Bronson unleashes power running game in win; Tekonsha falls to St. Phil

BRONSON – After week one of the prep football season here in Branch County, it appears as though Bronson football’s new emphasis on a power running game might have been the right move.

Bronson rushed for 422 yards on the ground Friday night, with two players eclipsing the 100-yard mark, as the Vikings rolled past Prairie Heights 40-12 to open the season 1-0.

Bronson raced out of the gate, scoring 20 points in the first quarter to take control early. The scoring for the Vikings started with a huge play as Seth Withington raced around the left end, rumbling 75 yards for a touchdown.

Bronson added to their lead in the first quarter with a pair of 1-yard touchdown runs, with Withington and Carson Norton getting into the endzone.

Prairie Heights finally got on the board in the second quarter thanks to a 10-yard pass play, finding the halftime score of 20-6.

Bronson came roaring out of the half, quickly getting that touchdown back and then some with two third quarter touchdowns as it was Norton scoring from 5-yards out and 18-yards out, pushing the Viking lead to 34-6.

Prairie Heights scored one last time on a 13-yard touchdown pass late in the third quarter, closing the score to 34-12.

Bronson officially put the game away with a grinding drive in the fourth quarter that was capped by Withington’s third touchdown of the day, as 27-yard rumble, to find the final score of 40-12.

Seth Withington, who received WLKI player of the game for his efforts, went off with a monster game. Withington rushed the ball 16 times for 217 yards and three scores, along with one two-point conversion, as the big senior kicked off his final season in purple and gold on a strong note.

Quarterback Carson Norton also had a big game, rushing the ball 13 times for 86 yards and three touchdowns, while also completing two passes for 13 yards. Norton also had a big game on the defensive side of the ball, recording nine tackles with a sack.

Collin York was a two-way stud for Bronson, rushing the ball 14 times for 129 yards on offense while leading the Viking defense with nine total tackles, two for a loss, and three sacks.

Also adding to the Bronson defensive effort was Spencer Losinski with seven tackles; Miles Losinski with six tackles, three for a loss, and one sack; Joey Salek with four tackles, one for a loss, and three sacks; and Harvey with four tackles, two for a loss. Also adding sacks were Stevie Wilson, Jace Hoard, and Lilly.

With the win Bronson improves to 1-0 on the young season while Prairie Heights falls to 0-2 with the loss. The Vikings will return to action on Thursday when they travel to Summerfield for non-conference action.

Tekonsha struggles in season opener, falls to St. Phil 

BATTLE CREEK, MI. - The Tekonsha Indians opened their 2023 football season on the road Friday night, traveling to Battle Creek Central High School to face off with St. Phil in 8-man football action.

It was all St. Phil from the opening kick as the Tigers raced out to a 52-0 lead before the Indians could get on the board. St. Phil led 44-0 at the half and rolled to the victory, defeating Tekonsha 60-6.

Big play after big play drove the St. Phil offense who led 44-0 at the half, and 52-0 early in the third quarter.

Tekonsha finally got on the board with 1:42 left in the game as quarterback Emmitt Blashfield scored on a 28-yard quarterback scramble to close the score to 52-6.

St. Phil added one more score before the final buzzer, taking back the ensuing kickoff 85-yards for a touchdown, finding the final score of 60-6.

Tekonsha struggled all night on offense, only putting up 106 total yards of offense. Leading the way for the Indians was Emmitt Blashfield who carried the ball 21 times for 28 yards and one score while added 2 of 10 passing for 47 yards.

Anthony “AC” Carter had one catch for 33 yards while Ben Mead added one catch for 14 yards and 19 yards rushing.

Mead led the Tekonsha offense with an impressive 17 tackles, including 15 solo tackles. Also adding to the Tekonsha defense was Marco Sanchez with five tackles, one for a loss; Anthony Carter with four tackles; Bryan Smith with six tackles; Preston Pombier with five tackles; Wyatt Metcalf with four tackles; and Josh Bailey with four tackles.

Tekonsha falls to 0-1 on the young season and will see action again on Thursday when they host Waldron.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Prep Football Roundup news and notes