CARTHAGE, Mo. – Carthage beat Republic on Friday to claim the district title for the first time since 2019.

The Tigers are 10-1 and enter the next round of the playoffs on an eight-game winning streak. They’ll travel to Lebanon for the class 5 state quarterfinals this Saturday.

Lebanon also has just one loss this season and they average 46 points per game, but the Tigers are ready for the challenge. Led by 22 seniors, Carthage is hungry to bring another championship back home.

“Ever since my sophomore year I’ve been playing, and we just fell short the last two years,” says senior safety Davion King. “It was frustrating. We knew we could have done it because we beat Webb City both those years. It feels good to finally advance and we’re ready for a shot.

“We came into the year with 22 seniors which we’ve never had before,” says head coach Jon Guidie. “These guys have a lot of experience and maturity and they’ve gained those things throughout this season. I think that’s been a huge factor in getting us to this point.”

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