Highland rode a fast start to a 41-20 win over Fredericktown on Friday to improve to 5-2, 4-0 in KMAC play.
The Scots scored twice in the first quarter to take a 13-0 lead over their hosts. Dane Nauman opened the scoring with a 20-yard scoring run and Cooper Merckling then connected with Mason Duncan for 13 yards and another score.
After the Freddies scored in the second quarter to cut the Highland lead to 13-6, the Scots would break the game open. Before the half, Nauman would add touchdowns of 52 and 88 yards and Cody Matthews also scored on a three-yard run.
Merckling added a second touchdown pass late in the third quarter, connecting with Zach Schmidt for 15-yards to make it 41-6. While Fredericktown was able to net a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter, that deficit would be too much to overcome.
Nauman had another huge game on the ground, finishing with 289 rushing yards. Samuel Hernandez added 91 and Matthews finished with 38. Merckling completed 7-of-12 passes for 136 yards on the night, with Duncan catching three for 58 and Jay Melchiori adding two for 51.
Mount Gilead Indians
Centerburg racked up 467 yards against visiting Mount Gilead on Friday in earning a 49-14 win over the Indians.
Two long runs by Caylan LeMaster placed the Trojans in front by a 14-0 count after 12 minutes of action. Garrett George got the Indians on the board with a six-yard touchdown early in the second quarter, but Centerburg would respond. Leading 14-7, they would add a pair of scores before the break to open up a 21-point advantage.
It would be 42-7 going into the fourth, when George scored again — this time on a two-yard carry. However, MG would not be able to score again in the game and Centerburg would reach the end zone one more time to provide their final margin of victory.
George finished with 44 yards on the ground, while Kyan Davis added 39. Kennon was good on 13-of-25 passing for 90 yards, with Paul Butterman catching six for 64 yards, Davis having four for 18 and Owen High recording a pair of receptions for 19 yards.
Cardington Pirates
A slow start was fatal for Cardington on the road against Danville on Friday.
The Blue Devils scored 20 points in the first quarter and didn’t look back in claiming a 46-16 win over the Pirates.
Three touchdown passes and one via the ground by quarterback Max Payne put Danville on top 26-0 at the half. Payne would strike through the air again in the third quarter to make it 33-0 before Cardington finally got on the board. Midway through the third, Nate Hickman connected with Ashton Plowman for an 11-yard score. Hickman would add a two-point conversion pass to Kalin Briggs to make the score 33-8.
A Joe Denney touchdown run of 10 yards followed by another two -point conversion made it 33-16 early in the fourth quarter, but Danville would then put an end to Cardington’s comeback hopes. The Blue Devils responded with a pair of late touchdowns to widen their advantage and pick up the league win.
Hickman finished with 203 yards passing on 19-of-38 passing and also had 40 rushing yards. Denney led the team on the ground with 65, while Briggs caught four balls for 107 yards. Both Ashton (35 yards) and Ayden (10) Plowman had four receptions, while Denney had three and Kaiden Beach finished with two.
