Valley Closes Out Whitko
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
AKRON - In a 27-16 loss Friday at Three Rivers Conference rival Tippecanoe Valley, a game that featured a disfunctional public address system, a professional tailgater and a flame-shooting pickup truck near the south end zone, it was a bit of deja vu for Whitko's varsity football team.
After playing state-ranked Rochester tough for three quarters on its own turf a week ago, only to allow two key fourth-quarter touchdowns in a 15-point loss, Whitko trailed Valley 20-16 going into the final frame Friday but gave up a touchdown and then threw an interception with 1:40 remaining in the game.
"We can't sustain," Whitko coach Bryan Sprunger said. "The kids hope things go well instead of going out and making things happen. I just don't quite think they believe they can get it done, that's the difference with good teams. Instead of hoping things happen, you have to go out and make things happen for yourselves."
The loss drops Whitko to 2-7 overall and 2-5 in TRC action; Valley improves to 7-2 and 5-2.
Down 16-13, with a third-and-eight from their 41 with just over three minutes to play in the third quarter, the Vikings were called for an illegal procedure penalty that pushed them back near the 45. Freshman quarterback David Beyers hooked up with 6-foot-4 sophomore split end Trey Eaton for a 42-yard pickup on the next play. Two plays later, senior fullback Wes Backus scored on a 1-yard plunge with 2:55 remaining in the quarter. Chris Hurd's kick gave Valley a 20-13 lead.
"We ran a pass play to Trey Eaton and were called for illegal procedure," Valley coach Scott Bibler said. "They said the tight end wasn't set. I questioned it. So I just told the kids to run the same play again. Trey made the catch. It was a nice throw."
The Wildcats were forced into a three-and-out on their next possession, giving Valley the ball on the Whitko 33 with 48 ticks on the third-quarter clock.
After powerful runs from Backus and a 1-yard gain from Anthony Domenico, B.J. Cunningham took a handoff, ran left, stopped and changed directions before scoring on a 16-yard scamper. Hurd's kick put Valley up 27-16 with 10:17 remaining in the game.
Cunningham took the remaining wind out of Whitko's sails with 1:40 remaining in the final frame when he made his seventh interception of the year.
Cunningham finished the game with seven carries for 108 yards and two touchdowns. Backus rushed the ball 16 times for 61 yards and two touchdowns.
"B.J. is a kid that has the ability to make a lot of good things happen," Bibler said. "If I could just get the knucklehead to hold onto the ball. Once again, we're not a team of superstars, just a bunch of guys who play together. I'm real proud of our defense, they really stepped up in the loss of Josh Carter (leg injury). We've got some banged-up kids out there, but they did a nice job. They worked hard and had a nice week of practice, and it paid off."
Whitko, which tallied 146 rushing yards on 46 carries, was led on the ground by Burl Haywood's 10 carries for 59 yards. Alan Robbins added 11 carries for 47 yards, while Brent Goble finished with 12 carries and 38 yards."
"We struggled a little bit," Sprunger said of his team's running game. "We're still very green up front. It was sophomores versus seniors (on the line). It's a new season now. Everybody is 0-0 next week. Nobody cares about what you did the first nine weeks."
With Sprunger-coached teams known for drastic improvement over the course of the season, Bibler said he was leery of Whitko's offense, owners of a 2-6 record coming in but explosive.
"I'd really like to get them off as our last game of the season," Bibler said. "We talked once before about rotating the games. I'd like to do that, that's a great idea. They're a good team, they're young, but they're gonna be a great team. Sprunger does a great job over there. I knew they would be tough, they're not your typical 2-6 team."
Cunningham put the Vikings up 6-0 on Valley's first play from scrimmage, a 34-yard touchdown run set up by a Chris Mitterling interception. Hurd's kick made it 7-0.
Wendel hooked up with Haywood for a 9-yard touchdown toss at the 2:36 mark of the first quarter. Alex Frantz caught caught the two-point conversion pass, and Whitko was up 8-7.
The Wildcats took a 16-13 lead when Wendel found paydirt from one yard out with 23 ticks left in the half. Goble caught the two-point conversion throw.
Valley will open the sectional round at Peru Friday, while Whitko hosts Fort Wayne Elmhurst.
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 27 WHITKO 16
Whitko (2-7, 2-5) 8 8 0 0 - 16
Valley (7-2, 5-2) 7 6 7 7 - 27
W TV
First downs 10 6
Rushes/yards 46-176 40-193
Passing yards 94 47
Comp.-Att.-Int. 8-18-2 2-4-0
Total offense 270 240
Fumbles/lost 1-0 6-3
Punts/avg. 6-28.8 4-33
Penalties/yards 8-45 7-30
First Quarter
TV - B.J. Cunningham 34 run (Chris Hurd kick) 7-0 TV, 9:29
W - Burl Haywood 9 pass from Adam Wendel (Alex Frantz catch) 8-7 W, 2:36
Second Quarter
TV - Wes Backus 3 run (conversion failed) 13-8 TV, 9:51
W - Wendel 1 run (Brent Goble catch) 16-13 W, :23
Third Quarter
TV - Backus 1 run (Hurd kick) 20-16 TV, 2:55
Fourth Quarter
TV - Cunningham 16 run (Hurd kick) 27-16 TV, 10:17
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - W: Haywood 10-59, Alan Robbins 11-47, Goble 12-38. V: Cunningham 7-108, Backus 16-61, Anthony Domenico 6-26.
Passing - W: Adam Wendel 8-18-94, 2 interceptions, 1 TD. V: David Beyers 2-4-47.
Receiving - W: Goble 2-47, Adam Hall 1-22, Anthony Clausen 2-14, Haywood 1-9. V: Trey Eaton 1-42, Greg Prater 1-5. [[In-content Ad]]
AKRON - In a 27-16 loss Friday at Three Rivers Conference rival Tippecanoe Valley, a game that featured a disfunctional public address system, a professional tailgater and a flame-shooting pickup truck near the south end zone, it was a bit of deja vu for Whitko's varsity football team.
After playing state-ranked Rochester tough for three quarters on its own turf a week ago, only to allow two key fourth-quarter touchdowns in a 15-point loss, Whitko trailed Valley 20-16 going into the final frame Friday but gave up a touchdown and then threw an interception with 1:40 remaining in the game.
"We can't sustain," Whitko coach Bryan Sprunger said. "The kids hope things go well instead of going out and making things happen. I just don't quite think they believe they can get it done, that's the difference with good teams. Instead of hoping things happen, you have to go out and make things happen for yourselves."
The loss drops Whitko to 2-7 overall and 2-5 in TRC action; Valley improves to 7-2 and 5-2.
Down 16-13, with a third-and-eight from their 41 with just over three minutes to play in the third quarter, the Vikings were called for an illegal procedure penalty that pushed them back near the 45. Freshman quarterback David Beyers hooked up with 6-foot-4 sophomore split end Trey Eaton for a 42-yard pickup on the next play. Two plays later, senior fullback Wes Backus scored on a 1-yard plunge with 2:55 remaining in the quarter. Chris Hurd's kick gave Valley a 20-13 lead.
"We ran a pass play to Trey Eaton and were called for illegal procedure," Valley coach Scott Bibler said. "They said the tight end wasn't set. I questioned it. So I just told the kids to run the same play again. Trey made the catch. It was a nice throw."
The Wildcats were forced into a three-and-out on their next possession, giving Valley the ball on the Whitko 33 with 48 ticks on the third-quarter clock.
After powerful runs from Backus and a 1-yard gain from Anthony Domenico, B.J. Cunningham took a handoff, ran left, stopped and changed directions before scoring on a 16-yard scamper. Hurd's kick put Valley up 27-16 with 10:17 remaining in the game.
Cunningham took the remaining wind out of Whitko's sails with 1:40 remaining in the final frame when he made his seventh interception of the year.
Cunningham finished the game with seven carries for 108 yards and two touchdowns. Backus rushed the ball 16 times for 61 yards and two touchdowns.
"B.J. is a kid that has the ability to make a lot of good things happen," Bibler said. "If I could just get the knucklehead to hold onto the ball. Once again, we're not a team of superstars, just a bunch of guys who play together. I'm real proud of our defense, they really stepped up in the loss of Josh Carter (leg injury). We've got some banged-up kids out there, but they did a nice job. They worked hard and had a nice week of practice, and it paid off."
Whitko, which tallied 146 rushing yards on 46 carries, was led on the ground by Burl Haywood's 10 carries for 59 yards. Alan Robbins added 11 carries for 47 yards, while Brent Goble finished with 12 carries and 38 yards."
"We struggled a little bit," Sprunger said of his team's running game. "We're still very green up front. It was sophomores versus seniors (on the line). It's a new season now. Everybody is 0-0 next week. Nobody cares about what you did the first nine weeks."
With Sprunger-coached teams known for drastic improvement over the course of the season, Bibler said he was leery of Whitko's offense, owners of a 2-6 record coming in but explosive.
"I'd really like to get them off as our last game of the season," Bibler said. "We talked once before about rotating the games. I'd like to do that, that's a great idea. They're a good team, they're young, but they're gonna be a great team. Sprunger does a great job over there. I knew they would be tough, they're not your typical 2-6 team."
Cunningham put the Vikings up 6-0 on Valley's first play from scrimmage, a 34-yard touchdown run set up by a Chris Mitterling interception. Hurd's kick made it 7-0.
Wendel hooked up with Haywood for a 9-yard touchdown toss at the 2:36 mark of the first quarter. Alex Frantz caught caught the two-point conversion pass, and Whitko was up 8-7.
The Wildcats took a 16-13 lead when Wendel found paydirt from one yard out with 23 ticks left in the half. Goble caught the two-point conversion throw.
Valley will open the sectional round at Peru Friday, while Whitko hosts Fort Wayne Elmhurst.
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 27 WHITKO 16
Whitko (2-7, 2-5) 8 8 0 0 - 16
Valley (7-2, 5-2) 7 6 7 7 - 27
W TV
First downs 10 6
Rushes/yards 46-176 40-193
Passing yards 94 47
Comp.-Att.-Int. 8-18-2 2-4-0
Total offense 270 240
Fumbles/lost 1-0 6-3
Punts/avg. 6-28.8 4-33
Penalties/yards 8-45 7-30
First Quarter
TV - B.J. Cunningham 34 run (Chris Hurd kick) 7-0 TV, 9:29
W - Burl Haywood 9 pass from Adam Wendel (Alex Frantz catch) 8-7 W, 2:36
Second Quarter
TV - Wes Backus 3 run (conversion failed) 13-8 TV, 9:51
W - Wendel 1 run (Brent Goble catch) 16-13 W, :23
Third Quarter
TV - Backus 1 run (Hurd kick) 20-16 TV, 2:55
Fourth Quarter
TV - Cunningham 16 run (Hurd kick) 27-16 TV, 10:17
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - W: Haywood 10-59, Alan Robbins 11-47, Goble 12-38. V: Cunningham 7-108, Backus 16-61, Anthony Domenico 6-26.
Passing - W: Adam Wendel 8-18-94, 2 interceptions, 1 TD. V: David Beyers 2-4-47.
Receiving - W: Goble 2-47, Adam Hall 1-22, Anthony Clausen 2-14, Haywood 1-9. V: Trey Eaton 1-42, Greg Prater 1-5. [[In-content Ad]]