It wasn’t the best start on an eventful night for Paris football, but it looked like itself by the end of the game.

The Coyotes won their Homecoming game 50-14 against Keytesville with Northwestern (Mendon), Brunswick despite leading 16-0 at halftime. They snapped a two-game losing streak that happened to district opponents, and this week’s win leaped them over one of those teams, Knox County, for the No. 2 spot in the standings.

Head coach Cody Carney said Paris (4-2) had opportunities in the first half offensively but fell short of points by inches, sometimes. The Coyotes then scored 28 points in the third quarter.

“We’ve had a ton of sickness going through the team,” Carney said, who said he has been sick, too. “We were trying to do a lot of rotations, getting guys a little bit of water and a breather. We’ve finally started gelling in that third quarter”

Paris still finished with 389 yards on offense. Sawyer Clements ran for 95 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries, Spencer Minks threw for 143 yards and two touchdowns on 9-for-15 passing while running for 57 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries, and Logan Mitchell went for 106 yards and two touchdowns on five catches.

Mitchell was at the center of a play to get Paris started in the second half. He caught a screen pass and went 36 yards for a touchdown.

“We started off the second half on the first play with a touchdown,” Carney said. “They had been really aggressive with their pass rush, so we had a hard time throwing the ball.”

Carney even got a chance to reward senior lineman Kaden Lehenbauer with an 11-yard touchdown pass.

“We shifted and made it so a guard was an eligible receiver,” Carney said. “We ran him on a route down the middle and nobody was there to cover him. He’s been waiting for me to run this play for two years. I try to always give all my senior offensive linemen, it may not be a touchdown, but a two-point or something. I put a little play together for them.”

Carney said the defense was “incredible all night,” holding Keytesville (1-6) to 114 offensive yards. He added the varsity unit only allowed about 34 of those yards.

Paris hosts district foe Schuyler County (3-4) in its regular season home finale and are feeling better coming off a win.

“They’re a young team,” Carney said. “They’ve been in some close games and have come out on top, so they’re building a lot of confidence and skill for their young guys.”