Highland 27, Ontario 17
Dane Nauman added to his long list of big production days as the junior running back ran all over the Ontario defense to lead Highland to victory at Ontario on Sept. 9, improving to 2-2 on the year.
Highland scored a touchdown in each quarter, with every touchdown coming on the ground by Nauman. He finished with 31 carries for 244 yards and four touchdowns. Nauman also had two catches for 9 yards. With 16 kick return yards, he finished with a total of 253 all-purpose yards. Defensively, he had three tackles and an interception.
Kolton Stover threw minimally in the game, going 5-for-10 for 14 yards.
Defensively, Hayden Kline led the Scots with nine tackles. Chandler Stevens had two sacks, while Landon Pedigo and Nick Smith had half a sack each. Gavin Wiggand had an interception and four tackles.
Spouting multiple team nicknames and mission names, Highland coach Ty Stover praised his team.
“Operation 11 [Highland's team motto/credo] traveled to Ontario and came home with a win to begin league play,” said Stover. “Rolling Thunder [another team motto/moniker] controlled the clock in the second half as the Scots rushed for 244 yards. Black Watch [still another team designation] defense forced three turnovers on the night to keep momentum on the Scots' sidelines for the majority of the game. Op11 will enjoy the victory tonight and come in tomorrow to begin preparing for Week 5 home game versus Pleasant, Sept. 16.”
Centerburg 42, East Knox 7
It was all Trojans on Sept. 9, as they improved to 3-1 on the season. East Knox fell to 1-3 with the loss.
Centerburg got on the board with 9:59 remaining in the first quarter on a touchdown pass by Tyler Johnson to Mason Turske for 20 yards. With 1:40 left in the quarter, Johnson connected with Trevin Harris on a 9-yard touchdown pass.
Neither team scored in the second quarter, but Centerburg increased its lead to 21-0 when Caylan LeMaster ran the ball in from 6 yards out with 8:22 left in the third quarter. With 5:35 left in the quarter, LeMaster scored on a sprinting, cutting 57-yard touchdown run, and with the extra point, it was a 28-0 game.
With 11:27 left in the game, East Knox made it 28-7 on a Bracen Davis touchdown run from a yard out. Then Johnson scored again on a 3-yard score with 6:40 left in the game. Centerburg finished out the scoring when Isaiah Sule blocked a punt, which was recovered by Tommy Hause and taken in for a score.
Johnson went 6-for-19 for 89 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but it was the rushing attack that was the name of the game for the Trojans. The team amassed 327 yards on the ground and was led by LeMaster, who had 21 carries for 187 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson ran the ball 24 times for 141 yards and a touchdown. The top receiver was Jesse Rings, who had two catches for 49 yards. Rings also had a pair of interceptions.
For the Bulldogs, Davis went 6-for-20 for 11 yards and two interceptions. Blake Elliott ran the ball nine times for 49 yards. Dustin Springer had three catches for 6 yards. Defensively, Ryan Morton had 10.5 tackles.
Centerburg next faced Loudonville and East Knox visited Cardington-Lincoln on Sept. 16.
Northmor 27, Cardington-Lincoln 13
Northmor improved to 4-0 on the season Sept. 9. Cardington-Lincoln fell to 1-3.
Northmor went up 7-0 after one quarter, and the game was tied 7-7 at halftime. Northmor then went off for 14 points in the third quarter, and both teams scored six points in the fourth.
Northmor was led by quarterback AJ Bower, who went 5-for-10 for 32 yards passing. He also had three carries for 14 yards and a touchdown. Caleb Schnuerer carried 20 times for 69 yards and two touchdowns. Paul Cramer had 18 carries for 73 yards and a touchdown. Hunter Fulk caught three passes for 20 yards. Ashton Clark had a big day on defense with nine tackles, a sack, a fumble recovery and two forced fumbles. Schnuerer had six tackles and an interception. CJ Stoney had three tackles and a fumble recovery. Garrett Harvey had two tackles and a fumble recovery.
Cardington-Lincoln quarterback Kaiden Beach went 6-for-10 passing for 10 yards and an interception. He had a solid day running the ball with 19 carries for 169 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Ayden Plowman had six carries for 67 yards. Journey Williamson had two catches for 8 yards. Ashton Plowman led the team defense with 13 tackles.
Cardington-Lincoln faced East Knox Sept. 16 at home, and Northmor took on Danville looking to remain undefeated in a home conference matchup.
Lexington 30, Mount Vernon 7
Mount Vernon didn’t get on the scoreboard until 27 seconds were left in the game at Lexington, dropping to 1-3 with the loss.
Lexington scored three touchdowns in the second quarter and two more in the fourth quarter to dominate the Yellow Jackets. The lone score for Mount Vernon was on a Devlin Hager pass to Luke Hubbard for 26 yards. Jack Craigo made the extra point.
Hager went 4-for-5 for 42 yards and a touchdown. Layne Kuhlman went 13-for-28 for 133 yards in the air as well. The top rusher was Jonny Askew, who had six carries for 52 yards. Askew also had five catches for 50 yards. Hubbard had three catches for 61 yards, and Joel Hubbard caught four passes for 48 yards.
Mount Vernon next played a conference matchup with Ashland on Sept. 16.
