LADUE — As MICDS football coach Fred Bouchard hugged his players after a game for the last time, he had little time to reflect on the season.

The Rams' 2022 campaign ended with a 14-10 loss to the Cape Central Tigers in a Class 5 quarterfinal played on a cold, windy Saturday afternoon at Ron Holtman Stadium's O'Hara Field. 

The Rams, ranked No. 7 in the small school STLhighschoolsports.com poll and No. 8 in the Class 5 Missouri Media poll, finished 11-2.

Cape Central (10-13) advanced to play host to Fort Osage, a 29-10 winner Saturday over Grain Valley, in a semifinal Nov. 26. 

"My hats off to Cape Girardeau Central and longtime coach Kent Gibbs," Bouchard said. "We knew it was going to a battle. You don't reach the quarterfinals and not play a team with some wherewithal. But we were hopeful. We were hoping to catch magic. It's disappointing and it hurts, but we had a great year and I'm trying to remind our players of that. This will sting for a while. Right now, it's disappointing."

The Rams had one last opportunity to create some magic. 

MICDS turned the ball over on downs after senior Winston Moore, who plans to play at Colgate, was stopped on a fourth-and-1 play at the Tigers' 44 with 6 minutes and 7 seconds remaining. Moore, who entered the game with 1,071 yards rushing and a team-high 30 touchdowns, played with a broken hand he sustained in last week's game. 

"He was playing with one hand," Bouchard said. "He gave us everything he had. He's not the same threat without both hands." 

Two plays later, Cape Central senior quarterback Morgan Diamond threw an interception. Moore make a diving catch to make the play and give the Rams a chance. 

"Winston did a nice job there," Bouchard said. "He's doing all he can. I was super pleased. Now we've got the ball."

But it was not to be. The Tigers recorded two big sacks to prevent the Rams from a storybook ending. Senior TJ Matkins, who also plays defensive end besides placekicking, tackled Rams sophomore quarterback Brian Gould for a 12-yard loss. Then Diamond, who also plays linebacker, dropped Gould for an 11-yard loss on third down. 

"I made a mistake on the pick," Diamond said. "I knew I had to make it up to my team somehow. I was disappointed in myself but I knew I had to get back out there and do my job." 

Cape Central coach Gibbs called it a "defensive struggle all the way" and was happy to see his team win and move on. 

"We're just fortunate," Gibbs said. "We made a couple of plays. I didn't really expect this kind of game. It turned out that way and we're just glad to get to play another game."

MICDS ran for just 137 yards. Moore was held to 49 yards on 10 carries. Senior Steven Hall, who entered with 1,625 yards rushing, gained 66 yards on 18 attempts. Hall scored the lone MICDS touchdown. Hall also completed two halfback option passes for 28 yards.

"We were really physical on defense," Gibbs said. "We had a lot of gang tackles. That was the key to the ball game, no doubt about it. The boys showed a lot of heart and grit." 

Bouchard agreed.

"They stymied us," Bouchard said. "We never found it and get it click. We've been really good about finding it this season. We tried a few different ways to do it today but we couldn't get it done. Give our opponent credit." 

The Tigers rushed for 142 yards, led by sophomore Za'Aire Thomas' 72 yards. Diamond threw for 147 yards on 9 of 19 passing and one interception. Senior Clayton McClard caught five passes for 104 yards and a touchdown.

The Tigers received the opening kickoff and took advantage.

"We want to come out hard and quick," Diamond said. "We wanted to put points on the board." 

Cape Central did just that. The Tigers marched 79 yards on 15 plays to score first. 

"Those are the kinds of drives a coach loves," Gibbs said. "You'd love to have them more often, that's for sure."

The Tigers converted three third downs and one fourth down to take a 7-0 lead. A twice-tipped pass caught by McClard kept the drive alive.

"It was crazy. I just saw the ball there in the air and knew I had to go and get it," said McClard, who is 5-foot-7 and 141 pounds. "I had to make that play there."

That happens in football, Bouchard said.

"A team doesn't go into a game saying, 'Wow, we're going to do this and this and this.' They converted," Bouchard said. "If we'd have just gotten one of those stopped. But again, hats off to them." 

Freshman running back KeShawn Boyd ran up the middle for the final 4 yards on fourth down to score with 5:17 showing in the first quarter. Mackins added the extra point. 

After MICDS went three-and-out, the Tigers took over. This time, the Rams thwarted a fourth-down play by holding Diamond to no gain on the MICDS 43. 

The Rams tied the game 7-7 by scoring on their drive. Hall scored untouched from the 9. Senior Harrison Mandell kicked the extra point.

"We felt pretty good there," Bouchard said. 

The teams traded punts. 

Cape Central took on its own 20 with 2:53 left in the half. A hook-and-lateral pass play netted 14 yards to convert a third-and-10 situation. McClard took a pass from Diamond at the MICDS 40. The Rams missed two tackles before junior Willy Carpenter brought McClard down at the 7 for a 43-yard completion.

The Rams defense stiffened. Facing fourth-and-goal from the 3, the Tigers opted for a field goal. Mackins kicked the 20-yarder but Cape Central was called for a chop block. That 15-yard penalty meant a 35-yard attempt that Mackins missed with 4 seconds left in the half. 

"We told our kids to forget about it," Gibbs said.

It came down to 24 minutes of football to determine a winner. 

"We told our guys that now it going to be who wins the second half," Bouchard said. "We've been a pretty good second half team. Today, it didn't work out for us." 

It did turn out to be in the Tigers' favor. 

MICDS received the kickoff but had to punt after three plays. The 23-yard punt set Cape Central at its own 49. Six plays later, McClard caught a slant pattern on the goal line for an 11-yard touchdown reception.

"We had the middle of the field open all day and we decided to attack there," McClard said. "Morgan threw moneyballs all day. I love him."

Gibbs likes how McClard can make plays. 

"Clay McClard is a player," Gibbs said. "He's 5-foot nothing and weighs about 130 pounds. He makes plays most of the time. He makes plays usually for us in a crucial time in a ballgame." 

Diamond said he and McClard have been friends since they were 5 and know what to do on the field. 

"We've got a lot of chemistry," Diamond said. 

The Rams then cut the score to 14-10 when Mandell kicked a 25-yard field goal with 9 seconds left in the third quarter. MICDS held the ball for 17 plays on the scoring drive that was halted at the Tigers' 8-yard line. Gould scrambled 13 yards on a fourth-and-12 play to keep the drive alive.

"When we have time to reflect back on the season, we'll find a lot of good things to look at," Bouchard said.