It’s that time of year again, and the Yorktown and Winchester football teams find themselves opening  the season with a number beside their names.

The Tigers debuted at No. 10 in Class 3A  in the first AP state media poll, while the Falcons were sixth in 2A. Outside those two, Monroe Central received six votes in Class A.

Yorktown lost a large senior class of last year’s 11-2 team, but have a full offensive line back, led by Ball State commit Anthony Todd. The Falcons are led by Mr. Football contender and Michigan commit Kiante Enis, who posted the fourth-most rushing yards in state history as a junior.

Yorktown head coach Mike Wilhelm yells to his team during their football game against New Palestine Friday, September 27, 2013, at Yorktown.

Wes-Del coach Brad Hess directs his a team during a recent practice.

GASTON – A year ago, Wes-Del’s football team got a taste of the natural ups and downs that come with small-school life in high school football.

It came off a resurgent year with a large departing senior class. The roster swelled, as interest naturally follows success.

But at times, players get used to success. Global perspective is hard to come by when you’re young. What a team did last year gets taken for granted. Seasons aren’t looked at with a long view, and tough early losses to talented teams knock a team back rather than spur them on.

“We learned that success isn’t going to come just because of one class,” senior lineman Alex Cullum said. “We all have to work together, and just because we had a really good senior class doesn’t mean anything. We still have to work hard every year, keep lifting every year and keep our conditioning up every year.

“Just because the previous season was good, everything resets, it’s not going to be the same next year. “

Now the Warriors hope they’ve taken something from last fall. Coach Brad Hess said a hardened nucleus of players came through last season, when the team slipped from 5-5 to 3-7. The roster was banged up all around, leaving a large group of younger players to get their feet wet and form a core or returners.

But something more basic has to stay on-point.

“We lost our edge last year,” Hess said. “That’s on me as a coach. That’s one thing I focused on all summer.

“We’re going to compete. We’re going to stay together and we’re not going to bicker with each other. We’re going to make sure we fight as brothers.”

At the small school level, year-to-year consistency is harder to build, especially at a school such as Wes-Del (its 275 students rank 302nd among football schools, 45th among 64 in Class A). Having so few students makes talent bases uneven, and the best teams usually boast year-in, year-out continuity in systems and a bend toward simplicity.

The Warriors have that. Their pistol offense is at its best with a crew of runners in the backfield, relying on some misdirection and mostly hard-nosed blocking. The defensive philosophy is simple: swarm to the ball and gang-tackle.

That comes down to one denominator, something the players are in a third year being steeped in and something that can carry through for a program each season.

“There’s definitely a toughness factor to us that we have to take into account,” Hess said. “That’s what the kids understand, that’s what we’ve worked on a lot, trying not to bang ourselves up in practice too much. But we take pride in hitting hard. Sometimes we hit ourselves hard too.”

Central QB Hatfield ready for 2nd-year jump

That was the problem last season, but the outcome is a more tested group of now-juniors. The team returns its top three tacklers in Tyler Rector, Dylan Torbush and Jake Redwine. Rector also dabbled at quarterback (as did receiver Calvin Carmin), and Adam Routh returns after finishing third on the team in rushing and second in receiving.

But Hess makes note, he wants the load shared on offense and defense.

He also wants to make finishing the focus, both in games and for the season.

A year ago, the Warriors had six top-flight opponents on the schedule and lost to all by large margins. The coaching staff felt the team often didn’t close out hard in those games, and when the losses piled, the expected fire wasn’t quite there as the season went on.

It’s sometimes hard for players to see the full scale of a campaign with the emotion of a loss last week. In high school ball, you’ll run into different foes at different levels. A bigger outlook can be important in keeping a team going, keeping a crew of self-proclaimed Warriors above the ebbs and flows of the sport and fighting to the finish.

“Last year, it wasn’t that big and we really just focused on game-to-game,” Routh said. “But this year, we’re focusing on the big picture, staying in every game and playing each opponent to our level.”

Contact sports writer Ben Breiner at 213-5848. Follow him on Twitter @BenBreinerTSP.

Delta’s Zach Mills runs the ball while going through plays with teammates at Delta High School Tuesday evening.

MUNCIE – Zach Mills knows what it’s like to be the man for his high school football team.

It didn’t happen last year, when the soft-spoken Kentucky native found himself with a hand on the ground at fullback, tearing open holes for tailback Joe Spegal. When he got his hands on the ball, he had a habit of taking it a long way, but he was more of a jack of all trades than a focal point.

This year, rest assured, that will not be the case.

“I had to do a lot of conditioning because I know I’m the man now,” Mills said. “I’ve got to condition pretty well so I can make it through the game with like 25 carries.”

That’s actually four more than Spegal averaged per game, but Mills will certainly get his chance to carry the load. While Spegal was in the process of posting the finest rushing season in Eagles history (1,960 yards, 30 touchdowns for a 7-5 sectional finalist team), Mills made the most of his chances, averaging 12.4 yards per touch on the way to 704 yards from scrimmage and seven scores.

This sort of arrangement was new for Mills.

“He was kind of a star on his team in Kentucky,” Delta coach Grant Zgunda said. “So he came here and so I think it was more of a shock for him, even though he was a junior last year, he had started since his freshman year in Kentucky … and was their leading ball-carrier. Came here and he was behind Joe. So I think it’s more of he’s kind of back to where he was.

“We’re definitely going to give him the opportunity to have a great year, I know that.”

As a freshman in Whitley County’s Wing-T attack, Mills ran for 854 yards on 95 carries and added 239 more on eight catches. He only played six games because of an injury his sophomore year, but did have enough pop to score six touchdowns in one game.

