Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
BOURBON - Triton's varsity football team only held one lead in it's Northern State Conference battle with LaVille Friday, but it was when it mattered most.
It allowed coach Rod Wildman to raise his arms in celebration. It allowed players to dump a cooler of ice water on Wildman.
Most importantly, it gave the Trojans their second win of the season.
After trailing 6-2 at halftime, Triton came from behind to win 17-14, improving to 2-5 overall and 1-4 in conference play. LaVille falls to 0-6 and 0-5.
"This was our first homecoming or conference win in four years," Wildman said. "The last conference team we beat was LaVille. It was nice to play a 1A school again."
Earlier in the week, Wildman said the team that scored first would be in good shape. For a little over two quarters, that team was the visiting Lancers.
With his team leading 6-2, LaVille 5-foot-9, 195-pound junior running back Shaun Tribbey took a handoff from quarterback John Albert and sprinted 70 yards to paydirt. With a two-point conversion run from Tribbey, the Lancers led 14-2 with 11:08 remaining in the third quarter.
After the Trojans went three-and-out, LaVille began marching down the field again. Just when Triton needed momentum's gate to swing its way, sophomore Todd Blackford came up with a huge interception that gave the Trojans the ball on LaVille's 35-yard line.
"The momentum changed with that interception," Wildman said. "We had a bad first half. That interception was huge. We had a lot of penalties and stupid plays in the first half and we were only down 6-2. Until that interception I thought we were done. With the long runs they had I thought it was over."
With senior Steven Boyer under center, the game was far from over for the Trojans.
After throwing an incompletion on the first play after Blackford's interception, the 6-1, 180-pound Boyer carried his team as if he had the world's broadest shoulders.
On second-and-10 from the 35, Boyer picked up 10 yards on the ground, handed off to Bryan Watkins who gained five more yards, and then ran consecutively for 15 more yards, the last 12 coming on a touchdown trot with 5:09 remaining. After an extra-point kick from Brandon Garey, Triton trailed just 14-9.
"Right after that interception Steven Boyer said he was gonna take over," Wildman said. "I thought that was neat. He was named homecoming king too, what else could you ask for?"
Despite losing a large number of yards on a trio of bad snaps that led to a third-and-50 midway through the second quarter, Boyer still managed 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 26 carries. Sophomore Aric Hooley added 19 yards on five carries, while Watkins had 12 yards on six carries.
Through the air, Boyer was 11 of 27 for 106 yards, despite throwing three interceptions.
Watkins caught five passes for 61 yards, while Will Anderson had three receptions for 25 yards and Blackford two for 10 yards.
On the first play from scrimmage after Boyer's 12-yard touchdown, Tribbey fumbled the ball, giving Triton possession on the 38.
With his team on his back, Boyer continued to lead the charge for the Trojans.
Boyer rattled off runs of 12 and 14 and then capped off a seven-play, 38-yard drive with a two-yard scamper into the end zone at the 2:13 mark of the third quarter. Boyer added a two-point conversion run, giving Triton a 17-14 lead.
Tribbey tried to be the hero for the Lancers, but on a third-and-six play from the 36, junior Eric Williamson came up with a huge sack, dropping LaVille quarterback John Albert for a six-yard loss.
After a three-and-out for Triton, the Lancers tried to stage one last comeback attempt. Tribbey caught a seven-yard pass, and then rushed for 22 more yards. After an incomplete on first down, Albert was called for intentional grounding, setting up a third-and-24 from the 43. The right-handed signal caller threw his next two passes incomplete and the Trojans walked away victorious.
"Eric Williamson had a huge sack for us," Wildman said. "Our defense played really good. They were marching down the field and we stopped them. The defense played really well."
Tribbey finished the game with 201 yards on 28 carries, while Albert was 4 of 13 through the air for 34 yards with two interceptions.
Triton plays next Friday at Knox.
TRITON 17, NORTHFIELD 14
LaVille (0-7, 0-5) 0 6 8 0 - 14
Triton (2-5, 1-4) 0 2 15 0 - 17
T L
First downs 15 13
Rushing yards 224 222
Passing yards 106 34
Comp.-Att.-Int. 11-27-3 4-13-2
Total offense 234 256
Fumbles/lost 6/1 1/1
Punts/avg. 5-34.2 2-33.5
Penalties/yards 8-40 5-35
Second Quarter
L - Shaun Tribbey 1 run (kick failed) 6-0 L, 8:42
T - Safety 6-2 L, :41
Third Quarter
LV - Tribbey 70 run (Tribbey conversion run) 14-2 L, 11:08
T - Steven Boyer 12 run (Brandon Garey kick) 14-9 L, 5:09
T - Boyer 2 run (Boyer conversion run) 17-14 T, 2:13
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - LaVille, Tribbey 28-201, John Albert 10-13, Dan Nimtz 2-5, Jake Mumm 1-3; Triton, Boyer 26-97, Aric Hooley 5-19, Bryan Watkins 6-12
Passing - LaVille, Albert 4-13-34, 2 INT; Triton, Boyer 11-27-106, 3 INT
Receiving - LaVille, Dennis Bettcher 2-18, Kody Armor 1-9, Tribbey 1-7; Triton, Watkins 5-61, Will Anderson 3-25, Todd Blackford 2-10, Aaron Trieschman 1-10
Warsaw Girls Soccer Team Blanks Wawasee 6-0
By Jen Gibson, TImes-Union Sports Editor
SYRACUSE -ÊIt was senior night at Wawasee's soccer field Friday night, but Warsaw's offensive explosion stole the show.
