Advertisement

That's A Wrap: SJ-O, PBL, Salt Fork earn homecoming wins

Sep. 15—Want to purchase today's print edition? Here's a map of single-copy locations.

Davis keys big rivalry win for still-unbeaten Centennial

'It doesn't match any other feeling'

Normal West 65, Urbana 14

URBANA — The Tigers' first home game at McKinley Field in more than two years didn't end well, but Urbana kept it respectable with the Wildcats in the first half before the Wildcats cruised in the second half in Big 12 action.

Urbana (0-4) fell behind 14-0, but cut Normal West's lead to to 28-14 on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Jaydon Riggs to in the second quarter. Riggs also threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Sorrell Darough Jr.

Bloomington 31, Danville 14

BLOOMINGTON — The Vikings cut their deficit to three points late in the third quarter, but the host Purple Raiders pushed across two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to keep Danville at bay in a Big 12 loss.

Phillip Shaw IV scored on a 2-yard run with less than two minutes to go in the third quarter for Danville (1-3) to trim Bloomington's lead to 17-14, but the Vikings could not get any closer the rest of the way in a road loss.

Javaughn Robinson caught a 26-yard touchdown pass from Darius Jay for the other touchdown by Danville that helped tie the game at 7 in the second quarter.

Mahomet-Seymour 49, Charleston 21

CHARLESTON — Mahomet-Seymour cruised to a win in its Apollo Conference opener, leading 43-0 early in the third quarter to start a running clock and allow the Bulldogs to enjoy their third straight win.

Luke Dyer played a nearly flawless game for M-S (3-1), completing 17 of 22 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns. Raymond Long used his 6-foot-4, 210-pound frame to haul in three passes for 107 yards and one touchdown, with Braden Pagel catching five passes for 88 yards and two scores. Trey Peters was also a factor with five receptions for 81 yards.

Brock Vandeveer and Donovan Lewis each had five tackles for M-S, with Henry Wagner and Ethan Esker each coming down with an interception.

"Very proud of these kids and their effort all around," M-S coach Jon Adkins said. "We have a great staff and even better kids. I'm extremely grateful to be around them every day."

St. Joseph-Ogden 56, Chillicothe IVC 19

ST. JOSEPH — Nearly every touchdown St. Joseph-Ogden scored on Friday night at Dick Duval Field, Logan Smith had a hand in.

The St. Joseph-Ogden quarterback threw six touchdown passes and rushed for another one, helping the Spartans roll to a homecoming win and stay unbeaten after another Illini Prairie Conference win.

Smith finished 16 of 23 for 294 yards, with Coy Taylor recording nine catches for 113 yards. Tim Blackburn-Kelley and Kodey McKinney each rushed for 67 yards to also contribute for the Spartans (4-0), with Blackburn-Kelley also catching four passes for 87 yards. SJ-O outscored the Grey Ghosts 29-0 in the second quarter to take a 42-6 halftime lead.

"Really nice job by our guys of playing hard," SJ-O coach Shawn Skinner said. "Logan was in control from the start and did a great job of finding open guys."

Unity 42, St. Teresa 21

TOLONO — Dane Eisenmenger continued his strong start to the season, Jay Saunders and Aiden Porter had superb games and Unity rolled to a nonconference home win at Hicks Field. Eisenmenger completed 14 of 20 passes for 237 yards and three touchdowns on the night, helping Unity (3-1) take a 35-7 lead into halftime.

Saunders had five catches for 119 yards and two touchdowns, while Porter finished with six receptions for 66 yards and two touchdowns. The Rockets relied on a trio of running backs, with Eric Miebach (39 rushing yards on four carries, one touchdown), Caden Hensch (32 rushing yards on four carries) and Halen Daley (31 rushing yards on eight carries, one touchdown) complenting Eisenmenger and the Unity passing game.

Prairie Central 48, Rantoul 0

FAIRBURY — Hudson Ault rushed for 181 yards on 12 carries, the Hawks' defense limited Rantoul to only 48 yards of offense and Prairie Central cruised to a shutout win at Lewis Field in Illini Prairie action.

The Hawks (2-2) relied on Ault, who rushed for four touchdowns. Avery Elder was efficient throwing the ball for Prairie Central, completing 8 of 10 passes for 97 yards and one touchdown, hitting Tyler Curl on an 18-yard score. Curl finished with three catches for 47 yards.