Then he came to Muncie and found himself with a hand in the dirt as an I-formation fullback. He rotated plays with the imposing Mason Bechdolt (Mills is only 5-foot-9, 170 pounds), but now he’s straightening up, stepping back to tailback and taking command.

“His junior year here, he had to find his way into the mix,” said Delta guard Kaleb Slaven, a Ball State commit. “Now I think he’s really in the role and he’s ready to go.”

Looking at his skilled backfield and big offensive line, Zgunda retired much of the run-and-shoot attack he’d run most of his tenure and went more toward the I-formation. It concentrated carries and produced a dynamic season.

The roster changed some, but Zgunda opted to stay mostly the same, save for splitting quarterback duties and keeping a three-back look he put in at mid-season. He’s still got some big linemen in Slaven and Ryan George. He’s got a powerful fullback in Logan Clawson. And he’s got a talented runner who can dot the I.

“With Joe leaving and him coming back, he’s going to be a huge threat back there,” quarterback Ryley Pease said of Mills. “So it will help me and my receivers make more plays.”

The switch altered the profile of Delta’s top ball-carriers. In the run-and-shoot, hard-headed fullbacks, often not the fastest in the open field, carried the heaviest load. Now that’s switched over to true running backs who are allowed to stand back, survey the defense and pick their spots (something Mills called a perk).

Given the chance to take the ball and go, Mills is more than up to the task.

Zgunda said Mills, who played defense last year but won’t going forward, has the quickest feet of anyone he’s coached in more than two decades. He’s a natural tailback, someone with a natural kind of elusiveness who always seemed poised to break a big gain every time he touched the ball last season.

“He’s very explosive and when you need a couple yards or you need a lot of yards, you can go to him,” quarterback/cornerback Tanner Lambert said.

Mills isn’t one to be too verbose. Teammates describe him as laid back and coaches say he leads more by his actions. That almost seemed to fit the more anonymous role of platoon fullback, working off a main runner and clearing the way for him.

But quiet or not, that’s not how Mills prefers to play. His days of being shoehorned into a different position to get on the field are over. He’s the focal point, the bell cow, making a return to what he knows best.

“It’s different because there’s a lot of blocking involved,” Mills said of the spot he occupied last fall. “I don’t really do much blocking. I’m mostly the man.”

Contact sports writer Ben Breiner at 213-5848. Follow him on Twitter @BenBreinerTSP.

Anthony Todd (72) is a four-year starter for Yorktown and a key anchor for this year’s squad.

YORKTOWN – Each season, the Yorktown football team shapes its offense in the image of its best player.

In 2013, diminutive and stout tailback Chandler Carroll’s peculiar blend of elusive-yet-powerful running set the stage, while quarterback Riley Neal empowered the passing game. A year later, the offense revolved around Neal, letting him run with abandon and throw at his Division I standard.

Now, Ball State-bound offensive lineman Anthony Todd is the team’s top player, and the Tigers attack will shapeshift to match the power he can provide. He’s moved from left tackle to center and is flanked by four other returning starting linemen. A team long known for chucking it around will slide more toward ground-and-pound.

“It’s a great different feeling,” Todd said. “With Riley, you’re used to throwing the ball a lot.

“Coming into it this year, the weight is on our shoulders.”

Five ECI High School Football Offensive Players To Watch

Instead of spreading it out, the Tigers will go for more of a power scheme. It means trading the shotgun for more I-formation with tailbacks behind fullbacks. It means offensive linemen trading a two-point stance, ideal in pass-heavy alignments, for a hand on the ground.

This kind of transformation is nothing new at Yorktown. Tiger coach Mike Wilhelm said every season his staff reassesses, reorganizes. His team doesn’t have a year-in, year-out system, and the seeds for the change were sown early.

“As soon as the season was over,” Wilhelm said, “we talked about it and decided that it would do two things. One, it would put our best player where we’re never running away from our best player. Last year we ran the ball, I think, 70 percent of the time to the left because Anthony Todd was our left tackle. So every play is going to be behind Anthony Todd.

“He’s a great athlete and we knew that will only make him a better football player.”

This is life when you’re the smallest school in the Hoosier Heritage Conference, where a rigid outlook will get a school such as Yorktown shellacked (Wilhelm’s word) by a range of solid programs.

This kind of transition from QB-centric to run-heavy isn’t even foreign, as a mid-2000s changeover saw a pass-heavy offense built around quarterback Chase Thurston morph into a power scheme reliant on running back Ryan Keys.

The offense will be similar to the one of that 2005 vintage. With a backfield comprised of solid runner Dawson Allen, rising junior varsity star Jordan Spangler and muscle-bound fullback Peyton Stites, the formations will be tighter and more runs will come straight downhill.

“It is kind of nice having some fullbacks, some extra power in there,” Allen said. “Kind of punch some people out of the way for you.”

Those fullbacks are a somewhat new addition to Yorktown’s schemes. Last year, Stites and occasionally linebacker Myron Howard came in as designated blockers for Neal’s plunges. But for the most part, they’ve been a one-back team.

Stites said some of that will carry over, and he seems to relish the new designation and new arrangement.

“That will diversify our offense a little bit instead of just throwing the ball more than running the ball,” Stites said. “I think we’re going to be able to mix it up more this year.”

What both players did say was it always helps to have Todd tearing open holes in the middle of opposing defenses.

