-School record 5 touchdown first quarter keeps M-U perfect in league play.
By Brett Barnes
Head Coach Bret Pearce was asked before the game with Preble Shawnee if he was at all concerned about a letdown following last week’s 51-42 victory over Carlisle. A letdown wasn’t the only worry on his mind. “{We are} very concerned. With a huge game last week and another big one next week (Homecoming), Preble is a ‘trap game’. We are still a little banged up, and the weather can also be a big equalizer. We have to come out with some passion and try to deflate them early.
He didn’t need to worry.
Milton-Union set a school record, scoring five touchdowns in the first quarter in thoroughly dismantling the Preble Shawnee Arrows 61-0. M-U was efficient throughout the game turning the ball over only once in conditions that Noah himself would have been appalled to be in. Game time temperatures sat steady at 46 degrees and a driving rain continued throughout the contest.
The old cliché in sports is, “If it were a fight it should have been stopped.” It should have been stopped. M-U received the opening kick and drove 53 yards without resistance, scoring on David Karns’ 6-yd run. Preble would punt every possession of the first quarter, and they were “knocked down” each time. Bradley Stine took the first swing with an 86-yard burst for his first varsity touchdown. Then it was London Cowan and Karns hooking up from 53-yards on a beautiful pass and catch. Tyler Brown joined the fray with a 12-yard dash, hurtling a defender and scoring untouched. Finally, Karns broke free one more time, this time from 55-yards away. Nick Fields boomed each extra point and at the end of fifteen minutes of play, M-U led 35-0.
The second quarter calmed down a bit with just one score, when Sam Niswonger joined the party with a 31-yard touchdown scamper. At the half M-U had 360 total yards to Shawnee’s 40.
The final half was all about the kids and the future. Kenton Dickison hit Sam Morgan from 14-yards away on fourth down for Morgan’s first varsity touchdown. Kodey Wolf scampered 38-yards for his first varsity touchdown. Finally, Chase Martens sprinted 41-yards scoring his first varsity touchdown. Matt Bracci added the PAT for his initial varsity point.
The Bulldogs move to 6-1, and they have a realistic opportunity to do three things in their final three games: win the SWBL outright, earn the right to host a playoff game, and score more points than any football team in M-U football history. Next week: Homecoming- Dixie- 7:30 Memorial Stadium
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