ADRIAN — A week after dropping 80 points on the scoreboard, Mendon was on the receiving end of a blowout score Friday night.
Taking on top-ranked and 8-man state title favorites Adrian Lenawee Christian, the Hornets’ undefeated season came to an end with a 73-20 loss to the Cougars on the road.
Lenawee Christian scored the first two touchdowns of the night on a 21-yard rushing touchdown and a 20-yard receiving touchdown to make it 14-0 before the Hornets got their first score of the evening on a Jack McCaw eight-yard run to make it 14-6. The Cougars would get one more touchdown in the first quarter on an eight-yard run to make it 21-6.
However, the home team Cougars would light up the scoreboard in the second quarter, scoring 42 points to just 14 in the quarter for the Hornets to take a commanding 63-20 lead at the half. Mendon’s touchdowns were on runs of 86 yards and 57 yards by McCaw.
Lenawee Christian, on a running clock in the second half, scored a 64-yard touchdown in the third quarter to make it 70-20, and added a field goal with 4:44 left in the fourth quarter to make it 73-20.
The Hornets had 269 yards of offense, 258 on the ground, compared to 526 yards of offense for Lenawee Christian, 226 on the ground and 300 through the air. McCaw had 21 carries for 210 yards for the Hornets on the evening, while JT Lux had six carries for 31 yards. Defensively, Owen Gorham led Mendon with 4.5 tackles on the day and a sack.
Sturgis loses to Otsego on homecoming
STURGIS — The Otsego Bulldogs came to town winless in the 2023 season, and left with their first victory of the season, defeating the Sturgis Trojans in this year’s homecoming game, 30-23.
“It was a tale of 2 halves,” Trojan’s head coach Chance Stewart said. Otsego led 23-0 at halftime, but the Trojans rallied with 23 second half points. The Bulldogs scored one touchdown in the final quarter, and it proved to be the difference. “We kept battling, and to our credit, we kept fighting, but when you get down as early as we did, it’s tough to come back,” Stewart added.
Otsego quarterback Jack Holmes connected with Louis DiGrandi IV for a 47-yard scoring strike in the opening quarter, giving the visitors a 7-0 lead. The game remained scoreless until Holmes hit on another long passing TD in the second stanza, hooking up with Kole Engleright, good for 76-yards. The Trojans took over on offense, but QB Tanner Patrick was sacked in the endzone for a safety, adding two more points for the Bulldogs, who took a 16-0 lead. That’s the way the first half ended.
The third quarter saw the Trojans get on the scoreboard when Otsego’s Alex Raseman was tackled in his own endzone for a safety, making the score 16-2. The Bulldogs then had to free kick the ball back to Sturgis, and Patrick completed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Brock Fergison. The extra point was good, and the deficit was cut to 23-9. The Trojans got the ball back to begin the fourth quarter, and Patrick hooked up with Fergison again, this time good for 50 yards and another touchdown. With the successful PAT, that cut the lead to 23-16, as the Trojans showed they weren’t going away quietly.
Otsego came right back with a 57-yard scoring drive, with Holmes taking it in from 4-yards out. The extra point was good, pushing the lead to 30-16. After the kickoff to the Trojans, Patrick connected with Rasean O’Tey for an 87-yard pass completion, resulting in a Sturgis touchdown. The point after kick was good, making the score 30-23, and once again, the Trojans had sliced into the Bulldog’s lead. After getting the ball back one final time, Sturgis was unable to find the endzone, and Otsego escaped with the 7-point win. “We fought back really hard in the second half, but we just ran out of time,” Stewart said.
Patrick connected on 15-of-27 passing attempts, good for 264 yards and three scores. Fergison had three receptions for 85 yards and two touchdowns, while O’Tey grabbed three passes totaling 90 yards with one TD. Kaiden Waldron nabbed three passes for 29 yards, Gibson Cary had two grabs for 22, and Dalton Tisdel caught one pass for 16 yards. The Trojans were held to 63 yards on the ground, with Tisdel leading the way with 34 yards. Brenden Myers added 27 yards on 5 attempts.
Nathan Miller led the defense with 10 tackles, while Logan Markey had two sacks among his eight tackles. Cary recorded seven stops, while Callahan Lamb notched five tackles, and had one sack.
Stewart also wanted to note that the Sturgis uniforms were adorned with the initials “MB” on their jerseys, honoring and supporting teammate Mason Bailey, who is battling cancer.
The 2-4 Trojans will try to get back in the win column Friday evening, travelling to Vicksburg to face the Bulldogs, who also stand at 2-4. Kickoff is scheduled for 7pm.
Colon’s win streak halted against Bellevue
The Colon Magi had a three-game win streak snapped Friday evening, as the Bellevue Broncos rode a strong second quarter to a 50-28 victory.