This is a change for the four-year starter. Standing on the Tigers’ practice field in mid-August, he looked back to his freshman year, when offensive line coach Steve Brown pulled him aside and said he’d start his first ever high school game against Southside.

“It’s been a fast process,” Todd said. “It’s kind of weird thinking I’ve got one week left until it’s my last year of high school football. High school football’s been the most fun I’ve had in forever. I’m looking forward to four more years, but I just want to cherish this year, have fun with this year and live in the moment for it.”

After playing both tackle spots, he was approached this year with the proposal to move inside. At nearly 300 pounds, he’s able to play every line spot, and could play a range of them in college.

Brown has seen his development along the way, adding to his game and always taking instruction. This offseason, the staff asked him to lose weight to improve mobility. He did. Moving to center required adapting to having his hands and feet work independently (something other spots don’t ask as much for) and he made the effort to master those skills.

Todd is only the second four-year line starter they’ve had, and that too worked to his advantage.

Five ECI High School Football Defensive Players To Watch

“We’ve had that happen one other time that I’ve been here with Daniel Blanton,” Brown said. “So we kind of had a pattern to work off of. It enabled us to do some things better.

“It’s been a real joy to watch Ant because he honestly and sincerely works at it.”

The coach added moving Todd inside gives the line one voice. In past years, he made calls for one side of the line and guard Daniel Lavoie made calls for the other. Now Todd can look both ways and coordinate things.

He’ll have to for a team that lost an army of passing and receiving stars, but return the whole front from an offense that surpassed 5,000 yards (Todd’s move shifted Shawn Llamas from right to left tackle and Joey Pier from guard to tackle). That means more power, a look more suited to an offensive lineman’s preferences and one built around a Division I big man.

Todd might be coming to the end of his line as a Tiger and trying out a new spot, but he made one promise about his rebuilt Yorktown squad.

“Expect a run game,” Todd said. “That’s all I can say.”

ECI High School Football Capsules

Contact sports writer Ben Breiner at 213-5848. Follow him on Twitter @BenBreinerTSP.

Delta’s Zach Mills breaks away from Jay County’s defense for a touchdown at the start of the third quarter Friday evening at Delta High School.

MUNCIE – Zach Mills returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown Friday, and Delta was on its way to a 63-0 win against Jay County to open its football season.

While the Eagles did pull away to a big win, there were some hiccups. Delta led 25-0 by halftime, but it committed seven first-half penalties for 56 yards. The Eagles punted twice in that first half, with one of those punts coming on a drive derailed by penalties.

Delta coach Grant Zgunda said he took solace in the fact those penalties were primarily from mistakes rooted in aggression.

Zgunda said he saw some of his team’s week-one issues get cleaned up in the second half, as the Eagles tacked on 38 more points and committed just one penalty.

“We only ran 15 plays in the first half,” Zgunda said. “We just didn’t have the ball and when we did we had a couple holding penalties and we couldn’t get out of that. And I thought in the second half, we played a lot cleaner, our blocking was better. Overall, I’m pretty happy for game one.”

Along with Mills’ kickoff return, Delta also scored a defensive touchdown on a fumble recovery in the first half, which helped contribute to the limited number of offensive plays.

Mills, a running back, had a big night, accounting for four total touchdowns by three different methods. He threw a 67-yard touchdown pass to quarterback Ryley Pease on a trick play, and he also ran for two touchdowns. He finished the game with 147 rushing yards on 14 carries.

“He’s pretty good,” Zgunda said. “I’m glad he’s on our team. And Zach’s going to be the first to tell you that he got some blocks from his teammates and all those. And he did a great job.”

Pease attempted 10 total passes, but made them count. He completed five of those attempts for 186 yards and two touchdowns. Mitchell Hahn caught all five of Pease’s completed passes.

Delta’s defense limited Jay County to 97 rushing yards on 40 attempts. Drew Huffman was Jay County’s leading rusher, turning six carries into 49 yards. The Patriots went 7-for-14 passing as a team for 61 yards and two interceptions. Jay County also lost three fumbles.

Zgunda, who is in his 18th season coaching Delta, debuted a new approach on Friday, coaching the game from the press box.

“I like it. I actually like it,” Zgunda said. “You can just see a lot better up there. And I’ve got such great assistant coaches that I don’t have to worry about anything down here. And coaching 30 years overall, 23 as a head coach, I thought, ‘You know what, I want to do this.’ And I think it’s going to be the best thing for our team.”

Delta (1-0) will play its second non-conference game at Shenandoah next week. Jay County (0-1) will take on Blackford in its home opener for its second game.

Andre Wells

Adam Morris’ first game as head coach couldn’t have gone much better as visiting Central rolled to a 40-13 victory over Pendleton Heights on Friday night.

Andre Wells scored three touchdowns as the Bearcats (1-0) raced to a 27-0 halftime lead.

“I’m just happy for the kids and the coaches,” Morris said. “They put in so much work this summer, and it was probably the best summer we’ve had here in a long time.”

Gino Taylor, Vince Coleman and Exuse Brown also found the end zone for the Bearcats, who host Yorktown next Friday.

“Andre Wells ran the ball well and our offensive line did a great job,” Morris said. “And we have a lot of other pieces around (Wells).”

Winchester 42, South Adams 7

Kiante Enis rushed for 341 yards on 23 carries and scored five total touchdowns in Winchester’s victory over South Adams Friday night.

After Elias Gates opened the scoring for the Falcons in the first quarter with a 21-yard touchdown run, Enis took over. The Michigan commit returned an interception 69 yards for the score in the second quarter, the 11th of his career, tying the team record.

