Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
NORTH MANCHESTER – Going into senior night at home with an 0-6 record, the Manchester Squires probably would have wanted nothing more than to send off the outgoing seniors with a win. Only the Whitko Wildcats stood in the way of the Squires and win number one.
Despite showing massive signs of improvement since the start of the season, Whitko's Hunter Reed proved to be too much as the Wildcats prevailed 31-20 in spoiling the Squires' senior night.
Reed finished with 248 yards and 3 touchdowns in the win. Garrett Elder also rushed 18 times for 156 yards and a score. Even senior quarterback Colin Craig completed six of his eight passes for 126 yards and a score for the Cats (6-1, 4-1 TRC), in showing off their air performance.
"Hunter and Garrett had a good night of running the ball. Our passing game had finally come together like I hoped it would. It was just a good night of football for us," said Whitko head football coach Jeff Sprunger.
Although their offense was fine, Sprunger said they need to make adjustments going forward.
"We have got things we need to clean up on. We did not tackle like we are capable of tackling," said Sprunger. "We didn't have guys flying to the ball like we are capable of.”
Manchester drew first blood using a balanced attack from junior halfback Josh Shepherd and junior quarterback Hayes Sturtsman. The Squires jumped out in front 8-0 on a two-yard run from Shepherd and the two-point conversion on a pass from Sturtsman to junior receiver Devon Rooney.
Sturtsman had a solid outing, completing 11 of his 18 passes for 235 yards and a touchdown. Shepherd finished his night with six touches for 33 yards and a score.
After failing to score in the opening quarter, Whitko needed an answer – and they got it with their running game. Reed scored twice and Elder ripped a 75-yard touchdown run before halftime to give themselves a 19-8 lead – a more comfortable position.
Manchester (0-7, 0-5 TRC) was not done, though. A 63-yard run from Sturtsman with 14 seconds remaining in the half made it only a five point deficit.
It was neck-and-neck for most of the game, but Reed took over and kept the game out of reach on a 158 yard second-half performance.
The Wildcats finished with 543 yards of total offense while Manchester posted 327 yards of offense.
The Squires' head coach Greg Miller was not available for comment following the game.
Manchester will try again at their first win when they face the Rochester Zebras on Friday before the TRC playoffs in two weeks.
Whitko has a chance at the TRC North division title when they face the Northfield Norsemen in what might be the Cats' biggest challenge of the season.
"We have the chance to control our own destiny," said Sprunger. "And we have got to take care of business next week and we have got to play disciplined football. We are getting better, but we are still not where we want to be.
WHITKO 31, MANCHESTER 20
W 0 19 6 6 – 31
M 8 6 6 0 – 20
W M
Rushing yds 417 137
Passing yds 126 246
Total yds 543 383
Fumbles/lost 2/1 1/1
Penalties/yds 5/45 1/10
First Quarter
M – Josh Shepherd 2 run (Devon Rooney run) 4:27, 8-0
Second Quarter
W – Hunter Reed 6 run (Garrett Elder kick) 7:16, 8-7
W – Reed 2 run (conversion failed) 3:24, 13-8
W – Elder 75 run (conversion failed) :38, 19-8
M – Hayes Sturtsman 63 run (kick blocked) :14, 19-14
Third Quarter
W – Craig Hewitt 16 pass from Colin Craig (conversion failed) 2:42, 25-14
M – Kane Gable 75 pass from Sturtsman (conversion failed) 2:14, 25-20
Fourth Quarter
W – Reed 1 run (conversion failed) 6:19, 31-20
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing – Whitko, Reed 33-248, Garrett Elder 18-156, Craig 3-8, Robby Owsley 1-5; Manchester, Sturtsman 3-97, Shepherd 9-47, Devin Rooney 1-0, Delton Moore 5-(minus 7).
Passing – Whitko, Craig 6-8-126 yds. 1 TD, 0 Int.; Manchester; Hayes Sturtsman 11-19-246 yds. 1 TD, 0 Int.
Receiving: Whitko, Owsley 2-69, Hewitt 3-44, Reed 1-13 Manchester, Rooney 3-114, Kane Gable 1-75, Remington Trick 1-24, Moore 3-16, Nick Wagner 1-7, Parker Yard 1-6, Shepherd 1-4.
