Sophomores Bishop and Barker star for Eagles in District semifinal victory versus Tigers
Published 8:16 am Thursday, November 5, 2026
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SPRINGFIELD — Simultaneously and perhaps justifiably, Kaden Bishop gave Nixa coach Evan Palmer a signal he was OK after drawing a foul in the goalie box Wednesday and that he would like to take the ensuing penalty kick himself.
Bishop converted on the PK as part of the Eagles’ 4-1 Class 4 District 4 semifinal triumph over Ozark.
Bishop absorbed one of the nastiest and unusual hits one will see on the pitch. While positioning himself for a pass above him, he was tackled by the Tigers’ Maclean Scott. Bishop’s body was arched backward as Scott landed on top of him and mostly on his face.
“The ball was in the air and I was trying to shield (Scott) from getting to it because I wasn’t going to score on a header from a position like that,” Bishop said. “I was looking up and he was behind me and he ended up jumping up trying to get over me.”
“It was a pretty bad foul. I’d never seen anything like that before,” Nixa midfielder Calix Barker said.
Actually, for Bishop and Scott, it was deja vu.
“He tried to jump over me last year at the Kickapoo junior-varsity tournament, too,” Bishop said. “We play club together and are friends off the field. But when we go back on the field, it’s a battle.”
Spencer Rinne oftentimes is Nixa’s designated player to take penalty kicks, whether he is the player who drew the foul or not. Bishop was happy he got to take the PK.
“If you win the foul in the box and want it and are confident, you should take it,” Bishop said. “If you’re not confident, coach Palmer will put Spencer or somebody else who has the ability to score pens. I absolutely always want to take the pen.”
Even as a sophomore, Bishop was noticeably nonchalant in his post-goal celebration, showing no reaction at all.
“I wish I had done something. I only have four goals on the season,” he said.
Nixa (22-3) beat Ozark (11-12) by the same score as their Christian County Cup matchup a week earlier.
The Eagles also received goals from Rinne, Sam Krans and Jake Harvey.
Krans opened the scoring with a header off of a corner kick by Barker. That’s a combination Nixa has gone to on set pieces with great success all season.
Like Bishop, Barker is a sophomore, but has established quite a niche as the Eagles’ corner kick taker.
“Distributing has been one of the skills I focus on the most out of the center-mid,” Barker said. “Corner kicks have come natural for me after practicing long-balls, repetition after repetition.”
For as long as he can remember, Barker has sought to be his team’s set piece taker.
“I’ve taken them all my life. I’ve always loved taking them,” he said. “(My confidence) is fairly high and Sam is great at getting in the air and getting his head on the ball.”
“Every single time Calix hits the ball perfectly in the box where we need it,” Harvey said. “He’s fantastic. We have had so many goals off of corner and free kicks.”
“Calix is extremely consistent on corner kicks and set pieces,” Bishop said. “We’re very confident in his ability to take them.”
Ozark’s goal came from sophomore midfielder Kaiden Floyd.
Nixa and Glendale will meet Monday in a rematch of last year’s District final. The Eagles have won 16 of their last 17 matches, with their lone loss being to the Falcons.