He tore off a 13-yard touchdown run before halftime, and scored from 85, 41, and 30 yards away in the second half. Quarterback Austin Lawrence went 4-of-12 for 11 yards, while Elias Gates led the team with three catches for 10 yards. Titus Edwards led the Winchester defense with 16 tackles.

“Easy, Kiante makes our job easy,” Winchester coach Mike Jones said. “Anytime you have a kid that puts up numbers like that, it takes 10 other guys to do that. There’s a lot of teamwork involved.”

The Falcons (1-0) travel to Fountain City to take on reigning Tri-Eastern Conference champion Northeastern next Friday.

Alexandria 21, Wes-Del 8

A second-half rally from Wes-Del wasn’t enough to give the Warriors a win against Alexandria. Though the Warriors fell short, Friday night’s game proved to be an improvement from last year when they lost 71-0 to Alexandria.

“We didn’t get the win, but we’re headed in the right direction,” Wes-Del coach Brad Hess said.

The Warriors (0-1) host Cammbridge City next Friday.

Yorktown’s running back Dawson Allen on Friday at the Yorktown home football game against Anderson.

YORKTOWN – As the final seconds ticked away in Friday’s tilt at Yorktown’s football field, wide receiver Brandt Applegate gave about as concise a summation of what the Tigers will have to take away from the night.

“We’ve got a lot to work on,” he told teammates moments before the handshake line.

Yorktown’s new-look offense went in fits and starts. The defense watched a dominant start go for naught with a series of second-half miscues. The Tigers were ultimately good enough to survive 34-21 but needed a late play from their top player to lock it in.

“There was no rhythm to anything that happened tonight,” Yorktown coach Mike Wilhelm said. “It was just an ugly, ugly football game.

“We were not consistent play by play.”

Yorktown (1-0) had seen a 28-7 lead shrink to 28-21 with the Indians (0-1) holding the ball on their own 16. That’s when Anderson quarterback Dylan Barron tried to extend a play and Yorktown lineman Anthony Todd tracked him down for a strip sack.

Yorktown recovered on the Anderson 1, setting up a Brogan Miller 1-yard dive to give the Tigers breathing room.

“I had a move ready and the kid bit on it,” said Todd, a Ball State commit. “I got a hold of the kid, next thing I know we’re going nuts.”

The Tigers’ defense dominated early, allowing only 14 first-half yards and no first downs in the first 31 minutes. But then came a sting of coverage busts or blown assignments, allowing Barron to connect with Aaron Aarmstrong and Dayshaun Johnson for three plays of 33 or more yards. Wilhelm particularly lamented how his team knew Johnson (four catches, 104 yards) was a top playmaker, yet he continued to get open.

But any late push served as little solace to Anderson coach Robert Brown.

“In all honesty, it annoys me,” Brown said. “Because if we can play like that in the third and fourth, we can play like that in the first and second. We don’t look at it as a moral victory. We look at it as, why couldn’t we do that in the first two quarters? I’m not happy that we fought back. I’m pissed off we didn’t fight for four quarters.”

His defense did a fine job gumming up a Tigers attack aimed at leaning more toward the run (usually balanced, the Tigers kept the ball on the ground for 48 of 55 plays). The Indians played safeties close to the line, meaning every Tigers run had to be on-point.

Players said many times, one member was missing in action, leading to an inefficient output. That was led by Dawson Allen’s 97 yards, while ex-JV star Jordan Spangler added 85 (Yorktown averaged 4.3 yards per rush).

Then the Tigers allowed a punt return for a touchdown, and numerous procedure issues where players didn’t get on the field, line up correctly or missed their assignment (the team is much younger than a season ago).

That said, the Tigers survived, but they left knowing what they have to do going forward.

“We need to not be so sloppy,” Todd said. “We were sloppy in my opionon. Special teams, kids not being on the field. Not knowing formations and stuff like that.

“We’ve got to get things under control. I think we will. I think we will.”

Bailee Allen

VOLLEYBALL

Union placed third at its own invitational, defeating Arlington and Tri-Central while losing to eventual champion Alexandria. DeAnn Kauffman had 27 kills over the three matches, adding 10 aces and 13 digs.

Winchester fell 25-11, 18-25, 25-21, 25-8 to Alexandria. Leah Malkey led the Falcons with six kills, while Morgan Friend had 28 digs. The Falcons topped Randolph Southern 25-15, 25-11 earlier in the day.

Blackford went 0-4 at the Tomahawk Invitational at North Miami. Peyton Hiestand had 24 digs and 10 kills for the Bruins, while Tori Baker added 18 digs and 7 blocks.

Heritage Hall lost to the Anderson Angels 25-18, 16-25, 25-17, 22-25, 18-16 on Friday. Kelsey Zirkle had seven kills and four aces.

BOYS SOCCER

Blackford fell 5-0 to South Adams, with Charlie Cranston making 34 saves in the loss.

Delta fell 4-0 to Bellmont.

GIRLS SOCCER

Yorktown remained unbeaten with a 1-1 draw against Hamilton Heights. Jaylynn Chavez had the lone tally for the Tigers (2-0-1).

Delta knocked off Mississinewa 7-4 to stay undefeated on the young season. Bailee Allen led the Eagles (2-0) with four goals, while Jessica McNeil made nine saves in net.

Blackford lost 4-1 to South Adams, with Allie Jennerjahn providing the lone Bruins’ (0-2) tally.

Jay County topped Burris 8-0. Taylor Hunt had 16 saves in the loss.