Maverick Downs ran the ball in from one yard out to put the first points on the board for Colon, and that was the only score by either team in the first quarter. The second period was a completely different story. Bellevue managed to outscore the Magi 24-22, but Colon still held a slim 28-24 lead going into halftime. In that second quarter, Downs hit Kyle Muntain on a 65-yard TD pass, and after the 2-point conversion, the Magi moved ahead 14-8. Downs crossed the goal again line from a yard out, and soon after, hit Muntain for another scoring strike, this time covering 32 Yards.
With the scoreboard reading 28-24 to start the second half, the only points scored in the final two quarters belonged to the Broncos, as they held Colon scoreless for the remainder of the game. With the clock showing zeros, the final score read Bellevue 50, Colon 28.
Ironically, Colon held a 463-405 advantage in total yards, and recorded 21 first downs to Bellevue’s 14. Downs had another good night running the football, as he picked up 198 yards rushing. He also rushed for two scores. Muntain had four receptions totaling 114 yards, Blake Vanderstraaten caught two passes for 22, and TJ Thaxton grabbed two passes for four yards. Carter Persons, Owen Wilson, and Dane Borgert had one reception each.
Defensively, Thaxton led Colon with 10 tackles, Downs notched nine stops, and Johnny Greenwald had eight. Wyatt Downs had five tackles, Michael House had a trio of stops, and Kayden LaClair came up with a pass interception.
Next up for the 3-3 Magi will be the Athens Indians, who come to town on Friday, Oct. 6. This will be Colon’s homecoming game, and is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m.
Burr Oak gets first win in almost two years
BURR OAK — For the first time in nearly two years, the Burr Oak Bobcats picked up a win on the gridiron, as they defeated the Athens Indians Friday evening in convincing fashion, 58-14. The victory ended a 15-game losing streak, dating back to October 15th, 2021, and ended homecoming week on a positive note.
The game started off with a bang, as Athens scored on an 80-yard touchdown run 19 seconds into the game. The conversion was good, and the Indians held the quick 8-0 lead. Shortly after the opening score, Austin Cole crossed the goal line for Burr Oak, and quarterback Ethan Boyles made good on the two-point try, pulling the Bobcats even at 8. The Indians wasted no time taking the lead, scoring on another long touchdown run, but missed on the points after. The 14-8 lead in the opening quarter was the last time Athens would score, as Burr Oak rattled off 44 straight points. Cole started the scoring binge in the second quarter with a nice run, zigzagging into the end zone. Boyles followed with another Bobcat touchdown, grabbing a high snap on 4th and 2, and taking it into the endzone. The first half would end with Burr Oak up by the score of 20-14.
The second half was dominated by the Bobcats’ offense and defense, as they tacked on 38 unanswered points, and did not allow a single Athens score. Joshua Greene scored on a nice TD run, with Cole making good on the conversion, bumping the score to 28-14. Joshua Greene then struck again, recovering an Indians fumble, and taking it the distance. Quarterback Boyles was good on the points after, and Burr Oak extended the lead to 36-14.
The Bobcats weren’t finished lighting up the score board, as Boyles scored two more rushing touchdowns. Caleb Greene added a rushing TD and was on the receiving end of a long touchdown strike from Boyles. and Jousha Greene rumbled into the endzone for a TD after picking up an Athens fumble. The Bobcat defense came up with multiple fumble recoveries in the game, and head coach Vince Royer commented that “Our freshmen continue to get better, and our veteran players are pleased with the progress we’re making”. He also added “Learning how to play, and the commitment that it takes to become successful is never easy. Now they’re faced with a choice: how hard am I willing to push myself to move from being competitive to winning.”
With the final score at 58-14, the Bobcats move to a record of 1-5, and they will host the St. Philip Catholic Central Tigers on Friday, October 6th. Game time is scheduled for 7pm.
Centreville crushes Cassopolis
CASSOPOLIS — Centreville improved its record to 2-3 with a 56-8 shellacking of Cassopolis Friday, Sept. 29.
Carter Cartier led the Bulldogs on the ground with 98 yards rushing for three touchdowns, while Kaeden Wells had 91 yards rushing. Wells also had 64 yards passing through the air for one touchdown, 63 of those coming to Xander Frederick, who also scored a touchdown.
Cartier led the team in tackles with six, while Jordan Monson had five.
Marcellus wins SW10 8-man title
MARCELLUS — Marcellus clinched the 8-man football conference championship in the Southwest 10 with a 47-0 shutout of Bangor Friday.
Dawsen Lehew had 224 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the day for Marcellus, while Nathan Mihills had five catches for 68 yards and two touchdowns. Cole Thornburgh added 68 yards rushing and two touchdowns, and Parker Adams had a passing touchdown and rushing touchdown on the day.
Defensively, Marcellus was led by Yona Goodlow, who had 12 tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Brock Buck had 10 tackles and Jackson Krzycki had four tackles and two interceptions.
Constantine defeats Allegan
ALLEGAN — Constantine’s football team got their fifth win of the season on Friday, Sept. 29, defeating Allegan 50-16.
No statistics for the game were reported. The Falcon’s next game is Saturday, Oct. 7 at 1 p.m., where the team will honor their seniors and celebrate the school’s 100th season of football.