kauffman's PAT with 8:52 left in the half increased the lead to 24-0.

MUS added one more touchdown in the second quarter as just 90 seconds later, following another BA fumble, Brunetti hit Reed from 36 yards out to give MUS the 31-0 lead, an advantage they would take into the locker room at the half.

In the second half, the Owls became somewhat sloppy as 3 turnovers allowed BA to stay in the game.

On the first play from scrimmage in the second half, Tillman fumbled just inside BA territory, and Kwazel Bertrand returned the ball 46 yards to the MUS 7-yard line. On the next play, Joshua Tate went into the endzone for the score. Brentwood Academy's two-point conversion pass attempt failed, but with 11:39 remaining in the quarter, they had cut the deficit to 31-6.

BA seemed to have turned around momentum as on the ensuing possession, they forced a punt and would have good field position. However, Justin Cash muffed the Walt Wepfer punt, and the Owls recovered at the Eagle 40.

MUS would tack on their final score of the game on this possession as Brunetti hit Reed from 10 yards out for the score, culminating the 4-play, 40-yard drive that amassed 1:18. The scoring pass was Brunetti's fourth of the contest, tying a BlueCross Bowl record for most touchdown passes in a game. Kauffman connected on the extra point as MUS held a 38-6 lead with 8:54 left in the third quarter.

BA would score two final touchdowns in the remaining quarter and a half to make the score look more respectable, but the Owls remained firmly in control throughout the contest.

First, following a MUS turnover on a fake-punt attempt near midfield, Tate, who finished with 122 rushing yards on 24 carries, scored on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line to culminate the 10-play, 29-yard drive. Barry Hillyer intercepted the two-point conversion pass as BA cut the lead to 38-12 early in the fourth quarter.

Their final score came on their final possession of the game as reserve quarterback Matthew Hamby scored from 10-yards out to end a 7-play, 94-yard drive that took up 1:58. Nathan Renfro's missed the extra-point kick as 38-18 was as close as BA could get.

With reserves in the game, the Owls ended the game in victory formation to claim their third state title in the last five years.

For his performance, Brunetti, who finished with 207 passing yards, 81 rushing yards, and 4 scoring tosses, was named the Offensive Player of the Game, and the Defensive Player of the Game award went to Jack Steffner, who recorded several tackles and hounded the Eagle backfield much of the evening.

Next season, the Owl coaches will have to replace the 29 senior players and one senior manager that made up one of the best senior classes in recent history. However, because of the extensive experience that many of the underclassmen received this season, the Owls should find themselves once again competing for another state championship next year.

Congratulations to Head Coach Bobby Alston, his assistants, and most importantly the players for this outstanding season, one that saw MUS finish 13-0 for the first time in school history.

MUS  38, Brentwood Academy  18 -- Final score.

More to come later from Murfreesboro.

MUS 31, BA 0. 

Just as they have done all season, the Owls have taken advantage of opportunities to build this impressive lead. 

MUS has turned 4 Brentwood Academy fumbles into 21 first-half points, and they have taken care of the ball, suffering only a late interception on the last play of the half.

QB Barry Brunetti has thrown 3 touchdown passes, including a 13-yarder to David Tillman, a 12-yard reception to Stephond Allmond, and a 36-yarder to Taylor Reed.

Keith McBride also added an 11-yard scoring run in the first quarter to build this lead.

And K Christian Kauffman has been perfect so far as he is 4-4 on extra-points, and he connected on his only field-goal attempt of the half, a 40-yarder.

The Owl defense has also played well, limiting BA to only 104 total yards on 29 plays.

One more half to go before the state-champion trophy comes west once again.

And then only one remained.

The MUS varsity football team pulled within one victory of its fourth football state title and first undefeated season since 1967 as it overcame defending state champion MBA last Friday night, 35-7, in the Division II-AA state semifinals. With the win, the Owls improve to 12-0 while the Big Red's season ends at 10-2.

MUS used two second-quarter MBA turnovers to jump out to a 21-0 halftime lead, and the hosts were never threatened as they eventually increased that lead to 35-0 before securing the win.

After a scoreless first quarter that saw neither team move the football consistently, the MUS defense made the first big play of the contest in the second quarter.

Facing a 1st-and-10 at the MBA 44-yard line, QB Spencer Wise fumbled the ball as he scrambled, and LB Walt Wepfer recovered the loose ball to give MUS possession at the MBA 36.

From there, the Owls, led by QB Barry Brunetti, needed 9 plays to travel the 36 yards as the junior culminated the drive with a 17-yard scamper into the endzone. Christian Kauffman added the extra point to give the Owls the advantage with 6:06 left in the half.

MUS doubled that lead just 2:14 later following another Big Red miscue.

An errant MBA snap at their own 32-yard line was recovered by DE George Coors, and the Owls again looked to increase the lead.

On the first play following the takeaway, Brunetti added his second rushing touchdown of the game as he burst through the defensive line and was not caught, going into the endzone from 32-yards out for the score. Kauffman added the PAT to increase the lead to 14-0 with 3:52 left in the half.

