KNOX COUNTY – In the final week of non-conference play for Knox County high school football teams, county schools went 3-2. East Knox, Mount Vernon and Centerburg all came away with victories, while Danville and Fredericktown remained winless.
Here’s what happened on Friday night:
East Knox 68
Strasburg-Franklin 6
The Bulldogs led 40-6 at halftime and never looked back. They were led by junior quarterback Kadden Lester, who threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns on 10-of-14 passing. Senior tailback Kasson Krownapple ran for 76 yards and four touchdowns.
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East Knox (3-0) tallied 530 total yards of offense on Friday night, while holding Strasburg-Franklin (1-2) to just 68. Most of the Bulldogs’ yardage came in the first half, as the clock ran the entire second half. The Bulldogs have outscored opponents 122-16 in the first half this season.
East Knox will take on Mount Gilead (0-3) at Chet Looney Stadium in its KMAC opener next week.
Mount Vernon 20
Buckeye Valley 10
The Yellow Jackets won in dramatic fashion for the second straight week, outscoring the Barons 13-0 in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.
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Mount Vernon (2-1) was led by tailback Ashton Fisher, who ran the ball 17 times for 121 yards and caught four passes for 54 yards. Fellow running back Wyatt Gregory ran for 68 yards on 23 carries. Quarterback Noah Hubbard threw for 111 yards on 9-of-20 passing to spearhead the balanced Yellow Jacket attack.
Buckeye Valley (0-3) quarterback Grant Owens completed 15 of 28 passes for 176 yards, but was sacked twice and threw an interception on the Barons’ final drive that cemented the Yellow Jacket victory.
Mount Vernon will face Lexington (0-3) on the road in its OCC opener next Friday night.
Centerburg 27
Northridge-Johnstown 0
After leading 6-0 at halftime, the Trojans came out firing in the second half. Centerburg (2-1) scored twice in the third quarter and kept the Vikings scoreless to secure the victory.
Centerburg sophomore quarterback John Sheasby accounted for all four Centerburg touchdowns on Friday night, throwing for one and running for three. He finished with 253 rushing yards on 22 attempts and 57 aerial yards on 5-of-9 passing.
Tailback Donnell Marshall tallied 102 yards for the Trojans, while Stephen Schmitt anchored the defense with 7.5 tackles. Centerburg held Northridge-Johnstown (0-3) to just 146 total yards of offense on Friday night, while the Trojans recorded 372 yards themselves.
Centerburg will begin KMAC play with a home game against Cardington-Lincoln (0-3) next Friday night.
Garaway 29
Danville 28 (OT)
Danville (0-3) remained winless with a heartbreaking loss in its home opener on Friday night against Garaway (3-0).
The Blue Devils sent the game to overtime with a touchdown and two-point conversion to tie the game at 21 with 15 seconds left in the fourth quarter. After Danville received the ball first in overtime, the Blue Devils scored a touchdown and kicked an extra point to take a seven-point lead. Garaway stunned the Municipal Stadium crowd with a gutsy decision on its next drive, however.
The Pirates scored a touchdown on their offensive possession, but decided to go for two – and go for the win – instead of playing it safe by kicking the extra point. Down by one, Garaway converted the two-point conversion on a three-yard pass to the end zone, as the Pirates beat the Blue Devils in walk-off fashion.
Danville quarterback Dalton David threw for 139 yards on 15-of-20 passing on Friday night. Tailback Chris Greenawalt led the Blue Devils in rushing with 111 yards on 25 carries.
The Blue Devils will begin KMAC play still searching for their first win, as they will face Highland (2-1) at home next Friday night.
Utica 38
Fredericktown 22
After going toe-to-toe with the Redskins in the first quarter, Fredericktown (0-3) could not keep up with Utica (1-2) over the middle quarters, as the Redskins outscored the Freddies 24-0 during that time.
That span separated the Redskins from the Freddies on Friday night in Fredericktown, as the score was tied at 14 after one quarter. Utica capitalized on big plays on Friday night, including an 80-yard touchdown completion and a 35-yard rushing score which helped put the game out of reach for the Freddies.
All three of Fredericktown’s scores came from quarterback Terry Fearn, as he passed for one touchdown and ran for two more. Fearn went 8-of-16 passing for 87 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Tailback John Robbins led the Freddies in rushing with 167 yards on 19 carries.
Fredericktown will try to get back in the win column next Friday in its KMAC opener, when the Freddies will host Northmor (3-0).