The Tigers scored six goals and held Wawasee scoreless to pick up their ninth win of the season.
"This group of girls has a lot of speed," said Warsaw coach Brent Wildman. "We finally got them turned to the goal, and we have been scoring well."
The game was tied at zero until the 27:03 mark of the first period of play. Warsaw's Kim Kurosky scored the first goal of the game to put Warsaw up 1-0.
Once the first goal was scored, the Tigers utilized their speed, got on a roll and scored quickly and often against a less experienced Wawasee squad.
Just five minutes after the first goal (with 22:11 showing on the first period clock), Chelsea Boyd increased the Tiger lead to 2-0.
Boyd struck again with 13:03 left in the first period, putting the Tigers up 3-0.
"Chelsea Boyd is very quick," said Wawasee coach Rick Shipley. "She's hard to keep up with."
And the Warsaw squad was not finished. With just 3:08 left in the first period of play, Warsaw's Kristi Haddad slipped in another goal and gave Warsaw a 4-0 lead.
"The girls passed well, shot well, and they were hungry to score," said Wildman.
The Tigers scored yet again in the final two minutes of the first half when Kari Wildman capitalized on a penalty kick. The Warsaw squad took a 5-0 lead into the halftime period.
Warsaw's final goal of the evening came with 13:39 left in the second period of play. Tracy Stump slipped a goal past Wawasee senior goalie Elyse Hardin to make the score 6-0.
"Elyse did a pretty good job at goalie," said Shipley. But when you don't mark the ball well you tend to leave people open. That makes a one-on-one situation with the goalie and makes things hard on her."
The win improves Warsaw's overall record to 9-2-2. Wawasee falls to 1-13-1 one the season.
"Our girls played with intensity," said Shipley. "But we had a lot of young players chasing the ball instead of putting it on the mark. At times we moved the ball well and looked pretty good, but when you play a team like Warsaw with that kind of speed you have to focus on marking the ball. I think we worked together a lot better in the second period."
Warsaw will travel to Goshen for a conference game Monday. Wawasee hosts NorthWood Tuesday.
Whitko Tops North Miami
Times-Union Staff Report
DENVER -ÊA 24-point scoring explosion in the second quarter led the Whitko Wildcats to their third straight Three Rivers Conference win. Whitko defeated North Miami 30-7 Friday night.
After a scoreless first quarter, Whitko scored three touchdowns in just over three minutes to take a 24-0 lead.
With 9:52 showing on the second quarter clock, Burl Haywood ran 61 yards for the first touchdown. Then Alan Robbins scampered 38 yards for the second score at the 8:49 point in the second frame. Haywood scored again on a 6-yard run at the 6:35 mark.
North Miami managed to score once in the third stanza; however, Whitko answered with another touchdown after Haywood returned a fumble recovery 38 yards.
Whitko now sits in a tie for second place in the TRC with Tippecanoe Valley with a 5-2 overall record and a 4-1 mark in conference play. North Miami falls to 1-6 overall and 1-4 in the TRC.
WHITKO 30, NORTH MIAMI 7
Whitko 0 24 6 0 - 30
North Miami 0 0 7 0 - 7
W NM
First downs 7 20
Rushing yards 236 361
Passing yards 13 167
Comp.-Att.-Int. 1-7-1 16-31-3
Total offense 249 528
Fumbles/lost 1-1 3-2
Punts/ave. 4-37 2-38.5
Penalties/yards 9-63 6-30
Second Quarter
W -ÊBurl Haywood 61 run (Brad Walpole pass to Alan Robbins), 8-0 W, 9:52
W -ÊRobbins 38 run (Walpole pass to Justin Hobbs), 16-0 W, 8:49
W -ÊHaywood 6 run (Walpole pass to Haywood), 24-0 W, 6:35
Third Quarter
NM - Kevin Hostetler 52 run (Sean Hannan kick), 24-7 W, 8:18
W -ÊHaywood 38 fumble recovery (pass failed), 30-7 W, 4:07
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Whitko: Haywood 12-92, Brandon Waterson 10-63, Robbins 8-70; North Miami: Brian Williams 7-6, Boyd Smith 7-98, Kevin Hostetler 8-99, Zac Hostetler 9-41
Passing - Whitko: Walpole 1-7-13, 1 INT, 0 TD; North Miami: Zac Hostetler 16-31-167, 3 INT., 0 TD
Receiving - Whitko: Haywood 1-13; North Miami: Derek Haynes 5-55, Mark Hileman 2-24, Tom Bowers 6-63, Kevin Hostetler 1-16
Zebras Drop Vikings
Times-Union Staff Report
ROCHESTER -ÊThe traveling bell will stay in Rochester at least one more year after the Zebras defeated Tippecanoe Valley 17-7 Friday night.
