Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
NORTH MANCHESTER - The seniors of Manchester football led their team to its first win of the season.
David Barrett led the attack against Mississinewa last night, racking up 189 rushing yards on 20 carries and scoring two touchdowns.
He was a weapon on the ground in the first half for the Squires, who rushed for 235 yards. Barrett led the Squires a year ago with nearly 800 yards rushing, and he picked up in 1998 where he left off in 1997.
"Barrett is a true athlete," coach Al Bailey said. "We got him sweating pretty good toward the second half, but overall, he ran real strong for us."
Although the passing game of Mississinewa picked up since their last meeting in 1994, the Squires retained a stable defense.
"In '94 they beat us with that ground game," Bailey said . "This year they threw in that passing game, and we handled it well."
And handle it well they did.
Manchester had five interceptions total. Rex Reimer picked off the first of four from Indians starting quarterback Braden Bushman.
Manchester also managed to grab one from backup quarterback Justin Planck.
"It's all just a learning experience, and hopefully what we learned today will carry over into next week," Bailey said.
Manchester, 1-0, hosts Heritage at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
