By RICHIE HALL
CARMEL – Carmel football players know to be ready, because every Greyhound will eventually have his day.
And usually, more than one Greyhound has his day at the same time.
Dylan Downing got the Greyhounds on the board Friday as Carmel hosted Merrillville in the Class 6A north semi-state. Gabe Quigley came in again as quarterback to throw a great game. The defense came through. Add it all up and Carmel was a winner over the Pirates, 38-17, giving the ‘Hounds another semi-state championship and another trip to the state finals.
Carmel will play Center Grove next Saturday (Nov. 30) in the 6A title game. This will be the Greyhounds’ 16th appearance at state, a new record for most trips to the big game. Carmel also won it’s 13th semi-state championship and it’s 10th in the last 14 years.
The Greyhounds make it look easy, but coach John Hebert knows the truth.
“It’s hard,” said Hebert. “You just can’t count on it happening. And this is the round right here that’s tough, too. It’s the semi-state, because every team in it is riding momentum and playing great. Merrillville, I mean, 11-1, they lost by one point to Valpo. That was a tough team to beat. We got some scores and that helped us bust it open a little bit. They’re a better team than that score shows.”
The game was scoreless for most of the first quarter. Carmel broke through with just under two minutes to go when Dylan Downing found an opening and rushed 51 yards into the end zone. Spencer Hanna made the extra point kick.
“I was concerned about how points were going to be achieved, because we had the disruption to our lineup,” said Hebert. “We’ve got to go through these things, it’s late in the season to be going through that. But Dylan carried us there with that run. He made several guys miss and then he outran the guys that had the line on him. Big-time players make big-time plays and that’s what he did.”
The Pirates kicked a field goal early in the second quarter to get on the scoreboard. Carmel’s lead stayed 7-3 for most of that period, but the ‘Hounds added a quick 10 points in the last two minutes of the half.
Quigley found Colton Parker for a 33-yard touchdown pass with 1:57 remaining. Hanna made the extra point, then a few minutes later kicked a 43-yard field goal. Carmel now had a 17-3 halftime lead.
That lead ballooned to 38-3 after three quarters. Zach White punched the ball in from the one-yard line, Ty Wise took a fumble recovery 67 yards into the end zone, and Parker caught a second touchdown pass from Quigley, this one for 48 yards.
Quigley finished the game 8-of-11 for 123 yards. He has been filling in for injured Zach Osborne since the regional game, and has stepped up big time.
“We’re really fortunate to have two quarterbacks like that,” said Hebert. “He’s been great for us.”
“And I kept telling him, ‘Your time is going to come,’” said Hebert. “’We’re going to need you. You’re going to be somebody we’re going to ride when we need you.’ And he’s done that. He got us through last week. He scored 14 points for us, led us through regional. And now a semi-state championship, so one more game to go.”
Carmel’s defense also had another strong performance, holding Merrillville to three points for most of the game. The Pirates scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, but the game had been decided by then.
“I can’t say enough about how great our defense has been this year,” said Hebert. “Just took to fight and not give in and not give anything easy to our opponents. We’ve leaned on it all year and hopefully it’ll carry us all the year.”
Quigley and Downing finished as Carmel’s rushing co-leaders, each gaining 79 yards. Parker totaled six catches for 114 yards.
The Greyhounds are 10-3 for the season.
CARMEL 38, MERRILLVILLE 17
Score by Quarters
Merrillville 0 3 0 14 – 17
Carmel 7 10 21 0 – 38
Team Stats MHS CHS
First Downs 16 14
By Rush 8 11
By Pass 8 3
By Penalty 0 0
Rushes-Yards 35-122 39-216
Yards Passing 128 123
Comp-Att-Int-TD 11-30-2-0 8-12-1-2
Fumbles-Lost 2-1 1-0
Penalties-Yards 4-48 3-56
Punts-Average 4-42.8 3-38.3
Carmel Scoring
First Quarter
1:51 – Dylan Downing 51-yard run(Spencer Hanna kick)
Second Quarter
1:57 – Colton Parker 33-yard pass from Gabe Quigley (Hanna kick)
0:29 – Hanna 43-yard field goal
Third Quarter
8:17 – Zach White 1-yard run (Hanna kick)
5:45 – Ty Wise 67-yard fumble recovery (Hanna kick)
2:31 – Parker 48-yard pass from Quigley (Hanna kick)
Carmel individual stats
Rushing: Quigley 8-79, Downing 7-79, John Rogers 7-37, White 6-29, Zyavonta Blackburn 5-0, Erik Allen 2-minus 2, Zach Osborne 4-minus 6.
Passing: Quigley 8-11-123, Osborne 0-1-0.
Receiving: Parker 6-114, Downing 1-5, Baron Smith 1-4.
Carmel’s offense prepares for a play during the first quarter of the Greyhounds’ semi-state championship game with Merrillville at Carmel Stadium. The Greyhounds won 38-17, earning another trip to the state finals. (Richie Hall)