By RICHIE HALL
FISHERS – Fishers’ football season came to an end on Friday, as the Tigers lost the Class 6A Sectional 5 championship game to North Central 42-7 at Reynolds Tigers Stadium.
The Panthers are ranked No. 4 in 6A, and they played like a top-level team in winning their first sectional title since 1993. North Central is now 9-2 for the season and hosts No. 1 Warren Central next week for the Regional championship.
“They’ve had a great year and they were a lot better than we were tonight,” said Fishers coach Rick Wimmer. “I was a little disappointed we didn’t play a little better, but you got to give them a lot of that credit.”
The Panthers wasted no time in getting on the board: Quarterback Liam Thompson threw a pass to Richard Hamilton on the second play of the game, and Hamilton took it in to the end zone for a 51-yard touchdown reception. That gave North Central a 7-0 lead just 59 seconds into the game.
The Tigers held NC to a three-and-out in its next possession, and then recovered a fumble late in the first quarter. That gave Fishers excellent field position, and they took the ball to the five-yard line. Fishers attempted a field goal, but the Panthers blocked the kick, and North Central’s Michael Brown scooped it up and took it 75 yards for a touchdown.
“They busted out a kickoff return on us, then got it going pretty quickly offensively,” said Wimmer. “Then we missed a scoring opportunity, had a chance to tie it up or at least get to 7-3, and they turn it around and make it a 14-point game pretty quick. That was a tough part right there.”
The Panthers led 28-0 at halftime, after Thompson made two more long touchdown passes in the second quarter. In the third period, Thompson ran in for an eight-yard TD with 5:08 left in the quarter, then Daniel Smith scored on a 20-yard touchdown run early in the fourth period. Scott Hoeg made all six extra point kicks.
Fishers got on the board midway through the fourth quarter, when Collin Statz caught a 22-yard touchdowns pass from Marcus Roux. Jack Phillips made the extra point kick. North Central took over and ran the ball and the clock out from there.
Roux finished the game completing 10 of 24 passes for 83 yards, with Statz collecting six receptions for 49 yards and the score. North Central’s defense held Fishers to 71 yards rushing; Roux had the most yardage, 24 in eight carries.
The Tigers finished the season 4-6, but still performed admirably despite dealing with injuries throughout the season.
“I was proud of the way our kids hung together,” said Wimmer.
Fishers quarterback Marcus Roux threw a fourth-quarter touchdown pass during the Tigers’ Sectional 5 championship game with North Central Friday at Reynolds Tigers Stadium. (Kirk Green)
Collin Statz caught Roux’s touchdown pass, and finished the game with six receptions. (Kirk Green)