BOYS TENNIS

Delta finished third at the Jeffersonville Invitational with 23 points, 14 behind Guerin Catholic. Alec Robillard was runner-up in No. 1 singles and lost in three sets to the winner of that flight.

Central split a pair of matches at Logansport, losing 3-2 to the host Berries and sweeping Arsenal Tech. All three losses to Logansport came in three sets. No. 1 singles player Khamasi Muhiga and No. 2 doubles pair Kaes Petroviak and Boyd McCoy went 2-0 on the day.

Jay County finished eighth in a tournament at DeKalb. Jay Houck placed fourth at No. 2 singles, and Garrett Rodgers placed fifth No. 3 singles for Jay County.

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY

Burris came in sixth and Daleville seventh at the Meister Family Memorial Run at Monroe Central. David Dillon led the Broncos by coming in fourth, while the host Golden Bears’ top finisher was Conner Miller (18 minutes, 14.8 secibds) in at 20th. The Owls were led by Aaron Lannoy (17:59.4, 16th place).

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY

Blackford was the top local team at the Meister Family Memorial Run in Parker City, finishing 10th. Burris’ Brittany Kent (21:33.6) was the top local finisher, with the Bruins’ Falynne Reed in 14th-place (21:50).

GIRLS GOLF

Yorktown continued its strong start to the season by winning the 12-team Blackford Invitational at Club Run Golf Course with a score of 351 to beat out Perry Meridian. Reece Malapit shot a 77 to earn medalist honors for the fifth time in five outings this season, while Maddy Kline shot 84 and Holly Haynes 86. The Tigers are 3-0 in dual meets and have won both invitationals this season. Nancy Cole led the host Bruins with a 134.

FOOTBALL

Monroe Central opened its season Friday with a 46-10 win against Centerville. Sophomore Tyler Writtenhouse led the Golden Bears with 119 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, while defensive end Terry Kuhns had 1¹/₂ sacks. Monroe Central yielded just 136 yards.

New Castle lost its season opener 21-20 Friday to Franklin County, a safety with eight minutes left providing the final margin. Quarterback Hank Neal threw for 143 yards and three scores.

Lindsay Ingenito

VOLLEYBALL

Delta continued its perfect start to the season with a 25-18, 25-13, 25-19 win over host Richmond. Chloe Stitt had 15 kills and eight digs, while Audrey Woodin had 12 kills and nine digs.

Burris picked up its first victory of the season as it topped Liberty Christian 25-18, 25-8, 16-25, 25-23. Taylor Jackson and Alissa Kunczt had 10 aces apiece, while My Kel Ivy had 11 kills.

Lindsay Ingenito had 14 kills and 16 digs to help Daleville knock off Lapel 22-25, 25-21, 25-17, 26-24. Breanna Townsend added eight kills and 16 digs.

Shenandoah swept visiting Cowan 25-19, 25-22, 25-23. The Blackhawks’ Skylar Trimble had three kills and an ace.

BOYS TENNIS

Delta rolled to a 5-0 win over visiting New Palestine in its Hoosier Heritage Conference Opener. After being tied 3-3 in the first set, Matt Hapner and Nick Bantz won their last nine games at No. 1 doubles for the Eagles, who are ranked seventh in the first state poll.

GIRLS GOLF

Wapahani won a tri-meet with Wes-Del and Daleville at Crestview Golf Club, shooting a 212 to outdistance the Warriors (224) and Broncos (225). Daleville’s Bailey Teague earned medalist honors with a 44, while Wapahani’s Emily Rausch was just behind with a 45.

Jay County won a tri-meet with Bluffton and Monroe Central at Hickory Hills Golf Club, shooting a 205 to top second-place Bluffton by 11 strokes. Jay County’s Brooke Sanders carded a 47 to earn medalist honors.

GIRLS SOCCER

Yorktown improved to 3-0-1 with an 11-0 win over visiting Burris. Sarah Bade had four goals and an assist, while Lizzie Smith tallied three scores and three helpers.

Delta tallied 21 shots but was unable to find the back of the net in a 0-0 tie with visiting Connersville. Delta goalkeeper Jessica McNeil made five saves as Naja Chimbanda and Sabreena Ferguson anchored the Eagles’ defense.

UNDERCLASS

JUNIOR VARSITY

FOOTBALL

Monroe Central defeated Union City 8-6 on Monday. Kayden Conklin ran for a score and added the two-point conversion, while Kamron Cawdell had a game-ending interception.

Winchester topped Northeastern 29-6, holding the Knights scoreless for three quarters. Isaiah Jordan-Miller ran for two scores and completed touchdown passes to Adam Hollinger and Jordan Key.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Volleyball

The Burris eighth-grade squad rolled to a 25-5, 25-5 win over Alexandria as Helen Beach had 10 aces and Abbie Kesler had nine. The Burris seventh-grade team defeated Alexandria 25-24, 25-14.

One week in, and things haven’t changed much for East Central Indiana football teams in the state AP rankings.

Winchester moved up to No. 5 in 2A after running past South Adams in a season-opening win. Yorktown stayed at No. 10 in 3A after a sloppy but never in doubt victory against Anderson.

A strong opening performance against Centerville (46-10 final) netted Monroe Central 18 points in the Class A poll, a bump from last week.

Yorktown’s Jordan Spangler runs the ball in for a touchdown early in the first quarter on Friday during the home game against Anderson.

Kiante Enis runs drill with his teammates on Monday during practice at Winchester Community High School. Enis is one of the rising stars with Winchesters team.

WINCHESTER – Watching Kiante Enis run against South Adams’ football team on the low-res video, it hardly seemed fair.

