WARSAW AT GOSHEN (NLC) Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. Friday in Goshen Coaches: Phil Jensen (Warsaw), Mike Cheviron (Goshen) Records: Warsaw 2-3, 2-1 NLC; Goshen 1-4, 0-3 NLC Last Game: Warsaw 36, Northridge 14; Concord 26, Goshen 10 Last Year: Warsaw 21, Goshen 7 Matchup: With back-to-back wins over Elkhart Memorial and Northridge, the Warsaw Tigers have eclipsed their win total of a year ago and remain in the hunt for a Northern Lakes Conference championship. Concord sits atop the league with a 4-0 record, while Plymouth, Warsaw and Wawasee are all 2-1, NorthWood is 1-2 and Goshen and Northridge are 0-3. The Tigers scored a season-high 36 points in last week’s homecoming win over Northridge, and this week they will face a Goshen Redskins squad that has scored a total of just 26 points in its past three games. Goshen won its season opener at Carroll, but has since lost to Elkhart Central, Elkhart Memorial, NorthWood and Concord. The Tigers have won their last three meetings with the Redskins. This year’s Warsaw team is led offensively by the running game of seniors Zach Rooney and Peyton Balazs. Rooney averages 125 yards per game, while Balazs, who has rushed for the majority of his 271 yards this year in the past two games, averages 54 yards per contest. Warsaw’s receiving corps is led by senior Jordan Wray (6 catches, 115 yds, 2 TDs) and junior Taylor Cone (6 catches, 126 yds). Sophomore quarterback Austin Head has completed 10 of 32 passes for 189 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions. In limited time under center, senior Brock Anson has completed 6 of 12 passes for 68 yards. Defensively, Tristan McClone leads Warsaw with 24 tackles, while Cameron Fritzel and Zach Shepler have 23 tackles each and Lance Lybarger has made 19 tackles. Goshen is led offensively by senior running back Chunie Pung, who has rushed for 416 yards and two touchdowns this season. Jensen: “We’re on the right path, but we’re not there yet. We talked about the undefeated season we had (in 2001), and we didn’t know we were gonna be undefeated until we were. We had to come out and play hard every game and work hard in every practice. The kids on this team have improved, and we’ve made some changes, and we need to come out and play hard every Friday. Goshen is 1-4, but we can’t get wrapped up in that. They’ve been in every game, and they’ve played three of the best teams in the conference.”
WABASH AT TIPPY VALLEY (TRC) Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Akron Coaches: Floyd McWhirt (Wabash), Jeff Shriver (T. Valley) Records: Wabash 2-3, 0-3 TRC; T. Valley 3-2, 3-0 TRC Last Game: Whitko 35, Wabash 0; T. Valley 34, Northfield 0 Last Year: T. Valley 54, Wabash 0 Matchup: With a 34-0 win at Northfield, the Tippecanoe Valley Vikings have outscored their Three Rivers Conference opponents 137-34 and are in a four-way tie at the top of the league standings. North Miami, Rochester, Valley and Whitko are all 3-0 in the TRC, while Manchester, Northfield, Southwood and Wabash are 0-3. Friday, the Vikings host a Wabash team that lost 35-0 to Whitko last week and has been outscored 120-28 by conference teams. The Vikings and Apaches have met five times on the football field, with Valley owning a 5-0 record and outscoring Wabash by a total of 281-41 in those games. Through five games this season, the Vikings’ ground game has been led by junior Justin Gunter, who has carried the ball 76 times for 508 yards, and sophomore Nolan Sponseller, who has rushed for 271 yards on 65 carries. Sophomore quarterback Ben Shriver has completed 26 of 48 passing attempts for 621 yards and six touchdowns. All six touchdowns, and the majority of Shriver’s completions, have been caught by sophomore Tanner Andrews, who has 15 catches for a TRC-high 443 yards. Andrews averages nearly 30 yards per catch. For the Apaches, Tyler Brewer has carried the ball 59 times for 218 yards, while Nathan Price has rushed 52 times for 150 yards. Price has also completed 44 of 82 passing attempts for 642 yards and six touchdowns. Cody Beeks leads the Wabash receiving corps with 17 catches for 156 yards. Shriver: “We’ve growing up every game. We’re playing a lot of young kids, and we’re getting better each day. That’s a huge positive. We lost our first two games, but nothing beats the pain of losing like a win. The younger kids are starting to understand that they’re capable of competing at the high level we’re looking for. We want to win a Three Rivers Conference championship, and every game is important. We’re not overlooking anybody. Wabash is much-improved and more fundamentally sound than they have been in the past. We were able to see them play at TRC Day at Ball State, and they took the ball down the field and scored right away on a very good North Miami team. Wabash is very explosive with big-play potential. If they do what they’re capable of doing, they an compete with any team they play.”
