Week 2 recap

I was really intrigued by tonight's matchup that we had for you -- a Mt. Vernon team that took some lumps but gained some valuable experience last season (and got better as the year went on) playing a Yorktown team that went 10-3, but graduated a lot of key players (but returned its leading rusher and some key offensive line spots). I was expecting a close, back-and-forth battle that would be enjoyable to watch.

It was enjoyable to watch -- if you wear black & gold. And if you want to listen all over again, click here.

If you'd have told me either team would win 32-0, I'd have thought you were nuts. But MV was very good on both sides of the ball. Jim Ryan had a great analogy during the game -- absence makes the heart grow fonder, and the Wing-T offense that has been a staple of MV football since 1994 was back after a one-year hiatus. It produced the big plays MV is known for. The Marauders didn't run a lot of plays in Yorktown territory -- matter of fact, Yorktown drove into MV territory on several of its drives -- but they had the quick strike, usually right after big defensive stands. Yorktown drove into MV territory on its first three drives, but still trailed 7-0 afterwards. Trey Ross went 98 yards up the middle for a TD one play after James York's pick stopped a scoring threat. After that, Yorktown was a bit back on its heels. The Tigers were really back when Austin Parker hit Jake Davis for a 47-yard TD midway through the second. Throw in a 77-yard kick return by sophomore Corey White -- who looked like a rocket after he broke loose -- some big runs by Zach McKinney and a 61-yard TD by running back Brandon Lockart, and you have a 32-0 win.

MV ran for 344 yards (12.3 ypc), with Ross netting 116, McKinney 94 and Lockart 99. All three averaged more than 10 yards per carry.

Meanwhile, the MV defense never broke. Yorktown drove into MV territory on 7 of its 9 possessions -- excluding end-of-halves -- and yet was held out of the end zone. Marauders were in the backfield all night -- Jason McCalley, Corbin Bundy, Jose Cortez, David Reimlinger, Dominique Cazares and Sam Balbach were all names that kept coming up on the broadcast, but there were many others often around the ball. They had three sacks and held Yorktown to 9 negative-yardage plays while allowing only five plays that carried for 10+ yards in the game -- none longer than 17. RB Derek Kundenreich was Yorktown's top offensive threat with 84 yards on 20 carries.

Impressive victory for Mt. Vernon, on both sides of the ball. They looked like the Marauders of old this evening.

Other HHC/county games
Delta 23, New Palestine 0: The Eagles jumped ahead 17-0 at half and claimed the upper hand in the HHC race. That's not a surprise, given their state ranking and array of offensive weapons. Delta has long been one of the HHC's premier programs, but NP was coming off a big win and it'll be interesting to see how the Dragons fare next week.
Pendleton Heights 28, Greenfield-Central 0: This score was a head-turner. PH is one play away from being 2-0 in the conference, with a defense that pitched a shutout. G-C has a tough way to regroup next week, facing Delta.
Shelbyville 41, Rushville 13: Sure, Shelby graduated David Brown. But Pat Parks has built a program, and put a lot into building it. The Bears have consistently been an HHC power, and they make quite a statement tonight.
No score yet on EH-Scecina.

Read about all of these games in Saturday's Daily Reporter.

HHC Standings
Delta 1-0 conf., 2-0 over.
Shelbyville 1-0 conf., 2-0 over.
Mt. Vernon 1-0 conf., 1-1 over.
Pendleton Heights 1-1 conf., 1-1 over.
Yorktown 1-1 conf., 1-1 over.
Greenfield-Central 0-1 conf., 1-1 over.
New Palestine 0-1 conf., 1-1 over.
Rushville 0-1 conf., 1-1 over.

Next week
TGD Game of the Week: Pendleton Heights (1-1, 1-1) at New Palestine (1-1, 0-1), 7 p.m. airtime, 7:30 p.m. kickoff
Other HHC games:
Delta (2-0, 1-0) at Greenfield-Central (1-1, 0-1), 7:30 p.m.
Mt. Vernon (1-1) at Connersville (0-2), 7 p.m.
Franklin (1-1) at Shelbyville (2-0), 7 p.m.
Greensburg (0-2) at Rushville (1-1), 7 p.m.
Muncie South (2-0) at Yorktown (1-1), 7 p.m.
Hancock County: Eastern Hancock at Indian Creek, 7 p.m.