East Knox cruises to first-half lead, routs Mount Gilead, 49-10
East Knox jumped out to a 14-3 first-quarter lead and went into the locker room up 35-10 at halftime to coast to a 49-10 victory over host Mount Gilead on Friday. East Knox improved to 5-1, and Mount Gilead fell to 2-3.
Bulldogs running back Cole Delaughder scampered 3 yards for the first score on the first drive of the game. After a 32-yard field goal by Mount Gilead’s Garrett Lamb-Hart cut the led to 7-3 midway though the quarter, Shane Knepp scored from 3 yards out to make it 14-3.
In the second quarter, Bulldogs QB Payton Lester completed a 25-yard TD pass to Carson Steinmetz about 2 minutes in, and Knepp scored from seven yards out 3 minutes later. With 2:03 left in the half, Delaughder made it a 35-3 rout with a 2-yard run. With 20 seconds left in the half, the Indians’ Carter Kennon threw nine yards in the end zone to Paul Butterman to cut the lead to 35-10, but East Knox added two second-half scores to seal the deal. Lester completed a 34-yarder to Knepp in the third, and Luke Holsinger scored from 13 yards out in the fourth. Kicker Will Jensen converted all seven of his PAT attempts.
East Knox outgained Mount Gilead 390-230, out-passing the Indians 257-31 with three Bulldog sacks. Rushing was a Mount Gilead high point, with the Indians holding a 199-133 advantage. East Knox had 19 first downs to nine for the Indians, and East Knox converted five of seven third-down situations, while Mount Gilead was only four of 13.
Stat leaders for East Knox included Lester – 10-14 passing for 242 yards and 2 TDs, and Delaughder with 15 carries for 111 yards and 2 TDs. Knepp’s 5 catches for 115 yards led Bulldog receivers. For the Indians, Kennon completed 3 of 5 passes for 17 yards, a TD and an interception, and Elijah Chafin was 2-4 for 14 yards and a touchdown. Garrett George gained a game-leading 138 yards on the ground via 15, carries and Butterman caught 3 of the Indian completions for 19 yards and a score.
On defense, Knepp’s six solo tackles and one assist, John Mazza’s three tackles and four assists and Bryar Householder’s two sacks led the Bulldogs.
Mount Gilead head coach Mike Reid said, “We got beat by a pretty good team tonight. East Knox has too many weapons that can make you pay for every defensive mistake."
Centerburg wins seesaw battle over Cardington-Lincoln, 24- 20, on last-minute TD
A tight game between Centerburg and Cardington-Lincoln went back and forth and was decided on a TD by the Trojans with 24 seconds left at C-L on Friday night. The nail-biter left Centerburg with a 3-2 record and the Pirates at 1-4.
The seesaw battle started with a Trojan score less than 5 minutes into the game on a 24-yard pass from Jack Gregory to Caylan Lemaster. The Pirates came back 6 minutes later on a 1-yard plunge by Nate Hickman.
Centerburg scored twice in the second on a Gregory-to-Alex Johnson pass of 25 yards and a Tyler Johnson scamper of 32 yards to end the half with an 18-6 Centerburg lead.
The Pirates owned the third quarter with two scores to take the lead. Eli Huffman scored from 3 yards out with 8:05 left, and Hickman crossed the goal line on a 5-yard run with 2:13 left.
Each team had possession in the fourth quarter, and the outcome was decided with 24 seconds left on a Gregory-to-Jarred Rings pass from the 15 to make it 24-20 Trojans.
Centerburg finished the game with 222 yards passing and 116 yards rushing for 338 yards in total offense, with 17 first downs. C-L gained 235 passing and 195 rushing for 430 yards with 20 first downs but had three turnovers. The Trojans converted four of 12 third down attempts and went four of eight on fourth down, while the Pirates were four of 12 on third-down tries.
Centerburg’s offense was led by Gregory, who completed 20 of 34 passes for 222 yards and 3 TDs. Johnson rushed 15 times for 115 yards, and Jarred Rings had six receptions for 61 yards and a TD. Tanner Hott was tops in defense with three solo tackles and eight assists.
For Cardington-Lincoln, Hickman was an all-around leader on both sides of the ball. He completed 17 of 22 passes for 200 yards and led the Pirates on rushing with 108 yards and 2 TDs on 21 carries. On defense, he had five solo tackles and four assists. Ayden Plowman had eight receptions for 83 yards, and Joe Denny caught five for 60 yards, while Joe Denny had five solos and two assists on defense.