Two plays come to the forefront. On one, the Winchester tailback takes a toss to the left toward a loaded side of the field, trying to break outside. He stops suddenly, breaks a tackle as the defense tries to flow with him, then simply outruns everyone else as he reverses field and goes 80-plus yards in a flash. The film cuts and he’s on defense, lined up 14 yards beyond the line of scrimmage. The player taking the toss sweep is considerably closer, but he can only get back to the line before Enis has raced up to pop him for no gain.

That’s talent. That’s how a player rolls up 341 rushing yards — 94 percent of his team’s output — with four rushing scores and another on an interception, and it seems a hint mundane.

“It was a big home game for our season,” Enis said. “The team has a lot of expectations, so we came out here, followed the game plan that we had to do to start out great with a bang.”

One got the sense as he uttered the words, it was a byproduct of the hype that’s surrounded him. When you’re a Michigan commit and otherworldly-prolific player, it’s only natural to get taught the finer points of deflecting and sharing credit.

But his coach was able to put things in perspective.

“Anytime any back goes for 300 yards, you think it’s an amazing accomplishment,” Winchester coach Mike Jones said. “People have kind of become numb to the fact that Kiante goes for 300 almost every night that he plays. A year from now, we’ll be dreaming about some kid going for 300.

“I hope people appreciate his talent and I hope they appreciate what he’s been able to do for this program.”

That’s a program that won double-digit games last season, a program that comes into this season with a solid core, a powerhouse talent at the center and the potential for big things.

It helps when Enis is coming off a season in which he rushed for 3,189 yards (fourth-best in state history) and added 52 total touchdowns. It puts him in line to make a run at Mr. Football, and on this front, he cracked a little on deflecting credit (just a little).

“It’s always going to be in the back of my head some place, but right now, I’m more worried about the team success,” Enis said.

The Falcons do have a solid setup around him. Backfield mate Elias Gates could start on more than a few teams in the area, while quarterback Austin Lawrence got his feet wet as a starter last season. The line is anchored by all 270-plus pounds of Elijah Chalfant, plus other tough pillars such as Titus Edwards and John Thornburg.

The cast helps with the steps Enis has made in the offseason. He’s grown to nearly 6-foot-3 and added 20 pounds in the offseason. He can squat 405 pounds, has great ball skills and has added some of the little good habits running backs need.

And that shows on the field.

“We can pretty much always depend on him,” Gates said. “On fakes and stuff, everybody bites on him.

“When we’re in a jam or something and know we need five yards, he can give us 10.”

Gates added he and Enis have grown into good friends, and Jones noted his star has grown up through the offseason. He’s now more of a leader, more responsible. It was a point of pride for Jones, something he had trouble putting into words.

The conclusion of that offseason means putting aside the rather high-profile recruiting run. Enis and Jones spent an estimated 10 weekends traveling the region for practices, visits, spring games and camps.

Enis called it a lot of late nights and early mornings, and he visited the likes of Indiana, Michigan State, Cincinnati and Michigan among a crowded itinerary. All in all, a mind-blowing experience for him.

But Jones remembered something different the night after visiting East Lansing when he and Enis set foot on campus in Ann Arbor.

“We weren’t on Michigan’s campus for more than just a few minutes, and he looked at me and said, ‘I could see myself playing football here,’” Jones said.

He still had to meet the staff, get coached by them at a camp and spend some time with Jim Harbaugh, a man who coached in a Super Bowl and took college football by storm this offseason.

That man, with his outsized personality and way with people, might have been the clincher.

“Coach Harbaugh, he’s a great dude,” Enis said. “He really makes you feel like you’re some place at home and really brings you into the family.”

Jones made it even clearer.

“Without coach Harbaugh, Kiante Enis is not at Michigan,” he said.

Enis was one of Harbaugh’s early commits after returning to college from the NFL. The Golden Falcon revealed he’ll probably come in as a running back, but could shift to receiver or defense before it’s all finished.

Enis said he felt the hype coming back and is excited to watch his future team through the season.

But his squad has a couple tests coming on fast.

This week, the Falcons take on a Northeastern team that denied them a Tri-Eastern Conference title last season and split the crown two years ago. The Knights are rebuilding after an 11-1 campaign, but Winchester is hardly taking them for granted. The next week, the Falcons draw another threatening squad in Hagerstown.

Jones won’t let his team shy away from the history with Northeastern. If the Falcons hope to reach their goals and put together something special with their electric, generational talent, the road starts Friday.

“There are many more opportunities for this team as we go through the season,” Jones said, looking to the conference race.

“We’ve won it once, they’ve won it twice. So it’s time for us to kind of even the score I think.”

Friday’s football games

Yorktown at Central, 7 p.m.

Monroe Central at Union County, 7 p.m.

Cambridge City at Wes-Del, 7 p.m.

Winchester at Northeastern, 7 p.m.

Blackford at Jay County, 7 p.m.

Delta at Shenandoah, 7 p.m.

New Castle at Rushville, 7 p.m.

Northeastern’s Alec Hughes carries the ball against Winchester’s Tyler Edwards during a football game Friday in Fountain City.

FOUNTAIN CITY, Ind. – Never give up.

That was Northeastern’s football philosophy Friday night, and one that served the Knights well.

Northeastern didn’t crumple, not when Winchester took a two-touchdown lead early.

Ryan Hartmann didn’t waver, not when 3 yards was all that separated the junior and his Northeastern teammates from finally taking control.

Hartmann battled through a sea of black and gold — on fourth down, with about 5 minutes remaining — to score his second touchdown of the night.