NORTHFIELD AT WHITKO (TRC) Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in South Whitley Coaches: Justin Schuhmacher (Northfield), Wayne Swender (Whitko) Records: Northfield 2-3, 0-3 TRC; Whitko 3-2, 3-0 TRC Last Game: T. Valley 34, Northfield 0; Whitko 35, Wabash 0 Last Year: Whitko 35, Northfield 14 Matchup: After opening the season with losses at Wawasee and Columbia City, the Whitko Wildcats appear to have found their stride. The Wildcats, who will play their first game in South Whitley since Week 7 of last season, are 3-0 against Three Rivers Conference opponents and are in a four-way tie atop the league with North Miami, Rochester and Tippecanoe Valley. In dominating fashion, Whitko has defeated TRC foes Southwood (45-0), Manchester (34-0) and Wabash (35-0). Whitko has won its last 10 conference games, and against Northfield, the Wildcats have won three straight and 13 of the last 15. Ian Pherigo, Alex Stoddard and Chris Bumbaugh lead Whitko’s ground game. Pherigo has carried the ball 56 times for 215 yards and two touchdowns, while Stoddard has 207 yards and three TDs on 52 carries and Bumbaugh has 174 yards and two scores on 51 carries. Stoddard has also completed 47 of 66 passes for 553 yards and six touchdowns. Derek Snep has been Stoddard’s favorite target, and he has reeled in 26 catches for 284 yards and five touchdowns. Connor Stouder has caught 13 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown. For the Northfield Norsemen, Andy Roser has 259 rushing yards on 49 attempts, while Austin Curless has carried the ball 45 times 101 yards. From his quarterback position, Curless has completed 45 of 98 pass attempts for 711 yards and five touchdowns. Jared Kirtlan has caught 14 passes for 204 yards and two scores, while Joe Frieden has reeled in eight passes for 108 yards and one touchdown.
PLYMOUTH AT WAWASEE (NLC) Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. Friday in Syracuse Coaches: John Barron (Plymouth), Tom Wogomon (Wawasee) Records: Plymouth 3-2 (2-1 NLC), Wawasee 3-2 (2-1 NLC) Last Game: Memorial 35, Plymouth 0; Wawasee 20, NorthWood 12 Last Year: Wawasee 27, Plymouth 17 Matchup: While Concord sits atop the Northern Lakes Conference standings at 4-0, Wawasee and Plymouth join Warsaw as three teams with 2-1 conference marks. With all three of those one-loss teams yet to play Concord, each game from here-on-out has big implications on deciding a conference champion. For Wawasee, that journey begins with the Plymouth Rockies, a team it defeated 27-17 in Plymouth last year. This season, the two teams enter the game having scored 66 points each in NLC action, while Plymouth has surrendered 28 more points in the those games. In all, the Rockies have outscored their five opponents 108-102, while Wawasee holds a 92-45 advantage over its foes. Following an opening-game loss to Class 2A No. 6 Bremen, the Rockies went on to win three-straight games by an average score of 33-15, but had that streak snapped with a 35-0 loss at Elkhart Memorial last week. In that loss, running back Sam Stevens was held to 41 yards on 15 carries, even though he had averaged over 200 yards in the team’s previous two wins. With Stevens stopped, quarterback Ike Kastner completed 7 of 17 passes for 75 yards, leaving the Rockies with just 213 total yards. To get their second-straight win over the Rockies, the Warriors will need to look to stop Plymouth’s offense, which is something the Warriors have done, limiting teams to only nine points a game. Defensively, Wawasee is giving up 218 total yards a game, 169 on the ground. The defense has also posted seven takeaways, and the offense has helped, turning it over just once. With the defense holding teams in check and the offense not making mistakes, place kicker Kyle Clevenger is second on the team in points with 24, six behind quarterback Bauer Schmeltz. On the year, Clevenger has made 9 of 11 PATs, while converting 5 of 7 field goals, his long being from 39 yards. Wogomon: “Plymouth is such a solid program in the NLC. I am positive that coach Barron will arrive in Syracuse Friday with his team ready to go. We have got to be ready for another physical, hard-nosed game. Plymouth is still a run-oriented offense, however so far this year they have done it with the option attack. (Sam) Stevens, is a tough back and (Ike) Kastner has a real good understanding of reading the defense; he know when to give, when to keep it and when to pitch it. So we must play disciplined, assignment football when we’re on defense.”