The Vikings took a 7-3 lead into the halftime break, but Rochester fought back in the third frame. On a fourth down and long situation, the Zebras pulled off a trick reverse and scored a touchdown when Brandon Tugmon connected with Gary Rom.
That play put Rochester up 10-7, and the Zebras never looked back. They went on to score another touchdown in the fourth quarter and pick up the 17-7 victory.
Rochester held Tippecanoe Valley to just 22 plays in the entire second half.
"They basically controlled the time of possession in the second half," said Valley coach Scott Bibler.
The win gives Rochester sole possession of first place in the Three Rivers Conference, while Valley falls into a tie for second place in the TRC with Whitko.
The Zebras improve to 6-1 overall and 5-0 in TRC play. Valley is 5-2 on the season and 4-1 in the TRC.
"Our kids played hard," said Bibler. "We just made some mistakes in the second half. Rochester did a nice job controlling the clock.
"Our defense played pretty well, but Rochester just made big plays at key times."
ROCHESTER 17
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 7
T. Valley 0 7 0 0 - 7
Rochester 3 0 7 7 - 17
V R
First downs 12 15
Rushing yards 88 184
Passing yards 128 133
Comp.-Att.-Int. 9-18-0 9-13-1
Total offense 216 317
Fumbles/lost 0-0 5-2
Punts/ave. 4-30 1-37
Penalties/yards 1-5 1-5
First Quarter
R - Gary Rom 28 field goal, 3-0 R
Second Quarter
V - Jon Rice 1 run (Chris Hurd kick) 7-3 V
Third Quarter
R - Rom 11 pass fro Brandon Tugmon (Rom kick), 10-7 R
Fourth Quarter
R -ÊJeff Beyer 8 run (Rom kick), 17-7 R
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Rushing -ÊValley: Jon Rice 12-36
Passing -ÊValley: David Beyers 9-18-128 yards, 1 INT.
Receiving -ÊValley: Trey Eaton 2-31
Ailing Manchester Falls To Southwood
Times-Union Staff Report
WABASH -ÊSouthwood compiled 409 yards of total offense and picked up a 38-14 win over Manchester Friday night.
Early in the first quarter, Southwood and Manchester were tied a 6-all, but the Knights scored five straight touchdowns to take a 38-6 lead into the fourth frame.
An 8-yard trun by Austin Greer made the score 38-14 in the fourth, but the Squires could not overcome the 24-point deficit.
"Josh Staton, Kyle Powers and Aaron Cassel had good games defensively," said Manchester coach Al Bailey, "but we just couldn't keep them out of the endzone. And we just were not able to put the points on the board."
Anthony Sorg led Manchester with seven carries for 53 yards, while Greer added 32 yards on seven carries. Brent Westendorf had one reception for 24 yards, while Kyle Powers added one catch for 10 yards.
The win ups Southwood's record to 3-4 overall and 2-3 in the Three Rivers Conference. Manchester is 3-4 on the season and 2-3 in the TRC.
SOUTHWOOD 38, MANCHESTER 14
Manchester 6 0 0 8 - 14
Southwood 19 12 7 0 - 38
M S
First downs 6 18
Rushing yards 147 272
Passing yards 34 137
Comp.-Att.-Int. 2-13-1 10-14-0
Total offense 181 409
Fumbles/lost 3-1 1-0
Punts/ave. 4-37.0 2-28.5
Penalties/yards 3-11 2-15
First Quarter
S - Tyler Kroft 8 run (kick failed), 6-0 S
M -ÊAnthony Sorg 43 run (kick failed), 6-6
S - Kroft 6 run (Nick Ehret kick), 13-6 S
S - Josh Schoeff 19 run (run failed), 19-6 S
Second Quarter
S - Zach Beals 15 pass from Schoeff (kick failed), 25-6 S
S -ÊBryant Paul 8 pass from Schoeff (pass failed), 31-6 S
Third Quarter
S - Ehret 36 pass from Schoeff (Ehret kick), 38-6 S
Fourth Quarter
M -ÊAustin Greer 8 run (Ryan Roth pass to Brent Westendorf) 38-14 S
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - Manchester: Sorg 7-53, Greer 7-32; Southwood: Paul 18-89, Kroft 11-63
Passing - Manchester: Jared Mobley 1-9-10, 1 INT, 0 TD, Roth 1-4-24, 0 INT, 0 TD; Southwood: Schoeff 10-14-137, 0 INT, 2 TD
Receiving - Manchester: Westendorf 1-24, Kyle Powers 1-10
