Get ready for Mudsock football Part 2 – with another trophy on the line.
Fishers and Hamilton Southeastern will play each other tonight for the Class 6A Sectional 3 championship. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. at the Tigers’ field. The winner of this game will not only receive a sectional trophy, but also advance to play another Hamilton County team next Friday in the Regional 2 championship game.
Close Mudsock
When the two teams met back on Sept. 9 in the Mudsock game, the Royals hosted that one. It turned out to be a classic, as Southeastern needed overtime to get past Fishers, 28-27.
The Royals have since rolled to a 10-0 record, beating Brownsburg 31-28 on Oct. 14 to clinch an unbeaten Hoosier Crossroads Conference championship and finish the season ranked No. 1 in both the Class 6A Associated Press and Indiana Football Coaches Association rankings. Southeastern easily won its first sectional game, cruising past Homestead 35-0.
“HSE is sound in all three phases of the game,” said Tigers coach Curt Funk. “Their defense makes you earn every inch and fly to the football. They are very balanced on offense and can hurt you in both the run and pass game. I don’t see any weakness in their special teams. This is why they are undefeated.”
Senior quarterback Ty Bradle has had a good season, completing 120 of 204 pass attempts for 1,503 yards and 16 touchdowns. Junior Donovan Hamilton is on top of the receivers with 43 catches, nine for touchdowns. Senior Clayton Wilke has 35 receptions, two for scores.
On the ground, junior Jalen Alexander has rushed for 999 yards, scoring 11 TDs this season. Senior Griffen Haas leads the tackles with 76, while senior Evan Sherrill has 15.5 tackles for a loss and 7.5 sacks. Senior Dom Burgett has made 5.5 sacks. Senior Carter Gutt is perfect on extra-point kicks, making all 42.
“We are consistently working to get better,” said HSE coach Michael Kelly. He said the coaching staff is challenging its players to set high goals, “and challenge them to hold themselves accountable to the standards necessary to reach those goals.”
Fishers has had a pretty good season, too. The Tigers are 7-3, having won four of their last five games. That includes a 49-7 victory over Fort Wayne Northrop in their sectional opener last week.
Kelly called Fishers a very well-coached team. “They have a lot of talent on both sides of the ball,” he said. Kelly noted that the Tigers have been able to execute at a high level and “their players made plays.”
“We will have to win the line of scrimmage, execute, play fast, physical and relentless football,” said Kelly.
Senior quarterback Lucas Minns is 71-of-139 through the air, totaling 1,029 yards and 12 touchdowns. Seniors Aidan Zimmer and Carson Dunn each have made 23 catches, with Dunn getting three touchdown receptions and Zimmer making two.
Junior Khobie Martin has had a great season, with 1,135 rushing yards and 15 TDs. Dunn has totaled 699 yards on the ground and scored nine times. Senior Grady Stanley leads the tackles with 70, while junior Brady Wolf has 19.5 tackles for a loss and 14 sacks.
“I am proud of our team,” said Funk. “We have lost some close games and we have responded and worked for improvement. We keep challenging our team to play a complete game.”
Fishers’ Khobie Martin (24) has rushed for 1,135 yards and 15 touchdowns. Also pictured is quarterback Lucas Minns (12), who has thrown for 1,029 yards and 12 scores. (Joshua Herd/File photo)
Noblesville-Westfield
The winner of the Sectional 3 championship will take on the winner of the Sectional 4 championship between Noblesville and Westfield. That game kicks off at 7 p.m. tonight at the Shamrocks’ Riverview Health Stadium.
The No. 9-ranked ‘Rocks are 7-3 for the season and have won their last four games. When the two teams met on Sept. 9 at the Millers’ Beaver Stadium, Westfield won a very close contest, 34-33. The Shamrocks beat Carmel 28-9 last week in their first sectional game.
“They’ve improved tremendously,” said Noblesville coach Dave Sharpe. “Beating Carmel very convincingly has our attention.”
Senior quarterback Cole Ballard has been outstanding, going 113-of-192 for 1,510 yards and 10 touchdowns. Sophomore Gabe Aramboles leads the receptions with 29, including two for TDs, while junior Maximus Nosler has 26 catches, with four touchdowns.
Sophomore Kendall Garnett is on top of the rushing list with 678 yards and nine touchdowns, with Ballard next in line by gaining 534 yards and scoring 12 TDs. Senior Tyler Dikos has 116 tackles to lead the defense, while sophomore Lennox Cruz Williams has 4.5 sacks and junior Cooper Vondersaar four sacks.
Westfield coach Jake Gilbert said his team is going for its seventh sectional title in 10 years.