But the hosts were not done.

After a three-and-out for the Big Red, the Owls struck quickly once again.

From their own 38, MUS again had a one-play drive as, following a 14-yard offensive-holding penalty, Keith McBride found a hole and raced 76 yards for the score. Kauffman added another extra-point to give MUS the 21-0 lead, an advantage they would take into the locker room at the half.

By holding MBA to only 2 yards rushing at the half and creating 2 turnovers, the Owls had control and knew that if they took care of the football, they would be in good shape to advance to their third state-title game in the last five seasons. 

And MUS accomplished their goal as they continued to play good defense, control the football, and take advantage of opportunities in the second half.

The lead grew to 28 on the Owls' first drive of the third quarter as Brunetti found WR Taylor Reed streaking to the endzone for the 57-yard score to culminate the 2-play, 59-yard drive that amassed 1:02. Kauffman again added the PAT.

And then just 2:30 later, MUS made the deficit 35 points as RB David Tillman went in from 23 yards out for an additional touchdown. This drive was set up by another Big Red fumble as Jack Steffner recovered this one at the MUS 48-yard line. The home squad needed only 4 plays to score, and Kauffman's extra-point increased the lead to 35-0 with 6:29 left in the third quarter, a deficit that allowed the running-clock situation.

MBA did add one touchdown as they went 78 yards in 7 plays, capped off by a 22-yard pass from Wise to Holden Mobley to score with 1:37 left in the third quarter. But the Big Red would get no closer as they fell for the fifth consecutive time to the Owls.

With the win, MUS advances to the BlueCross Bowl, the Division II-AA state-title game, in Murfreesboro this Tuesday, November 25. The Owls' opponent will be long-time rival Brentwood Academy, a 27-24 winner over Ensworth in the semifinals. Over the years, the Owls and Eagles have met in the playoffs 10 times and met overall on 24 occasions. Currently, BA holds a 17-7 advantage in the series though MUS has taken 3 of the last 4, including a 35-14 victory in the 2004 state-title game.

Kickoff at Middle Tennessee State University is set for 6:00 p.m.

The perfect season continues.

With a 21-point third quarter, the MUS varsity football team broke open a close game and went on to defeat Battle Ground Academy, 49-21, to advance to the semifinals of the Division II-AA playoffs and keep their undefeated record intact.

But the Wildcats (8-3,4-2) got off to a good start and looked as if they were primed to end the run by the Owls (11-0, 4-0).

Following a muffed MUS punt at the Owl 21-yard line after an initial defensive stop, BGA looked to take advantage of the mistake. On the third play of the drive, QB Jamal Ramsey looked as if he had scored the first touchdown of the game as he went in from 15-yards out, but a holding penalty negated the score. Then three plays later, facing a 3rd-and-7 from the MUS 7-yard line, Ramsey thought he saw an open receiver in the endzone, but instead he found senior Lowell Hays, who picked off the pass and rumbled down the home sideline. Though Hays did not score, his 96-yard return set a single-game record for the longest interception return in school history and had the Owls set up at the BGA 4-yard line.

Two plays later, QB Barry Brunetti found Taylor Reed in the corner of the endzone for the 5-yard score. Christian Kauffman's PAT gave the hosts the early 7-0 lead with 5:57 remaining in the quarter. 

But BGA was not phased as they answered the score early in the second quarter.

Taking over at their own 20-yard line with 1:32 remaining in the first quarter, the Wildcats began a very balanced drive that kept MUS off-balance. RB Michael Moore picked up 37 yards rushing on the drive, and Ramsey went 3-4 passing as the Wildcats moved into MUS territory. Then on the 15th play of the possession from the MUS 26, Ramsey hit RB Kenny Bass, who caught the pass, took one step forward, and then lateraled back to Ramsey. The BGA quarterback took the lateral and went into the endzone from 29 yards out for the score. Colton McInturff added the extra point to tie the game with 7:47 left in the half.

But from this point, MUS seemed to take control of the game as even though BGA stayed close into the third quarter, the Owls showed they had the better team as they began to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

MUS answered the Wildcat score just 2:26 later as Brunetti went in from 5-yards out to culminate the 6-play, 64-yard drive. The majority of the yards on the drive came from David Tillman, who picked up 44 rushing yards on just 3 carries to get the Owls close. Kauffman added the extra-point as the hosts doubled the lead at 14-7, which ulimately was the halftime score.

The Brunetti rushing touchdown was the first of four for the junior quarterback on this night as he would go on to add scores from 31, 2, and 5-yards out in the second half to help his team blow open a close game.

BGA tried to keep pace as they scored two touchdowns after the half, cutting the lead to 28-21 inside of 5 minutes left in the third quarter, but their inability to stop the MUS ground attack prevented them from advancing.