Northeastern’s defense took care of the rest.

The Knights turned back the Falcons on four straight plays on first-and-goal, sealing the win and knocking off Class 2A’s No. 5 team 20-14.

Northeastern wasn’t ready to relinquish control of the Tri-Eastern Conference just yet.

“Pure focus,” Hartmann said of his mindset when facing fourth-and-goal on the Falcons’ 3-yard line. “If we don’t get that touchdown, we don’t win. We had to get it.”

Hartmann was the Knights’ workhorse, rushing for 157 yards on 29 carries, but he wasn’t alone in delivering big plays.

Alec Hughes hauled in a 13-yard touchdown pass from Jacob Auger with 7 seconds left in the first half, putting Northeastern on the scoreboard and cutting Winchester’s lead to 14-6 right before halftime.

Gunnar Adams came up with a big sack on fourth down. Jacob Slinker plucked a Winchester pass out of the air deep in Northeastern territory.

And the entire Northeastern defense had to find a way to keep tabs on Kiante Enis. The Michigan commit rushed for an eye popping 341 yards the week before, and the Knights managed to cut that tally in half, and keep Enis to 40 yards gained in the second half.

“That kid is such a talent,” Northeastern coach Mike Roeder said of Enis. “What we saw at the beginning of the game is probably only a glimpse of what he’s capable of. But you have to credit our defense. They did exactly what coach Oler told them.

“We were going to cast a net this week and just try to keep him within the net, and by and large they did it.”

Enis finished with 148 yards and two touchdowns, both coming in the first quarter.

Northeastern did its best to limit the Falcons’ offensive touches, methodically driving the ball in that first frame to eat up nearly 9 minutes.

But, Winchester quickly made up for lost time. Enis looked to be hit in the backfield for a loss on his first touch, but shrugged off his defenders and made his way down the sideline for a 15-yard gain.

One carry later, Enis broke 56 yards for the game’s first touchdown and a 7-0 Winchester lead. The Knights fumbled the ensuing kickoff, setting up a 9-yard scoring run for Enis.

The Knight defense was much more effective from the second quarter on.

“They out-physicaled us. There is no question about it,” said Winchester coach Mike Jones.

“We didn’t do a good enough job getting these kids ready to play. I take all the blame for that. That’s just the way it works, and we’ll have to go to work tomorrow morning and try to get better.”

Winchester was whistled for nine penalties, including a third-quarter sequence of back-to-back flags that helped push the Falcons from first-and-10 on the Northeastern 27 to third-and-long on the 46.

Slinker ended the series with his interception on the Northeastern 15. On Winchester’s next possession, the Falcons were eventually hit for a safety as Enis was tackled in the end zone, tying the game 14-14 with 7:46 remaining.

“The penalty bug, we haven’t had,” Jones said. “We had two penalties last week. We had no penalties in the scrimmage. That killed us. Every time we had a little momentum, I felt like there was a penalty.”

Momentum swung in Northeastern’s favor for good after the safety. Hartmann’s final touchdown soon followed, capping a six-play drive set up by a long return by Hughes.

Northeastern, the defending TEC champion, rose to 1-1 overall, 1-0 in the conference. The Knights play host to Monroe Central in nonconference action next week, while Winchester (1-1, 0-1) plays host to TEC foe Hagerstown.

“The kids followed the game plan to a T,” Roeder said. “We told them what needed to happen, and they made it happen.”

KNIGHTS 20, FALCONS 14

Winchester 14 0 0 0 — 14

Northeastern 0 6 6 8 — 20

First Quarter

WIN-Kiante Enis 56 run, 3:02 (Adam Hollinger kick)

WIN-Enis 9 run, 2:24 (Hollinger kick)

Second Quarter

NE-Alec Hughes 13 pass from Jacob Auger, 0:07 (kick failed)

Third Quarter

NE-Ryan Hartmann 36 run, 6:06 (run failed)

Fourth Quarter

NE-Safety, 7:46

NE-Hartmann 3 run, 5:20 (kick failed)

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING-WIN: Enis 21-148, Elias Gates 1-13, Austin Lawrence 4-(-16), Dillon Williams 1-3; NE: Connor Bray 5-35, Hartmann 29-157, Josh Tudor 4-11, Auger 11-28, Hughes 3-1, Petey McDaniel 1-1.

PASSING-WIN: Lawrence 4-12-84-0; NE: Auger 7-10-48-1.

RECEIVING-WIN: Tyler Edwards 1-17, Gates 3-67; NE: Cole Retter 3-18, Hughes 2-20, Tudor 1-2, Hartmann 1-8.

Ryley Pease

MIDDLETOWN, Ind. – Out in the wide expanses of Henry County farm country, a little sliver of insanity broke out Friday night.

Really, that might be the only way to describe what happened on Shenandoah’s football field.

Again and again Delta pulled out plays that ranged from the unlikely to the absurd, all trying to keep alive rapidly-dimming hopes at victory. But it ended with Raiders linebacker Cody Rudy, who moments earlier had stopped Eagles star tailback Zach Mills just short of the goal line on a two-point conversion attempt, snatching the onside kick out of the air to hand Delta as wild a 35-34 loss as you’ll find.

“Very frustrating,” Delta coach Grant Zgunda said. “We just couldn’t make plays when we needed to make plays. I am proud of the way our team fought back.

“We just weren’t able to pull it out there at the end.”

He added there was no hesitation in calling Mills’ number on the last game-winning conversion attempt.

On the field after the game, Mills remained defiant his collision with Rudy had carried him across the plane before he was pulled back.

