Patriots put together complete game for win over Mt. Vernon
The Patriots were on a mission Friday night. Not even a 2 hour and 20 minute drive to their game destination could get in the way of the task at hand. Owen Valley was hungry for a playoff victory.
"I think, overall, that might be the best complimentary football game we've played in a while," Owen Valley head coach said after Friday night's win over Mt. Vernon.
The Patriot offense put up 35 points on the 5-4 Mt. Vernon Wildcats Friday night. After a scoreless first quarter, OV's Christian McDonald scored the first touchdown of the night. The Patriots went for it on 4th and 3, getting the first down and on the second play from the line of scrimmage, McDonald punched the ball in for six points. Connor Wardlaw was good on the extra point for the 7-0 lead.
Junior Tim Harden came away with a big interception as Mt. Vernon hurdled the ball downfield looking for a monster play of their own. Harden's interception helped to spark the defense further, which held the Wildcats scoreless in the first half.
A big 70-yard run down the far sideline by Chris Zeilstra a short time later put the Patriots in scoring position again. McDonald again got the call and with 8:06 on the clock, OV scored again to go up 14-0 with Wardlaw's extra point. Just before halftime, Owen Valley was on the move again with Zeilstra making a great catch in the endzone for six. Another Wardlaw extra point put the Patriots up 21-0.
Mt. Vernon was able to score a touchdown with 5:30 left in the third, but a monster kick return by Zeilstra set the Patriots up again and a OV went up 28-7 on the third McDonald touchdown of the night. To cap off the hard-fought game, Brody Lester scampered into the endzone on another huge run. Wardlaw's extra point gave the Patriots a comfortable 35-7 lead in the fourth. As time wound down, the Wildcats punched the ball in one last time, making the final 35-14.
Outstanding offense, great defense, including stopping the Wildcats in the red zone and several sacks on the night, helped propel the Patriots to the second round of play.
"I thought our offense complimented the defense," Coach Gibson continued. "I thought our defense complimented our offense and our special team's units, every single one of them tonight were phenomenal. Our kick-off team was lights out, our punt team was great, kick-off return was really good, punt return was phenomenal. We were five-for-five on PATs (points after touchdowns), so I thought special teams-wise we had a really good night. If we can do that, play well on defense, play well on offense and make that whole thing glue together, we like our chances to compete with anybody."
Many are touting this sectional 30, round two game as one of the best match-ups in the state this Friday night. Sixth-ranked and undefeated Owen Valley (10-0) will host the second-ranked and undefeated Gibson Southern Titans (10-0) on Patriot field Friday night. The game is set to kick-off at 7 p.m. The defending 3A state champion Titans won their first round sectional game over Vincennes Lincoln (4-6) by a score of 63-42.
This article originally appeared on Evening World: Patriots put together complete game for win over Mt. Vernon