First, Will Doran recovered a Michael Moore fumble in the endzone for one score at the 6:48 mark of the third quarter, cutting the lead to 21-13. McInturff tried to add the PAT, but once again Hays made a play as he blocked the extra point to keep the Wildcat deficit at 8. Hays' block made him the MUS career leader in blocked kicks with 7 as he broke a tie with Derek Clenin.

But the Owls did not take long to answer as Keith McBride added his first of two touchdown runs just 1:56 later, culminating the 6-play, 71-yard drive with his 24-yard scamper. Kauffman's extra-point increased the lead to 28-13.

But that deficit was short-lived as on the ensuing kickoff, Bass found a seam and returned the kick 86 yards for the score. Ramsey went into the endzone on the two-point attempt as the visitors pulled to 28-21 with 4:34 left in the third.

However, they never got closer as Brunetti added his final two touchdown runs and McBride finished the scoring with his second touchdown, a 21-yard run, with 4:05 left in the game. Kauffman continued to be perfect on extra-points as the Owls won going away, 49-21.

MUS dominated the game on the ground as they ran for 398 yards on 41 carries, an average of 9.7 yards-per-carry. Tillman finished with 175 yards on 16 carries, and Brunetti added 107 yards on 16 carries, including his four touchdown runs. The Wildcats took advantage of two MUS turnovers, poor kickoff coverage, and several penalties to stay close, but when the Owls did not hurt themselves with mistakes, they appeared dominant as they cruised to the four-touchdown victory.

Next week in the semifinals, MUS takes on Nashville-rival Montgomery Bell Academy (10-1), a 34-0 winner over CBHS in the quarterfinals. The Owls have won four straight over the Big Red and own a 9-6 advantage in the overall series. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. next Friday night at Hull-Dobbs.

With their 59-7 victory over St. Benedict last Friday night, the MUS varsity football team accomplished something that they had not done since in sixteen years: finish the regular season undefeated. 

The Owls (10-0, 4-0) were never threatened by the Eagles (2-8,0-4) as they jumped out to an early 14-0 lead by the end of the first quarter and then extended that lead by the half to 38-0 as they scored in all three facets of the game.

The MUS special teams contributed ten points, including the first touchdown of the game. After an initial stop by the defense, junior returner Hank Hill returned the SBA punt 40 yards for the score. Christian Kauffman added the extra-point to give the hosts the 7-0 lead just 1:38 into the game. Kauffman would later add a 40-yard field goal in the second quarter, his second longest make of the year, to increase the lead as the special teams continued to improve.

The Owl offense also got untracked early as they scored touchdowns in three of the first four possessions of the first half.

QB Barry Brunetti threw his eleventh touchdown of the year late in the first quarter as he hit Stephond Allmond from 28-yards out for the score to culminate the 5-play, 73-yard drive. Kauffman's PAT doubled the lead to 14 with 4:03 remaining in the first stanza.

After the Kauffman field-goal made the score 17-0, David Tillman scored the first of his two touchdowns of the night as he rumbled 15 yards on a 1-play drive following a Barret Folk interception. Kauffman's extra-point increased the lead to 24 with 7:17 left in the half.

Then after another Owl defensive stand, Tillman scored his second touchdown as he hauled in an 8-yard pass from senior QB Johnny Carson for the score to end an 11-play 53-yard drive that amassed 2:57. Kauffman again added the extra-point for the 31-0 lead.

And then the defense got in on the scoring as they added two touchdowns, with the first coming late in the half.

Following the Tillman touchdown reception, St. Benedict took over at their own 22-yard line. But on the second play of the drive, QB Siler Haynes was sacked and fumbled, and Michael Edwards picked up the loose ball and returned it 28 yards for the touchdown. The Kauffman PAT gave the Owls a 38-0 lead at the break.

With a 38-point lead and a running clock in the second half, MUS looked to finish the game quickly and play some reserves. However, the starters played one final drive to start the third quarter, and they made the most of it.

Taking over at their 37, the MUS offense needed only 4 plays to go the 63 yards as Brunetti found Taylor Reed from 20 yards out for the score, Reed's third touchdown of the season. Kauffman added the PAT for the 45-0 advantage.

And then just four minutes later, the defense added their second touchdown of the game as junior cornerback Mitchell Thompson recovered a fumble and returned it 28 yards for the score as Kauffman increased the lead to 52.

MUS scored one final touchdown in the fourth quarter as junior RB Daryan Barnes culminated an 8-play, 42-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run with 5:56 left in the game. Kauffman's eighth extra-point of the game finished the Owls' scoring at 59.

But St. Benedict did not quit as they scored on the final possession to end the shutout. Haynes found Trey Wilkins for a 49-yard reception with just 1:07 left, and Nick Stengel's extra-point finished out the game at 59-7.

With the win, the Owls increased their series lead over the Eagles to 2-0 and completed their first undefeated regular season since 1992. By winning the West Division, they have clinched home-field advantage until the title game. They begin the playoffs next Friday night as they take on the Mideast Division 4-seed, Battle Ground Academy. Kickoff for the quarterfinal game is set for 7:00 p.m. at Hull-Dobbs.