Kingston Cougars Withstand Early Shelling, Attack Swiftly, Top Jefferson Blue Jays 54-42 For First State Tourney Win in School History

(Festus, MO) The Kingston Cougars are headed to the Class 3 State Quarterfinal for the first time in program history after Tuesday night’s road victory over the Jefferson Blue Jays 54-42.

Jefferson began the game with a 7-0 run and looked to be in control, before the Cougars bounced back with unrelenting force. Cody Yates and Mason Nelson propelled Kingston to a 22-0 rally from the midway point of the opening quarter, continuing two minutes into the second.

Nelson led the attack hitting four straight 3-pointers during the first half.

Kingston Cougars head coach Paul Hamilton called a timeout amidst the Blue Jays 7-0 spurt to calm his group down.

Nelson spoke with KFMO Sports after the game about what was said during the timeout called by Coach Hamilton.

Yates says the timeout helped the team settle in to the big game.

Yates led all scorers with 27 points, while Nelson contributed 19 in the Sectional victory. The duo had 20 of the 22 points during Kingston’s first half rally.

Paul Hamilton says Nelson’s ability from the arc over the last two weeks has been outstanding.

Jefferson didn’t go away easy as Nate Breeze broke through for a 3-pointer, followed by an energetic dunk to cap a 10-2 stretch for the Jays, who fell short despite outscoring Kingston in the second half 24-21.

Breeze led Blue Jays shooters with 18 points, while Cooper Frisk finished with 12 total points and was just 4-for-15 from the field. Kaleb Weiler, who averaged 15.9 points per game, finished off his senior season with an eight point performance in the season ending defeat.

Kingston will face the top team in Class 3, New Madrid, on Saturday in the Class 3 Quarterfinal. The Cougars are 19-9. Jefferson’s 17-game winning streak gets snapped as their season ends with a record of 22-6.

Out of Town Scoreboard

Week 8, Thursday 
North County-
St. Clair-
Class 3, District 1 Tournament, Quarterfinal
Thursday 
2-Fredericktown-
7-Affton-
Class 3, District 1 Tournament, Quarterfinal
Thursday 
3-North County-
6-Herculaneum-
Class 5, District 1 Tournament, Quarterfinal
Thursday 
1-Lindbergh-
8-Farmington-
Class 1, District 1 Tournament, Championship Game
Thursday 
1-Kennett-
2-North County-
Thursday 
St. Pius-
Fredericktown-
MAAA Conference Tournament, Semifinal
Thursday (KFMO, Video) 
1-Potosi-
4-Bismarck-
MAAA Conference Tournament, Semifinal
Thursday (KFMO, Video) 
2-Valle Catholic-
6-Ste. Genevieve-
MAAA Conference Tournament, 3rd Place Game
Thursday (KFMO, Video) 
 TBD-
 TBD-
MAAA Conference Tournament, Championship Game
Thursday (KFMO, Video) 
 TBD-
 TBD-
Thursday 
McKinley Classical-
St. Paul-
Thursday 
Kaskaskia-
Mineral Area-

Broadcast Schedule

Thursday, October 16:
3:30p, VB, MAAA Semis: 1-Potosi vs 4-Bismarck^
5:15p, VB, MAAA Semis: 2-Valle vs 6-Ste. Gen^
6:30p, VB, MAAA Tournament 3rd Place Game^
7:45p, VB, MAAA Tournament Championship Game^
Friday, October 17:
6:00p, KFMOsports Tailgate Show fueled by McDonald’s
6:30p, FB, Week 8: Farmington @ Festus^
Saturday, October 18:
12:30p, SB, C3D1 Semis: IF Fred/NC
5:30p, NHL: Dallas @ St. Louis*
Sunday, October 19:
11:00a, NFL, Week 7: Las Vegas @ Kansas City
Monday, October 20:
3:30p, SB, C3D1 Final: IF Fred/NC
Tuesday, October 21:
6:00p, VB: Southwestern IL @ Mineral Area+
6:30p, NHL: Los Angeles @ St. Louis*
Thursday, October 23:
6:30p, FB, Week 9: Sullivan @ North County
6:30p, NHL: Utah @ St. Louis*
Friday, October 24:
6:00p, KFMOsports Tailgate Show fueled by McDonald’s
6:30p, FB, Week 9: Central @ Farmington^
Saturday, October 25:
5:30p, NHL: St. Louis @ Detroit*
Monday, October 27:
5:30p, NHL: St. Louis @ Pittsburgh*
6:00p, NFL, Week 8: Washington @ Kansas City
Tuesday, October 28:
6:45p, NHL: Detroit @ St. Louis*
Thursday, October 30:
6:30p, NHL: Vancouver @ St. Louis*
Friday, October 31:
6:30p, FB, Districts: TBD vs TBD
^ - denotes live video
+ -denotes game on KFMOsportsPlus
* - denotes game on B104.3