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Yorktown’s Shawn Llamas
YORKTOWN — It didn’t matter if the ball went to the right or left, but it always went forward.
Yorktown fell 42-28 to Pendleton Heights, with the visiting Arabians doing whatever they wanted to on the ground.
Utilizing a rushing attack headed by Chase Cochran and Logan Drye, Pendleton Heights rushed for 387 total yards, draining the clock throughout the game, dictating the pace and keeping Yorktown’s offense off the field as much as possible.
Pendleton Heights opened the scoring with an 8-yard scamper from Cochran, finishing an eight play, 68-yard drive that looked effortless. The Arabian offense put quarterback Jarrod Hubble under center and Cochran behind him. Before almost every snap, Drye would motion behind the quarterback before the snap, leaving it for the Tigers defense to decipher who the ball was going to.
After a quick Yorktown punt, Pendleton Heights marched down the field again, this time capping the drive with a 1-yard touchdown plunge from Hubble. Yorktown often lost the edge, allowing the Pendleton Heights rushing attack room to run free between the hash marks and sideline.
“Recognizing what they were going to run and getting our guys over there to stop them was a problem,” Yorktown’s Shawn Llamas said. “Having enough people and making tackles, they broke a few. Little things like that.”
Even after Yorktown responded with a touchdown pass from Brogan Miller to Nathan Preston to cut into the lead, the Arabians continued motioning its halfbacks, sweeping right and left, often faking to Payton Huth before pitching or handing off to Cochran or Drye. Pulling side-to-side faster than Yorktown could respond, Cochran scored from seven yards out to give his team a 21-7 lead going into halftime.
“Pendleton Heights had guys at the point of attack and we didn’t do a good enough job disrupting their lanes,” Yorktown coach Mike Wilhelm said.
Miller fired two more touchdowns in the second half, but Pendleton Heights responded with touchdowns from Cochran and Drye. Cochran finished with four rushing touchdowns, the biggest thorn in Yorktown’s side. Jordan Spangler added a touchdown for the Tigers, finishing with a team-high 65 yards on the ground.
Yorktown had life late in the fourth quarter, with the ball in Pendleton Heights territory, but an interception quelled the drive and clinched the game for the Arabians. It was the third turnover of the game for the Tigers.
Contact prep sports reporter David Polaski at dpolaski@muncie.gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidPolaskiTSP
