SOUTH WHITLEY – After back-to-back losses to their Whitley County counterparts, the Whitko Wildcats were looking to bounce back Friday against Three Rivers Conference opponent Maconaquah.
Being in separate divisions of the 10-team league, Friday’s contest wasn’t an official conference game. A win, however, would’ve certainly given the ‘Cats some confidence and momentum going in to TRC play.
But much like the temperatures, the Braves chilled the Cats’ offensive tempo and beat Whitko 48-7 at Ryan Huff Memorial Stadium.
“It is what is, we’ve got a young team,” said Whitko coach Jeff Sprunger. “There’s a lot of growing pains. In our case, we’ve got 14, 15 and 16-year-olds out there. Keeping them motivated, keeping them hungry and keeping in the game is what we have got to do.”
Maconaquah scored just over two minutes into the opening quarter, with the drive capped by a 57-yard touchdown run from Gemini Williams. The Wildcat defense held the Braves to just seven points through the first quarter, but the offense was still held scoreless.
The Braves’ running game, powered by Williams, Aaron Sedwick and Collin Silvers, powered its way through the front eight of Whitko’s defense, scoring twice more on the ground en route to a 21-0 halftime.
Maconaquah scored three more times on the ground in the second half, each time by a different runner. They Braves also tallied a score through the air in the third quarter.
The ‘Cats denied the Braves’ shutout bid late in the fourth quarter, as senior halfback Hunter Reed carried the ball across the goal line from a yard out. Sprunger praised his players for their refusal to give up, despite what the scoreboard said.
“Getting them to believe that we can compete with teams is going to be our biggest challenge right now,” said Sprunger. “We will continue to get better and improve each week, and that’s all we can do. That’s all we can ask out of them."
The ‘Cats, still in search of their first win of 2017, will get another chance on Friday when they travel to Rochester to take on the Zebras. The Zebras have won three straight, including a 29-20 win over the Peru Tigers Friday.
“It’s going to be a good matchup,” said Sprunger. “We’re going to evaluate film … we will give them time to heal up. We have a lot of guys that are banged up and bruised up and just tired. They have played a lot of football here so we’re going to get ready for next week and come out, compete and do our best.”
MACONAQUAH 48, WHITKO 7
M 7 14 20 7 – 48
W 0 0 0 7 – 7
M W
1st downs 13 9
Rushing yds 356 54
Passing yds 10 64
Comp-Att-Int 1-3-0 8-14-0
Total yds 366 128
Fumbles/lost 2-1 1-1
Penalties/yds 6-74 6-80
Punts/avg. 1-41.0 6-30.5
First Quarter
M – Gemini Williams 57 run (Ethan larson kick) 9:42, 7-0
Second Quarter
M – Williams 7 run (Larson kick) 10:30, 14-0
M – Aaron Sedwick 1 run (Larson?kick) 2:41, 21-0
Third Quarter
M – Collin Silvers 68 run (kick failed) 6:52, 27-0
M – Evan Myers 10 pass from Nolan Kelly (Larson run) 4:23, 35-0
M – Paxton Kinter 34 run (kick failed) 0:43, 41-0
Fourth Quarter
M – Braiden Walton 7 run (Larson kick) 8:06, 48-0
W – Hunter Reed 1 run (Collin Bross kick) 1:12, 48-7
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing: Maconaquah, Williams 11 carries, 96 yards, Silvers 6-109, Sedwick 6-29, Ryan Daine 3-52, Walton 3-15, Jacob Hamilton 2-8, Myers 2-6, Kintner 1-34, Giovanni Olano 1-7; Whitko, Zach Gardner 25-66, Reed 13-18, Cade Bechtold 8-(minus 19), Zakk Neer 2-8, Derek Stouder 1-(-9)
Passing: Maconaquah, Kelly 1-3-10 yards, 1 TD, 0 Int.; Whitko, Bechtold 8-14-64 yards, 0 TD, 0 Int
