There was something more important on the line than the No. 3 seed for the playoffs.
Border rival bragging rights.
The lead changed hands six times Friday night at Tiger Stadium in Princeton before Caldwell County finally outslugged Crittenden County 36-27.
The Tigers, now 3-6 overall and 1-2 in the district, used a strong ground game in the second half and some key defensive plays to beat the Rockets for the first time in three years.
Caldwell will visit Fort Campbell (4-4) when the Class 2A playoffs get underway in two weeks.
Crittenden (3-6, 0-3) will be the No. 4 seed and will have to make the trek to Owensboro Catholic to face the top-ranked and currently 9-0 Aces in the first round.
Kameron Spikes ran for 110 yards and two touchdowns to help Caldwell pull out the victory on Friday.
His 5-yard scoring run with 4:52 to play helped the Tigers take their biggest lead of the night at 36-27. It was the first time either side had a two-score advantage in the contest.
But it was a back-and-forth contest for a long time.
Caldwell led 3-0.
Crittenden went up 7-3.
Caldwell led 10-7 at halftime.
Crittenden regained the lead 14-10.
Caldwell went back in front 16-14.
Crittenden retook the lead 21-16.
The Tigers grabbed a 22-21 advantage when Kam Wilson caught a 2-yard touchdown pass from Daelyn Lander with 10:40 left in the game.
An interception by Eli Stevens then stopped Crittenden’s next drive.
Two plays later, Luke Parker took a pass from Lander, split defenders on the sideline and raced 57 yards to the end zone. Sutton Ritchey’s extra point gave Caldwell a 29-21 edge with 9:26 remaining.
Crittenden countered with a 12-play, 75-yard march that resulted in a 23-yard touchdown toss from Quinn Summers to Camron Belcher. That cut the gap to 29-27 with 6:28 to play. However, the Rockets were assessed a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty after the play, meaning a two-point try to tie the game would come from the 18 instead of the 3-yard line.
It proved to be a costly mistake, as the Rockets hit a pass play to the 4-yard line, but Caldwell tackled the receiver well short of the end zone on the try.
After covering a short Crittenden kickoff, the Tigers used five straight runs to go 57 yards and extend their lead. Four runs each netted first downs and put the ball at the Rocket 5-yard line. Spikes did the rest to help extend the margin to nine points.
Crittenden’s final drive of the night was ended by a Parker interception on a pass deep down the middle.
Caldwell then ran out the final 3:09 to finish off the triumph.
Lander passed for 192 yards on 12 of 15 passing. He threw three touchdown passes and had one interception.
Parker made four catches for 95 yards while Wilson had three grabs for 14 yards.
Wilson also ran for 70 yards on eight carries.
Caldwell had 206 yards rushing and 398 total yards.
Crittenden had 256 yards in the air but was limited to 51 yards on the ground for 307 total.
The Tigers had 23 first downs to 17 for the Rockets.
Crittenden turned the ball over four times while Caldwell had three giveaways.
Summers was 25 of 36 throwing the ball for the Rockets with two touchdowns and three picks.
Caden Howard made 13 receptions for 142 yards. Belcher caught five passes for 54 yards and two scores.
Ritchey started the scoring in the contest for Caldwell with a 22-yard field goal.
Summers countered with a 7-yard scoring run to put Crittenden up 7-3 at the 3:31 mark of the first quarter.
Luke Maddox turned a short pass from Lander into a 12-yard scoring play. That helped Caldwell go back in front 10-7 with 6:11 left in the first half.
The Rockets regained the lead on an 18-yard scoring run by Brayden Mahnke just 33 seconds into the second half. That put the visitors up 14-10.
Spikes had a 1-yard TD run with 7:41 left in the third quarter. The extra point was blocked, leaving Caldwell’s lead at 16-14.
Belcher’s 3-yard touchdown grab helped Crittenden go up 21-16 with 4:51 to go in the third period.
But Caldwell put together the big fourth quarter to pull out the victory.
The regular season ends next Friday.
Caldwell will visit Trigg County for the annual 139 Bowl.
Crittenden will host Calloway County.