“Our team has been pretty giddy after the Carmel win,” said Gilbert, but he said the coaching staff has tried to get the Shamrocks refocused on the task at hand, which is taking on Noblesville.
The Millers ended a long drought last Friday by beating Zionsville 35-10 in its sectional opener. It was the first sectional-game victory for Noblesville since 2012. The Millers are 4-6, having won their last two games.
“We are also a very improved team from several weeks ago,” said Sharpe. The coach said the sectional win was “a very big deal to this senior class,” as well as the coaching staff, the rest of the team, the town and the program in general.
“Noblesville looked great last week,” said Gilbert. “It was their best defensive performance. Their offense has been explosive many games this season, so that was something I’ve seen a lot. To win, we have to get off the field defensively. We only stopped them one time last game, so we have to do much better to extend our season. I think we also have to get the ball to our playmakers in space so we can score enough to win. Lastly, I think we have to win the special teams battle. Our last game was so close that the game was essentially even. We have to make plays on special teams. That could be the difference.”
The Millers’ three junior runners have led the way. Logan Shoffner has gained 1,266 yards, Gage Gulley has totaled 554 yards and Blake Widget has run for 447 yards. All three have scored eight touchdowns this season.
Freshman quarterback Landon Hughes is coming along fine, with 467 yards and six touchdowns. Sophomore Aiden Brewer has 14 catches, and both he and Gulley have three TD receptions. Junior Austin Hastings leads the tackles with 129 stops, including three sacks.
“I think our confidence as at an all-time high,” said Sharpe. “We’ve proved to ourselves that we can do this.”
Guerin Catholic-Bishop Chatard
Guerin Catholic will host Bishop Chatard Friday in the Eagles Nest for the Class 3A Sectional 28 championship. The kickoff is at 7 p.m. between the two Circle City Conference schools. The Trojans are ranked No. 3 and the Golden Eagles are No. 9, and both have 7-4 recods.
The two teams played in the regular season on Sept. 23, with Chatard edging out Guerin Catholic 31-30. The Trojans reached the championship game with wins over Northwestern 47-19 and Hamilton Heights 41-14.
In the regular-season game against the Golden Eagles, quarterback Drew Vanvleet was 21-for-29, with 207 yards and two touchdowns. Aiden Duncan had five of those receptions, with Jef Waugh and Colin Guy each catching one touchdown pass. Jack Weybright had 135 yards rushing and Joe Bridenstine totaled 78 yards, with both scoring one TD.
Guerin Catholic has won its last three games, including sectional wins over Oak Hill 24-21 and Tippecanoe Valley 34-14. For the season, sophomore quarterback Malcolm Houze has thrown for 1,332 yards and 12 touchdowns. Senior Will Fremion has 50 receptions, including nine for scores.
Senior Justin Zdobylak has been solid on the ground, rushing for 1,152 yards and 10 touchdowns. Senior Luke Moody leads the defense with 104 tackles, followed by junior Gavin Stella with 92 stops, 10 for a loss.
Sheridan-Hagerstown
Sheridan will go on the road for the Sectional 45 championship, traveling to Hagerstown for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
The Tigers are 7-4 for the season, with regular-season wins over Knightstown 50-26, Union City 56-14, Union County 26-7, Cambridge City Lincoln 55-12 and Winchester 27-19. Hagerstown has lost to Centerville 47-7, Shenandoah 36-8, Tri 41-0 and Northeastern 42-6.
In the sectional, the Tigers have cruised to wins over Wes-Del 39-7 and Tindley 41-0. Junior quarterback Kayne Ervin is 89-of-148 through the air, with 1,203 yards and 13 touchdowns to his credit. Senior Mason Romack has 38 receptions, six for scores.
Romack is also the leading rusher, with 803 yards and 12 TDs, followed by sophomore Aiden Grover, who has 793 yards and 13 touchdowns to his credit. Junior Peyton Meyer dominates the defense with 147 tackles, 17 for a loss, while sophomore Roy Thornbury has made 10 tackles for a loss, with 4.5 sacks.
The No. 5-ranked Blackhawks are 10-1, and reached the championship with wins over Union City 62-0 and Monroe Central 42-26. Senior Peyton Cross has had a sensational season rushing the ball, with 1,854 yards and 23 touchdowns. Junior Zach Bales has gained 631 yards and 10 scores, while senior Jacob Jones has rushed for 564 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Sophomore quarterback Caleb Alexander has thrown for 378 yards and five TDs, with Jones making two touchdown receptions. Junior Trent DeCraene has nine catches. On defense, Bales leads with 123 tackles, followed by Jones with 120 and Cross with 108. Jones has made 17 tackles for a loss, with Bales getting 11 and Cross 10. DeCraene has made four sacks.