MANCHESTER AT ROCHESTER (TRC) Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Rochester Coaches: Brandon Baker (Manchester), Mark Miller (Rochester) Records: Manchester 0-5 (0-3 TRC), Rochester 3-2 (3-0 TRC) Last Game: North Miami 49, Manchester 28; Rochester 74, Southwood 28 Last Year: Rochester 35, Manchester 7 Matchup: Entering this Three Rivers Conference game without a win Friday, the Manchester Squires are coming across as Rochester Zebras team averaging 41 points a game, and 53 in their last three games. Running back Zac Shultz has been a big part of the Zebras success, having rushed for 603 yards, averaging 8.6 an attempt. When Rochester isn’t running the ball, quarterback Jon O’Dell has thrown for a TRC-high 843 yards and 13 touchdown passes, with Collyn Bennett hauling in 14 passes for 341 yards and eight touchdowns. In that passing offense, Bennett averages 24.4 yards a catch, but he isn’t the only Zebra making plays down the field. Zac Shoen has caught 10 passes for 280 yards and Zac Scobie has seven receptions for 104 yards. Because Manchester’s defense is surrendering 37 points per game, ball control will be key. Last week against North Miami, all four of the Squires’ scores were via the run, with quarterback Logan Brunn running for two scores, while Preston Penrod had a 61-yard scamper and Gunnar Ream also ran for one. Rochester currently owns an eight-game winning streak over the Squires and Manchester hasn’t won in Rochester since 1998. Baker: “We made some good strides on offense last week, but took a huge step back on defense. Rochester is able to run and throw the ball pretty well. We have to be willing to accept our job and do it every play. We need to build off the positives and fix our mistakes if we want to be successful.”
TRITON AT NEW PRAIRIE (NSC) Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. (EDT) Friday in New Carlisle Coaches: Rodney Younis (Triton), Marty Mosson (New Prairie) Records: Triton 0-5 (0-3 NSC), New Prairie 0-5 (0-3 NSC) Last Game: Glenn 62, Triton 7; Jimtown 41, New Prairie 0 Last Year: New Prairie 13, Triton 6 Matchup: Northern State Conference play hasn’t been kind to New Prairie or Triton. In their three games, New Prairie has been outscored 130-39, while Triton has seen a difference of 137-10. Friday night in New Carlisle, something will have to give as each team enters the game at 0-5, 0-3 in the NSC. Along with their records, the two teams stats are also similar, as Triton is getting beaten by an average score of 46-12 and New Prairie has seen a 43-12 discrepancy. On the year, New Prairie quarterback Cody Carlisle has attempted just 38 passes, completing 13 and throwing five picks, meaning the ground game has been important. Along with throwing the ball, Carlisle has also been the Cougars’ top rusher, running for 291 yards and four touchdowns, while Wade Young has 277 yards on 32 less carries. The ground game has been almost as important to the Trojans. After opening-game starter Zak Shively went down with a broken ankle, Bryson Mosier has stepped in, completing 31 of 67 attempts for 350 yards, four touchdowns and seven interceptions. If Triton’s going to get its first win against New Prairie since 1997, the ground game will need to be working and Cody Shively has been the team’s best runner. Through five games, Cody Shively has 230 yards on 53 carries. Younis: “We go into each week with the same mentality. We want to improve from the week before and give our best effort. New Prairie has a talented team. Their quarterback is a very good athlete. They run an option attack offense. We must maintain our discipline on defense to shut down what they want to do. We are focused on the little things. Winning will take care of itself as long as week get better with the little things.”
