Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
SOUTH WHITLEY -ÊIn order to win ballgames, football teams must execute.
Friday night in a 56-16 Three Rivers Conference loss to Oak Hill, Whitko did not do that.
"We killed ourselves," said Whitko coach Bryan Sprunger. "We have fumbled the ball on a kickoff in the last two games. We just couldn't hang on to the ball tonight. We did not do a very good job of that.
"We cannot continue to turn the ball over like that and expect to even be in ballgames."
"Anytime you play, turnovers are crucial," said Oak Hill coach Bud Ozmun. "A turnover changes the momentum. A team has the ball and has momentum, but once they turn the ball over, there is a definite momentum shift. Tonight, we were able to capitalize on Whitko's mistakes."
Friday night, the Golden Eagles had several chances to change the momentum and capitalize on Wildcat mistakes. Whitko fumbled the ball five times and lost it four times. On the other hand, Oak Hill fumbled four times but lost the ball just once.
Oak Hill struck early in the game as Whitko fumbled on the opening kickoff. Once the Eagles recovered the fumble on Whitko's 34, they moved the ball into the end zone on just three plays. With 10:53 left in the first frame, Chris Key found a hole in the Whitko defense and ran 22 yards to put Oak Hill up 7-0.
The Wildcats moved the ball to the Oak Hill 21 on the next drive, but again, a fumble took some of the wind out of Whitko's sails. Oak Hill capitalized on that fumble as well, when Ty Henderson galloped 53 yards for the second Eagle touchdown of the first quarter at the 2:22 mark.
Whitko finally got on the board early in the second quarter when Burl Haywood rumbled two yards for a touchdown. After Adam Wendel crossed the line for the two-point conversion, Whitko had cut Oak Hill's lead to 14-8 with 11:33 left in the first half.
However, the Wildcats weren't close for long. Oak Hill scored three touchdowns in the remainder of the first half to take a 35-8 advantage into the halftime break.
The Eagles struck first in the third quarter when Henderson connected with Ben Mann on a 47-yard pass for another touchdown putting Oak Hill up 42-8.
Whitko showed signs of life when Adam Wendel connected with Brent Goble for a 65-yard touchdown pass with 5:46 left in the third quarter of play.
However, that would be Whitko's last stand. Oak Hill scored twice more to end the game with a 56-16 TRC win.
"I told the guys all week that Whitko was better than their 0-4 record," said Ozmun. "They move the ball up and down the field well, but they make mistakes and shoot themselves in the foot. Tonight those mistakes were the turnovers, and they were the difference in the ball game. We just had more momentum swing our way."
Haywood led the Wildcats in rushing with 12 carries for 46 yards, while Robbins and Goble added 28 and 25 yards respectively. Goble caught the longest pass of the night with a 65-yard touchdown reception.
Henderson led Oak Hill in all categories with 177 rushing yards and 97 passing yards. Mann had one catch for 48 yards.
Oak Hill improves to 4-1 on the season and 2-1 in TRC play, while Whitko falls to 0-5 and 0-3. All TRC teams will play in the RCA Dome in Indianapolis next week.
OAK HILL 56, WHITKO 16
Oak Hill 14 21 14 7 - 56
Whitko 0 8 8 0 - 16
W O
First downs 11 12
Rushing yards 151 372
Passing yards 106 97
Comp.-Att.-Int. 4-11-1 6-4-0
Total offense 257 469
Fumbles/lost 5-4 4-1
Punts/avg. 3-28.3 2-25.5
Penalties/yards 3-6 3-15
First Quarter
O -ÊChris Key 22 run (Andy Arrendale kick), 7-0 O, 10:53
O -ÊTy Henderson 53 run (Arrendale kick), 14-0 O, 2:22
Second Quarter
W -ÊBurl Haywood 3 run (Adam Wendel run), 14-8 O, 11:33
O -ÊBen Mann 6 run (Arrendale kick), 21-8 O, 9:16
O -ÊHenderson 6 run (Arrendale kick), 28-8 O, 8:14
O -ÊHenderson 18 run (Arrendale kick), 35-8 O, 2:32
Third Quarter
O -ÊMann 48 pass from Handerson (Arrendale kick), 42-8 O, 9:37
W -ÊBrent Goble 65 pass from Wendel (Alan Robbins run), 42-16 O, 5:46
O -ÊKey 1 run (Arrendale kick), 49-16 O, 0:40
Fourth Quarter
Henderson 48 run (Arrendale kick), 56-16 O, 9:48
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Whitko: Alan Robbins 7-28, Brent Goble 5-25, Burl Haywood 12-46, Drew Lopshire 5-20, Dustin Boardman 2-13, Adam Wendel 4-7, Gabe Langohr 2-5, Brad Walpole 2-(-4), James DeLaCruz 2-11; Oak Hill: Henderson 19-177, Chris Key 16-144, Ben Mann 1-5, Travis Owsley 6-54, Kirk Winger 3-48, Trey Boswell 1-0
Passing -ÊWhitko: 2-6-122 1 int. 1 TD, Brad Walpole 2-5-29, 0 int.; Oak Hill: Ty Henderson 4-6-97 0 int. 1 TD
Receiving -ÊWhitko: Alex Frantz 1-8, Brent Goble 1-65, Anthony Clausen 1-15, Damon Shepherd 1-14; Oak Hill: Kirk Winger 1-17, Lance Strange 1-15, Marcus Hall 1-17, Ben Mann 1-48
