By Staff
The Niles junior varsity football team improved to 3-2-1 on the season with a 54-24 rout of Benton Harbor Thursday night.
Niles was ahead by 30 points at halftime and enacted the 35-point mercy rule several times in the second half.
Mason Stephenson scored four touchdowns for Niles and Quinton King added two touchdown runs of 70 and 80 yards.
Nick Etzcorn made good on each of his extra point kicks and Jake Groves scored a touchdown off an interception return. Mike Cole also had an interception and Rick Storm was a leader on defense.
The Niles freshmen football team improved to 5-1 on the year with a 42-12 victory over Benton Harbor Thursday night.
Isaiah Glaze scored on a 65-yard touchdown run to give Niles an early 6-0 lead. The Tigers, however, came right back and scored on a 65-yard play of their own to tie the game.
Bobby Anton regained the lead for the Vikings with his 27-yard touchdown run. Glaze's two-point conversion gave Niles a 14-6 lead.
Benton Harbor again matched the touchdown but could not complete the two-point conversion.
Jonathan Smith intercepted a pass to start a 90-yard drive that ended with Antoine Gray's 29-yard touchdown run.
Smith then recovered a fumble on Benton Harbor's next possession to start another drive that ended with a touchdown pass from Jake Messner to Keith Bouwkamp. Gray carried in the two-point conversion.
Niles scored again before halftime on Messner's one-yard quarterback sneak.
The only score of the second half came in the fourth quarter when Gray went "We played well tonight," Niles freshmen coach Dan Brawley said. "Our backs ran hard but a lot of the credit needs to go to our offensive line of Keith Bouwkamp, Philip Bosler, Micah Barrett, Paul DePoy, Kurt Bourbonnais and Brandon Norris."
The Niles freshmen and junior varsity teams travel to Marshall next Thursday night.
Ring Lardner drops two-point decision at Portage
The Ring Lardner seventh grade football team suffered a 14-12 loss to Portage Central Thursday. The Vikings are now 0-3 on the season.
Portage Central scored first, in the second quarter, to take an 8-0 lead before McCade Reese returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown. Ring Lardner's two-point conversion failed, leaving the Vikings behind 8-6 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Ring Lardner middle linebacker Conrad Muhumuza tangled up countless plays, caused two fumbles and recovered one. Neither team managed a score in the third period.
Following a defensive stand near their own end zone, the Vikings took over on downs at their own six-yard line. On first down, Reese raced 94 yards for the go-ahead score. The conversion failed again, leaving Niles with a slim 12-8 lead.
Portage Central scored late in the fourth quarter to take the 14-12 lead. Ring Lardner did not have enough time to score again and took the loss.