SYRACUSE - The X factor, the Ohio if you will, for Friday night's game between Wawasee and Plymouth may be the Warriors' passing game.

The Rockies and first-year head coach Jon Barron were successful in stopping 4A No. 1 East Noble from scoring last week by shutting down a one-dimensional attack.

Wawasee's mixture of running and passing provides a pick-your-poison scenario for Plymouth.

"East Noble is very one dimensional. We were able to put eight guys up to try and stop Konrad (Mundon)," said Baron. "Defending Wawasee and East Noble are two different monsters. I think the key is to try and make them throw."

Mundon finished the evening with 125 yards and 2504 on the season, good for first among state rushing leaders. Third in the state is Wawasee's Jordan Swain, with 2124 yards on 234 carries, but he will be paid extra attention by Plymouth.

For Wawasee to win its first sectional title since 1985, however, it may come down to the play of other offensive weapons.

Ben Champoux leads the team with 31 catches for 541 yards and five touchdowns to add to his kicking and defensive duties. Champoux, the team's field goal kicker, has added punting and defense to his repertoire since an injury to Michael Conrad earlier in the season.

Champoux also plays hockey and brings that sort of intensity to Conrad's vacated defensive back position.

"I haven't really ever played defense, I've been mainly an offensive player. Since Mike got hurt, I've had to step up. So far I've just tried to do the best I can do, but it's big shoes to fill when taking Mike Conrad's place," said Champoux.

The Warriors speed threat comes in the form of Andrew Mock. The five-foot-seven, 145-pound receiver has 22 catches for 304 yards.

Ryan Christner provides a possession receiver for Wawasee to complement the big play capability of Champoux and Mock. Christner has 21 catches for 299 yards on the season.

Rounding out the starting receiving corps for Wawasee is big tight end Ryan Kauchak. Kauchak has 15 catches for 270 yards on the season that includes a 58-yarder against DeKalb last week in which Kauchak carried four defenders before getting tackled.

Kauchak leads the team in receiving touchdowns with six and bodes as a very dangerous option for Wawasee in the redzone.

It's not just pass catching, however; Wawasee head coach Joe Rietveld appreciates his receiver's all-around games.

"They are the kind of guys who go unsung because the o-line blocks well. But they block well on the perimeter along with catching the ball and knowing their routes well," said Rietveld.

"These guys probably don't get as much publicity because we spread the ball around so much. In the past we had one guy to go to. Now we have four, which is nice because the defenses can't key on just one guy."

Opposing defenses have not been able to do much against Wawasee. The Warriors have scored 97 points in their first two playoff games. To beat Plymouth, the Warriors will have an advantage if the contest is high scoring.

The Rockies play solid defense but have managed to score more than 30 points just four times this year. Wawasee has scored at least 30 points this season in 10 out of 11 games. The lone sub-30 point performance came in a 27-21 loss to Concord, Wawasee's only blemish to date.

That loss was avenged in the opening round of the sectionals with a 48-9 pasting of the Minutemen. Now it's Plymouth, who heads into Syracuse Friday night looking for revenge of its own. The Warriors came into Plymouth earlier in the season and handed the host Rockies their first loss of the year, 30-20.

Having gone from the hunter to the hunted, the Warriors know what to expect from Plymouth.

"They're going to come out very strong and want to beat us like we did against Concord," said Kauchak. "We beat them in the regular season and as long as we come in confident and play our game, we'll win."

The game that has worked for Wawasee all season is heavy doses of Swain and Lantz on the ground. With Plymouth keying on that, the Warriors may air it out deep.

"We've got a lot of big plays that we're going to need to hit to open up the run. So that will be a big key," said Mock.

While Mock and Co. will look to take the heat off Lantz and Swain on the field, off the field it's a different story. Wawasee's dynamic duo has garnered a lot of attention, but that doesn't bother their teammates.

"Right now as seniors we're not focused with our name in the paper. We're focused with winning every week and getting to the Dome again," said Kauchak.

The first step in getting to the RCA Dome is getting past Plymouth. Wawasee spotted the Rockies a 13-0 in the first quarter before storming back to win. A slow start in the playoffs could equal an early exit.

"We've got to start early and get on them. We didn't get going until the second half in the first game and that really shot us in the foot," said Christner.

Champoux echoed Christner's sentiments. Plymouth has a lot of incentive besides the obvious one of a sectional title.

"We know we have the talent to take this game. We just can't come out flat. Plymouth is coming off a big game. They just beat the No. 1 team in the state and we beat them on their homecoming, so they want revenge," said Champoux.

Defensively, Wawasee will look to key on the ground game of the Rockies. Plymouth is led by senior tailback Jared Gaul. Gaul leads the team with 1398 yards on the ground. Coty Singleton provides a second option for the Rockies with 594 rushing yards.

Friday night also marks the second meeting between childhood friends. Coaches Baron and Rietveld grew up together in Mishawaka.

Friendship will be set aside for 48 minutes until a sectional champion is decided.

The Warriors are 10-1 on the season, while Plymouth is 8-3. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Warrior Field. [[In-content Ad]]