Thunder and lightning. Power and speed.

Exact opposites in terms of their running styles, Ron Rodriguez and Jon Hill proved to be the winning combination for the Kosciusko County Mustangs Saturday afternoon.

While the burly, broad-shouldered Rodriguez provided the thunderous power, Hill came back with lightning quick speed. Together they led the Mustangs to a convincing 28-7 win over the visiting Darke County Warriors in Interstate Football League Week 3 action at Fisher Field at Lakeview Middle School.

Rodriguez struck first, pounding his way in from four yards out to give the Mustangs a 7-0 advantage after Tom Martinez's extra-point kick split the uprights with 6:34 remaining in the opening quarter.

He found pay dirt again 13 seconds later after teammate Shaun Craft's hit on Darke County's kick returner jarred the ball loose, sending it into the air and then into Rodriguez's hands.

The 5-foot-10, 240-pound Rodriguez caught the ball near the 20-yard line and took it in for his third touchdown of the season.

"The first touchdown was all offensive line," said Rodriguez. "They opened the hole, I just ran through it. The second one was a hard hit on the kickoff, 93 (Craft) hit him and popped the ball out, I was just in the right place at the right time."

Rodriguez finished the game with 11 carries for 28 yards. The majority of his carries were three- and four-yard power runs. He did have a 10-yard carry and seemed to gain momentum as the game went on.

"The more Ron runs, the better he gets," said Mustangs head coach Steve Richardson, whose team improved to 2-1 with the win, while the Warriors fell to 1-2. "He gets stronger in the fourth quarter. Ron's job is to get three and four yards per carry, and he puts his shoulders down and does that."

While Rodriguez was running over and through the Darke County defenders, Hill just ran around them or by them.

Much like he did in the Mustangs' home opener, he returned a kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown, this one coming after the Warriors cut the deficit to 14-7.

Hill, who represented coach Troy Akers' Warsaw Community High School track team at the state finals multiple times and now stays in shape working at Hill's Tae Kwon Do, caught the ball at the 16-yard line, used his blockers and sprinted down the right side of the field and scored with 1:25 left in the first half.

"Jon is our speedster," said Richardson. "He wants to have the ball, and when he gets past that first wave, he's gone. Speed is his ticket."

Hill scored the Mustangs' final touchdown when he and quarterback Mike Whitaker connected on a nine-yard pass with 33.2 seconds left in the third quarter.

Whitaker finished the game 10 of 20 through the air for 90 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Hill caught three passes for 33 yards, while Derrick Richardson reeled in three passes for 28 yards, Billy West three catches for 19 yards and Rodriguez one catch for 10 yards.

The Warriors were led on the ground by Vetty Mabry, who rushed 11 times for 29 yards. Barry Paulus carried the ball 10 times for Darke County, pounding out 21 yards.

All totaled, Darke County gained just 62 rushing yards on 33 carries.

Through the air, Darke County quarterbacks Justin Miller and Matt Ashworth combined for 54 yards, completing just three of 10 passes.

The majority of those yards came in the second quarter when Miller connected with Dave Overla for a 28-yard touchdown reception.

Saturday's home win rebounded the Mustangs from last week's 20-18 loss on the road to the Mercer County Cougars.

"The guys play well at home," said Richardson. "There's a little extra pressure to come out and play well in front of their friends and family at home. People picked us to go 1-7 this year. They didn't say what team we'd beat, but there were a lot of people saying we'd win one game. We're out here to win, and we're gonna work hard to do that."

The Mustangs and Warriors each have a bye week this Saturday and will play each other again Aug. 21 in Greenville, Ohio. [[In-content Ad]]