Luis Lopez went 2 of 8 for 35 passing yards and Harley Schultz recovered a fumble for Rantoul (0-4).

Bloomington Central Catholic 24, Monticello 16

MONTICELLO — Monticello led 16-7 at the end of the first quarter but could not hold on to the lead and lost at home to the undefeated Saints in Illini Prairie play.

Luke Teschke rushed for a touchdown and threw for a touchdown, with Cole Sowinski adding a 27-yard field goal, but Monticello (2-2) went into halftime down 17-16 and could not rally past Bloominton Central Catholic (4-0).

Paxton-Buckley-Loda 55, Pontiac 20

PAXTON — The Panthers celebrated homecoming with a dominating Illini Prairie win, thanks to another strong performance from junior running back Robert Boyd-Meents.

Boyd-Meents had six total touchdowns as PBL (3-1) outscored Pontiac 33-0 in the second quarter to take a 41-6 lead into halftime at Jerry Zimmerman Field at I-57 Stadium. Boyd-Meents rushed for 217 yards on nine carries and had five rushing touchdowns to go along with a 67-yard touchdown reception.

Ridgeview/Lexington 50, Fisher 18

LEXINGTON — Ridgeview/Lexington used a strong fourth quarter to earn its first victory of the season.

The Mustangs (1-3) led the Bunnies (0-4) 34-18 after three quarters before putting the Heart of Illinois Conference crossover game out of reach late.

Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley 34, Eureka 14

EUREKA — Ty Cribbett accounted for every single point for Gibson-City-Melvin-Sibley, with the senior running back leading the way as the Falcons won their second straight game. Cribbett rushed for 100 yards on 23 carries and five touchdowns and also made four extra points for GCMS (3-1) in the road win.

Aiden Sancken complemented Cribbett with 87 rushing yards on 19 carries, while Brayden Elliott went 9 of 13 for 144 passing yards. Ryker Grauer chipped in with four receptions for 85 yards as the GCMS defense shined, too, by making three interceptions in a Heart of Illinois crossover game the Falcons never trailed.

LeRoy 47, Tremont 0

TREMONT— The Panthers cruised in their first road game of the season as Bo Zeleznik rushed for 154 yards on 13 carries and one touchdown, keeping LeRoy undefeated with a Heart of Illinois crossover win.

Matt Stuepfert (66 rushing yards on 13 carries, two touchdowns), Landon Welte (72 rushing yards on seven carries, one touchdown; 10 tackles on defense), Kobe Brent (59 rushing yards on two carries, both for touchdowns) and Brock Owens (10 tackles) also shined for the Panthers (4-0).

Shelbyville 50, Tuscola 28

SHELBYVILLE — The visiting Warriors sustained their second straight loss, falling in their Central Illinois Conference opener on the road.

Tuscola (1-3) never led, cutting its deficit to 22-20 just before halftime on a 78-yard run by Dylan Graves. But the Rams (4-0) did not let Tuscola back in the game after that, scoring 28 unanswered points. Graves rushed for 127 yards on nine carries and had two touchdowns to lead Tuscola. Jordan Quinn went 13 of 26 for 183 passing yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Austin Cummings had eight catches for 153 yards.

Clinton 28, Central A&M 20

MOWEAQUA — Clinton didn't lead until the third quarter and a late touchdown run by Mason Walker in the fourth quarter helped seal the CIC win for the Maroons (2-2), who broke a two-game losing skid with the road victory.

Oakwood 34, Clifton Central 25

CLIFTON — Big plays from Cameron Black and Chase Harrison helped the Comets head home with a hard-fought VVC road win. Black put Oakwood (3-1) ahead 14-0 after the first quarter thanks to a 55-yard touchdown run and a 77-yard touchdown run.

Harrison also came up clutch for the Comets, scoring on a 77-yard touchdown run to give the Comets a 21-13 lead near the midway point of the second quarter and then hauling in a 32-yard touchdown pass from Jackson Dudley late in the second quarter to help Oakwood take a 28-19 lead into halftime. Dudley then hit Black on a 40-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter as Oakwood increased its lead to 34-19. Black rushed for 204 yards on 21 carries, with Harrison adding 105 rushing yards on five carries. Harrison also had 62 receiving yards on three catches. Dudley finished 5 of 9 for 104 passing yards.

Westville 49, Georgetown-RF/Chrisman 10

GEORGETOWN — The visiting Tigers broke open the Coal Bucket game in the second half, cruising to a Vermilion Valley Conference win against its rival.

