Nixa's Steven Ward can have as many victory doughnuts as he wants. It's a perk of blocking a kick and securing a victory.

Ward smothered a 47-yard field goal with 30 seconds to play, then recovered the loose ball to send Nixa to a 10-7 victory over Willard on Friday.

"We get anything we want. They bring it all," Ward said of the breakfast spread. "I like doughnuts. That's my go-to."

The Eagles (1-2) entered the game hungry. That's how Ward described his team. It's a fitting description from the player who gobbled up the last-gasp field goal try.

"I got down, I switched over, I went through (the line) and put my hands up," Ward said. "I didn't even know what was going on. All I know is I heard it hit me, felt it hit me and saw it on the ground. I went and picked it up. I was going crazy. I was like, 'Oh my God I just helped us win a game.'"

Nixa had plenty of helpers. Senior Jared Spence was one of them. He scooped up a Willard fumble and returned it 36 yards to the Willard 34 late in the third quarter. That set up the Eagles' lone touchdown of the night, a 6-yard jet sweep from freshman running back Ramone Green. But even he had helpers. Senior tailback Alex Wentz rushed the ball for 16 yards to set up the score and Nixa's line was dominant all night.

"That was just our kids playing hard and motivated," coach Rich Rehagen said. "They knew they had a challenge in front of them and I thought they did a nice job."

Wentz finished with 95 yards on 20 carries to lead the way for Nixa. Ward had 15 yards on three carries, while Spence added 12 yards on four rushes.

"Our line did great and gave me gaps to run through and I just took it," Wentz said. He also had high praise for Green. "He's great. He's going to be a great player the next couple  of years. Just watch him."

Nixa capitalized on Willard's mistakes in the second half to earn the win. The Eagles didn't make too many mistakes in the first half, piling up rushing yards and going on a couple of long marches. But Nixa struggled to finish those drives and the one big mistake gave Willard the ball in prime territory.

The Tigers picked off Nixa's Reid Potts and returned the ball to the Nixa 16. Three snaps later, Willard was in the end zone. Garrett Rice powered the ball into the end zone from 11 yards out to put Willard (1-2) in front 7-0 late in the first quarter.

But that was Willard's only score on the night, thanks to a great defensive effort.

Nixa got on the board late with 30 seconds left before the half. First the defense set the offense up in good field position. Then Andrew Anello booted a 33-yard field goal through the uprights to cut the deficit to 7-3.

"I thought our offensive focus was good and our kids really geared into what we're doing," Rehagen said. "Defensively we've been making little strides every day over the last couple of weeks. We've kind of got a young back seven and they're still learning what they need to do. We've got a veteran defensive line and they played really well against a good offensive line tonight."

That defense held Willard workhorse Garrett Rice to 99 yards on 18 carries. They also limited Tigers quarterback Reece Dawson to 70 yards on 6-for-15 passing.

Nixa 10, Willard 7

Willard 7  0  0  0   - 7

Nixa     0  3  0  7  -  10

Scoring

W - Rice 11 run (Aye kick)
N -  Anello, 33 field goal
N - Green 6 run (Anello kick)

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