MG wins rivalry game

Mount Gilead was able to finish strong at rival Cardington on Friday in picking up a 25-6 win over the Pirates.

The Indians jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the first half, but watched the Pirates cut that deficit to a one-score margin with a seven-yard rushing touchdown by Wyatt Denney early in the fourth quarter. However, they would be able to add to their lead by scoring in both of their next two drives thanks to a strong ground game led by junior back Eliot Jones and quarterback Cole Fricke.

The duo combined for 96 yards on those two drives. Fricke ran for a 15-yard touchdown with 6:31remaining in the game tot make it a 19-6 contest. After the team’s defense forced a Cardington turnover, the MG signal-caller set up a short Jones run with a 24-yard scramble after a penalty had placed them in a second-and-goal situation from the Pirate 25.

“We wanted to control the ball and control the clock,” said Indian head coach Mike Reid. “The passing game was kind of rough tonight. The ball was slipping and sliding around a lot. It was really good to just be able to control the line of scrimmage and do that.”

In the first half, Mount Gilead established the lead thanks to some great field position. Cardington’s game-opening drive ended with them punting from their one-yard line, which set the Indians up on the Pirate 21. Four plays later, Cam Vickers put points on the board with an eight-yard run and Jacopo Magistri added the point after to make it 7-0 early in the opening quarter.

After neither team was able to generate much offense for most of the rest of the half, the Indians forced another Cardington punt from deep in their territory. This time, they took over on the Pirate 29 and scored on another four-play drive — this time with Jones running it in from the seven.

“We had our chances tonight and we made good on them,” said Reid. “The defense created a lot of chances for us and when we couldn’t move the ball, our kicking game did a great job of flipping the field and keeping them in bad positions. The other team’s offense kind of closes up a little when on their own three or five. Our defense played well — give a lot of credit to coach (Joe) Ulrey and the defensive side. They did a great job over there.”

Cardington then was hurt by a pair of missed opportunities. After Jones’ first touchdown, they received the ball on their own 31 with just under three minutes left in the first half. Quarterback Journey Williamson was able to move the ball down the field with a 24-yard pass to Wyatt Denney, one of 21 yards to Denton Garrison and pair of short passes to Greg Donaldson to get the ball into the red zone, but the team couldn’t get points on the board before halftime.

Then, after opening the third quarter with a quick defensive stop, the Pirates embarked on a 15-play drive dominated by the rushing of Denney. The sophomore back helped the team move from their three deep into Indian territory with 36 yards on the ground, while Williamson hit Kalin Briggs twice for 26 yards. Unfortunately for the team, their drive would stall on the Indian 16 and they would turn the ball over on downs.

“Story of our year, isn’t it?” said Cardington coach Ryan Goetzman. “We didn’t finish in the red zone and we didn’t convert. Just stuff like that. We’ve got to find a way to get better in the red zone. Our red zone efficiency is probably less than 20 percent and you just can’t win when you do that and we didn’t.”

Cardington would score on their next drive after forcing an Indian turnover and starting at the MG 26, as Denney ran it in in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. But the team wouldn’t be able to get the necessary stop to have a chance at tying the score. Goetzman was pleased with how his team’s defense kept his team in the game, but noted his offense needed to make a few more plays.

“They (the defense) did a fantastic job, but we didn’t finish in the red zone and we gave them short fields and you can’t do that,” he said. “High school football is about turnovers and field positions. We lost the field position battle and lost the football game.”

With a large roster loaded with young players, Goetzman feels the most important thing his athletes can do now is continue to compete.

“I want them to compete,” he said. “I think that’s the biggest thing. Whether that be basketball, wrestling, obviously I’m a big fan of baseball. Or if they don’t play baseball, getting on the track and running track. I need our kids to compete this offseason.”

After the win, Reid was simply happy to be part of the annual rivalry between the two schools.

“Rivalries are great,” he said. “I’m very proud to be in this one. It’s one of the older ones in the state and it’s fun to be part of us, especially when this season was rough for us and was rough for them. Play a game with a lot of emotion and passion — it’s kind of like our bowl game tonight. It’s a huge win. It’s a good win going into winter.”

Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS