CLASS 5A SECTIONAL 12
Greenfield-Central (3-6) at Zionsville (4-5)
GAME TIME: 7 p.m. at Eagles Stadium.
COACHES: Adam Sherman, 9-11 in 2nd year at Greenfield-Central. Pat Echeverria, 18-25 in 4th year at Zionsville, 41-39 in 7th year overall.
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LAST OUTING: Greenfield-Central lost to New Castle, 24-14. Zionsville lost to Fishers, 23-10.
SERIES LAST 30 YEARS: No meetings.
BREAKDOWN: The second season begins tonight, and the Greenfield-Central Cougars are ready to turn the page. Finishing the year 3-6 and 1-3 on the road, the Cougars ended the regular season on a two-game losing streak and winners in just one of their last six games.
Tonight to open their first Class 5A sectional appearance, the Cougars are ready to go 1-0, and they will see a familiar face in Zionsville head coach Pat Echeverria, who led the Eastern Hancock Royals to a state runner-up finish in 2013.
Zionsville has lost three straight prior to sectional and recently lost their starting quarterback Andrew Broecker, a senior, to a broken ankle suffered in Week 8. The team turned to junior quarterback Josh Wagner last week, and he responded with 189 yards passing and a touchdown. The Eagles finished tied for second in the Hoosier Crossroads Conference.
CLASS 4A SECTIONAL 22
Shelbyville (7-2) at Mt. Vernon (3-6)
GAME TIME: 7 p.m. at Mt. Vernon.
COACHES: Patrick Parks, 126-119 in 23rd year at Shelbyville. Neil Kazmierczak, 3-6 in 1st year at Mt. Vernon, 14-17 in 3rd year overall.
LAST OUTING: Shelbyville defeated Pendleton Heights, 34-27. Mt. Vernon defeated Yorktown, 10-6.
SERIES LAST 30 YEARS: Mt. Vernon, 11-10.
LAST MEETING: Shelbyville, 35-28, Oct. 6, 2017.
BREAKDOWN: There’s no place like home for the Mt. Vernon Marauders. While struggling on the road with an 0-5 record this year, the Marauders are 3-1 on their home (field) turf and wrapped up the regular season with a 10-6 win against Hoosier Heritage Conference foe Yorktown.
The last time these two teams met was only three weeks ago with the host Golden Bears clinging to a 35-38 victory. Despite the narrow margin, Shelbyville won out the rest of the season to finish second in the HHC at 5-2 and 7-2 overall.
Mt. Vernon looks to play spoiler tonight against the favored Golden Bears and plan to air it out, averaging 203.2 yards passing in nine game. Quarterback Tyson Harley, a junior, has thrown for 1,716 yards with 12 touchdowns. Limiting turnovers will be key for the Marauders.
CLASS 2A SECTIONAL 37
Eastern Hancock (5-4) at Centerville (7-2)
GAME TIME: 7 p.m. at Craig Field.
COACHES: Jim O’Hara, 30-14 in 4th year at Eastern Hancock, 117-62 in 16th year overall. Kyle Padgett, 10-9 in 2nd year at Centerville.
LAST OUTING: Eastern Hancock lost to Lapel, 21-19. Centerville defeated Winchester, 35-14.
SERIES LAST 30 YEARS: Eastern Hancock, 2-0.
LAST MEETING: Eastern Hancock, 27-0, Oct. 21, 2016, sectional.
BREAKDOWN: Disappointment would be an understatement. After the Eastern Hancock Royals dropped its third straight game with a 21-19 senior night loss against Lapel in the regular-season finale, the team and coaches were already looking ahead.
They were also looking back. The Royals opened the season 5-1, winning five straight after losing to Greenfield-Central on opening night. Since, the Royals have had a rough stretch playing Class A No. 4 Monroe Central and 2A No. 9 Shenandoah before Lapel.
Consistency and fundamentals were key talking points for Eastern Hancock head coach Jim O’Hara after last Friday night’s defeat, along with confidence. If the Royals can rediscover all three, this talented group could knock off Centerville for a second straight postseason.