Drew Wichtowski powered Westville (3-1) by rushing for 207 yards on 15 carries and five touchdowns, helping the Tigers take a 22-0 lead into halftime against the Buffaloes (0-4). Wichtowski also completed 8 of 17 passes for 120 yards, with Landen Coon catching five passes for 46 yards. Cade Schaumburg led the Westville defense with nine tackles and an interception.

Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin 44, Iroquois West 20

BISMARCK — The host Blue Devils took control early and led 37-7 at halftime en route to a VVC win at Payton-Moss Field. Karson Stevenson completed 14 of 19 passes for 204 yards and three touchdowns for the Blue Devils (3-1). Chaz Dubois caught six passes for 99 yards and two touchdowns to go along with 101 rushing yards on three carries and two rushing touchdowns. Ayden Ingram (85 receiving yards on six catches, one touchdown) also contributed.

Christian Gaytan had a strong game for Iroquois West (1-3), finishing with 199 rushing yards on 24 carries.

Salt Fork 42, Watseka 0

CATLIN — Salt Fork produced its third consecutive shutout, enjoying a comfortable VVC win in its homecoming game at Bylerly/Hageman Field.

Evan Webb sparked the defensive effort for the Storm (3-1), making eight tackles, including three sacks. Hayden Chew (eight tackles) and Cam Merritt (seven tackles) were also vital in the win. Carter Chambliss rushed for a game-high 125 yards on 14 carries and two touchdowns against the Warriors (1-3), with Jameson Remole adding 85 rushing yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns.

Momence 48, Hoopeston Area/A-P 0

MOMENCE — The Cornjerkers trailed 20-0 at the end of the first quarter and 41-0 at halftime, setting off a running clock in the second half of a VVC loss, the third straight defeat for Hoopeston Area/Armstrong-Potomac (1-3).

Cumberland 18, Villa Grove 7

VILLA GROVE — The Villa Grove offense could never get on track against the Pirates, with the Blue Devils falling in Lincoln Prairie Conference action at Russ Ghere Field.

Layne Rund went 5 of 10 for 81 passing yards and hit Mason Carter on a 4-yard touchdown pass for Villa Grove's only score that trimmed the Blue Devils' deficit to 12-7 midway through the second quarter.

Gunner Cline (68 rushing yards on 12 carries) and Noah Wilcoxin (two catches for 48 yards) also contributed for Villa Grove (1-3). Jonathan Kiser (16 tackles) and Parker Knierim (10 tackles) led the Blue Devils' defense.

Arcola 21, Tri-County 12

ARCOLA — The host Purple Riders darted out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and made enough plays late to end a two-game losing skid with a Lincoln Prairie win at Thomas-Bradford Field.

Braden Phillips went 7 of 9 for 84 passing yards and hit Brody Phillips on a 34-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter for the Purple Riders (2-2). Jayden Henson-Stice led Arcola with 81 rushing yards on six carries, with Brokton Morford scoring on a 2-yard touchdown run and Tyson Lewis scoring on a 6-yard touchdown run.

Brody Phillips finished with 56 receiving yards on five catches, while Ryan Lindstrom had a team-high eight tackles for Arcola.

Clay Kibler rushed for 65 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns for Tri-County (0-4).

Sullivan/Okaw Valley 41, Argenta-Oreana 6

SULLIVAN — Aian Fryman and Cooper Christensen had strong offensive performances, keeping Sullivan/Okaw Valley unbeaten after a home Lincoln Prairie win.

Fryman rushed for 163 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns as the Redskins (4-0) led 20-6 at halftime before shutting out the Bombers (1-3) in the second half.

Christensen went 6 of 11 for 204 yards and three touchdowns, hitting Aiden Ballinger and Kyle Corkill for touchdown passes. Ballinger had two catches for 91 yards, with Corkill's lone reception resulting in a 44-yard touchdown.

Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond 55, Sangamon Valley 14

ARTHUR — The host Knights stayed undefeated on the season, pulling away in the second half for a Lincoln Prairie victory. ALAH (4-0), which led 21-7 at halftime, received two rushing touchdowns apiece from Maddix Stirrett and Landon Waldrop to spark the offensive output. Jayce Parsons also had two touchdowns — one throwing and one rushing — for ALAH.

River Ridge 21, Blue Ridge 20

FARMER CITY — Blue Ridge (2-2) had its two-game win streak snapped with a close 8-man loss at home.