CARTHAGE -- Preseason District 9-4A Division I favorite Carthage found the winner's circle in league play for the first time Friday night with a 42-16 rout of Center at Bulldog Stadium.

Junior running back Keaontay Ingram led Carthage (4-2, 1-2) with 169 yards and three touchdowns, while quarterback Kason Davis passed for a pair of touchdowns.

Carthage, which dropped its first two district games to Henderson and Kilgore, snapped the four-game winning streak of Center (5-3, 3-1).

The Bulldogs turned two first-half turnovers from Center into two touchdowns to build a 35-7 lead at halftime. Ingram's second TD of the game -- a 10-yard run -- followed a fumble recovery. And Mekhi Colbert's 40-yard pick-six closed out the half, coming moments after a 51-yard touchdown pass from Davis to Roderic Calloway.

Ingram's third touchdown run of the game pushed the lead to 42-7 in the third quarter, and Center's last scores came via a fumble return and safety.

Davis' 47-yard scoring strike to Dee Bowens less than three minutes into the game gave Carthage its first lead at 7-0, but Center answered on the ensuing series with its only offensive touchdown of the game -- a 4-yard run by Adrian Johnson.

Both teams resume play next Friday night. Center hosts Henderson, while Carthage travels to Bullard.

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