The Greenfield-Central Cougars, Mt. Vernon Marauders and New Palestine Dragons are looking to extend their winning streaks to two straight tonight.
Greenfield-Central, which earned The Associated Press honorable mention in this week’s Class 5A rankings, defeated Eastern Hancock 28-14 in their home opener and now travel to winless Bloomington North.
Mt. Vernon defended its new turf home field 17-13 against Hamilton Heights last week and treks to Marion tonight.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryClass 5A No. 4 New Palestine hosts Richmond for its home opener this week after getting past Whiteland 19-8 last Friday.
Eastern Hancock looks to rebound in its home opener against South Decatur tonight.
Greenfield-Central (1-0) at Bloomington North (0-1)
GAME TIME: 7:30 p.m. at Martin Field
COACHES: Adam Sherman, 7-5 in second year at Greenfield-Central. Scott Bless, 53-79 in 13th year at Bloomington North, 68-109 in 18th year overall.
LAST OUTING: Greenfield-Central defeated Eastern Hancock, 28-14. Bloomington North lost to Columbus East, 42-17.
SERIES PAST 30 YEARS: Tied 1-1
MOST RECENT MEETING: Greenfield-Central, 52-35, Aug. 27, 2016.
BREAKDOWN: The Greenfield-Central Cougars came out strong in the season opener against Class 2A Eastern Hancock last Friday night. The 5A Cougars grabbed a 21-14 lead and shut out the Royals in the second half while forcing several turnovers, including a red zone interception by Jaden Brown.
Andrew Leslie completed nine passes for 143 yards, a touchdown and an interception at quarterback for the Cougars. Braden Brown led their rushing attack with 101 yards on 18 carries and two touchdowns.
Bloomington North, coached by Scott Bless, lost its home opener to 5A No. 1 Columbus East 42-17 last week. Columbus East led 28-10 at halftime and scored 14 in the third before the Cougars tacked on another score in the fourth quarter.
Bloomington North’s points came off a 3-yard run by Xavier Trueblood, a 28-yard field goal by Ben Freel and a 72-yard pass from Freel to Jordan McCoy.
Mt. Vernon (1-0) at Marion (1-0)
GAME TIME: 7 p.m. at Lootens Stadium
COACHES: Neil Kazmierczak, 1-0 in first year at Mt. Vernon, 12-11 in third year overall. Craig Chambers, 6-5 in second year at Marion, 29-18 in fifth year overall.
LAST OUTING: Mt, Vernon defeated Hamilton Heights, 17-13. Marion defeated Huntington North, 35-0.
SERIES PAST 30 YEARS: Mt. Vernon 5-1
MOST RECENT MEETING: Marion, 31-0, Aug. 26, 2016.
BREAKDOWN: The Mt. Vernon Marauders fell behind last week 7-3, but they went on to score a pair of touchdowns to fend off Hamilton Heights 17-13 to open the year 1-0.
Trevor Bond converted a 47-yard field goal for the first Marauders points on their new turf field before Tyson Harley threw two touchdown strikes to Cole Van Slyke for 9 yards and to Braxton Trittipo for 46 yards.
Hurley passed for 240 yards on 22 completions while the running game finished with negative 3 yards total. The Marauders will look to find balance on the road against Marion tonight.
The host Giants blanked Huntington North 35-0 on the road last Friday. They beat the Marauders 31-0 last season, snapping a five-game losing streak to Mt. Vernon.
Richmond (0-1) at New Palestine (1-0)
GAME TIME: 7 p.m. at Kelso Stadium
COACHES: Ibrahim Tawfeek, 0-1 in first year at Richmond, 10-11 in third year overall. Kyle Ralph, 51-3 in fith year at New Palestine.
LAST OUTING: Richmond lost to Connersville 22-16 in overtime. New Palestine defeated Whiteland 19-8.
SERIES PAST 30 YEARS: New Palestine 6-0
MOST RECENT MEETING: New Palestine, 49-32, Aug. 26, 2016.
BREAKDOWN: The fourth-ranked 5A New Palestine Dragons muscled their way to a 19-8 victory on the road last week, and they return to their friendly confines tonight at Kelso Stadium to celebrate the program’s 50th year.
New Palestine used a 31-yard touchdown run by Luke Canfield and a pair of touchdown runs by quarterback Zach Neligh to beat Whiteland.
Neligh rushed for 222 yards, the most ever by a New Palestine quarterback. Canfield finished with 104 yards as the Dragons posted 361 yards on the ground and the defense forced four turnovers.
The New Palestine Dragons have won 37 consecutive regular-season games, a streak that began in 2013. It is the longest active regular-season streak in the state.
Richmond lost its opener 22-16 in overtime to Connersville. The Red Devils led 16-0 via a touchdown run by Wyatt Byrd and a punt return by Ron Sanders. Bryd had 123 yards rushing.
The Dragons defeated Richmond 49-32 last season and are 6-0 all-time against the Red Devils in the series.
South Decatur (0-1) at Eastern Hancock (0-1)
GAME TIME: 7 p.m. at Knarr Field
COACHES: Tony Bell, 11-10 in third year at South Decatur. Jim O’Hara, 25-11 in fourth year at Eastern Hancock, 112-59 in 16th year overall.
LAST OUTING: South Decatur lost to North Decatur 33-10. Eastern Hancock lost to Greenfield-Central 28-14.
SERIES PAST 30 YEARS: Eastern Hancock 9-5
MOST RECENT MEETING: South Decatur, 30-26, Aug. 26, 2016.
BREAKDOWN: The Eastern Hancock Royals played with tremendous heart last week at Greenfield-Central, staying within a possession most of the night before falling 28-14.
“Exhausted,” according to head coach Jim O’Hara, the Royals have bonded together through a difficult four weeks after the tragic death of senior Riley Settergren in a car accident last month.
Tonight, the Royals look to regroup and get some payback against South Decatur in their home opener. The Royals lost to the visiting Cougars 30-26 last season, which snapped Eastern Hancock’s previous winning streak in the series at five games.
Last week, the Royals found success in the passing game as Jarett Lewis threw for 198 yards and two touchdowns. Four interceptions (three by Lewis), however, hurt the Royals as they went scoreless in the second half at Greenfield-Central.
A.J. Muegge was the top playmaker for Eastern Hancock in Week 1, finishing with seven receptions and 104 yards and two touchdowns. The Royals rushing attack netted 57 yards on 24 carries, a trend they will attempt to correct tonight.
South Decatur lost it’s season opener 33-10 to North Decatur and are on the road for a second straight week. South Decatur led 10-7 last week before North Decatur scored 26 unanswered points.
Kordell Meadows passed for 43 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions for South Decatur.