“There was a hole,” said a worn-out Mills, who carried the ball 27 times for 223 yards. “Clearly I got it in, but it didn’t happen, I guess. They didn’t see it like that. Guess that happens.”

The play was just a postscript, a final penultimate moment would not have happened if Mills didn’t take a late kickoff 59 yards to set up Ryley Pease’s 22-yard scoring strike to Mitchell Hahn. That kickoff wouldn’t have happened had Shenandoah coach Scott Widner reminded fullback Bobby Pierce to not score a touchdown and give his team a chance to run out the clock the drive before.

And that came after a missed two-point run, following an improbable four-play, 87-yard Delta scoring drive, set up by a Pierce fumble. There, the Raiders only had the ball because a sidewinding Rudy kickoff spun into the hands of a Shenandoah player, and the kickoff happened because Widner opted for go for it on fourth-and-2 on his own 28 and quarterback Brennen Dowden raced all 72 yards for the score (in turn set up by a stop when Mills cramped up and had to go out).

It was the sort of game in which Delta jumpstarting its second half with a 47-yard trick play running-back pass (with Zgunda yelling at the intended target to block moments before the snap) and the low-possession, oddly-tense first half were rendered near footnotes.

The most glaring things for Delta were the missed chances. The Eagles twice had shots at go-ahead two-point conversions late and could not convert either. Then there was the 54-yard first-half drive that ended with a fourth-and-goal Pease sneak being ruled short, again a call Delta coaches on the field disputed.

That said, the Eagles had no answer for the Raiders’ double-wing attack on any front. The hosts chewed up 356 rushing yards (at 7.1 per carry, led by Pierce’s 149) and converted five-of-five fourth-down tries.

“I didn’t know what to expect to be perfectly honest,” Widner said of his offense. “Playing the caliber of team like this. I really wasn’t sure what might happen. Still had a couple turnovers, but we ran the ball well and hit a couple passes when we needed to.”

That’s how a team that got Mills’ big day, a solid passing output and only punted once found itself on the wrong side of a tough game.

Despite being area powers with similar profiles, these teams had not faced off since 1996. At game’s end, Zgunda could only tell his players to not let one loss cause them to fracture and to give credit to Widner’s bunch.

“In my opinion, this was two good football teams playing,” Zgunda said. “It was a great game and unfortunately for us, we came up short.”

Beau Combs Beau Combs

Wes-Del held Cambridge City scoreless Friday night to earn a 6-0 victory. Adam Routh scored the lone touchdown for the Warriors in the second quarter.

Tyler Rector was Wes-Del’s leading rusher with 12 carries for 75 yards. Routh had 15 carries for 60 yards.

“Offensively, we’re getting better,” Warriors head coach Brad Hess said. “To get that win, I’m really proud of them. They played hard.”

Wes-Del holds a 1-1 record heading into next week’s game. The Warriors will face North Decatur on the road Friday.

Monroe Central 36, Union County 6

Monroe Central held Union County to single digits in a win Friday evening. Wyatt Snyder sparked the momentum for the Golden Bears, scoring two touchdowns in the first half. Teammate Jansen Blevins followed with a six-yard run to make it a 16-point lead for the Golden Bears by the start of the fourth quarter.

Beau Combs started up the scoring in the fourth quarter, an 8-yard run marking his first touchdown of the year. Terry Kuhns recovered a fumble and took it 25 yards for the final touchdown of the evening. Monroe Central finished the night with 176 total rushing yards. The victory puts the team at 2-0 in the regular season. The Golden Bears will travel to face Northeastern next Friday.

Jay County 49, Blackford 21

After giving up the first points of the game, The Jay County Patriots came back to defeat Blackford 46-21 on their home field. The Bruins’ Chase Mahan was first to score with a 3-yard run into the end zone. Jay County responded with the next five scores, making the team’s lead 26-7 by the end of the first half.

The Bruins offense pushed back in the third quarter. Mahan crossed the goal line with a 29-yard run, while teammate Colin Jones drove the ball in 40 yards for another six points. Blackford kicker Jacob Confer was 3-for-3 on extra points. Jay County is now 1-1 and will travel to compete against Southern Wells next week. Blackford is 0-2 and will host Eastbrook next Friday.

Yorktown’s quarterback Brogan Miller looks for an opening during a pass play on Friday during Yorktown’s away game against Central. Yorktown won against Central 35-29.

MUNCIE – Every single game Brogan Miller gets under his belt, he’s going to grow up a little bit more. That’s the way Yorktown coach Mike Wilhelm is looking at it, especially with Miller making only his second varsity start Friday night at Central.

By the end of Yorktown’s 35-29 win, it was buried under a flurry of second-half touchdowns from Yorktown backs Dawson Allen and Jordan Spangler, but Miller led what might have been the most important drive of the game for the Tigers at the end of the first half.

With Central poised to go into the locker room with a seven-point lead and all the momentum, Miller led an eight-play, 67-yard drive just before the half to pull the Tigers even. That, in turn, allowed Yorktown to stick to its game plan and pound the ball behind its experienced offensive line and lead for the final 17:40.

“He showed leadership, honestly,” Spangler said of Miller, who is replacing All-State quarterback Riley Neal. “He’s been showing leadership more and more at practice, learning more from the coaches and looking better each day.”

Central quarterback Trenton Hatfield had just given the Bearcats (1-1) a 14-7 lead with 1:58 left in the first half, but Miller found Kevin McNamara for 13 yards, Nathan Preston for 25 on third-and-6, and Brandt Applegate for a 14-yard touchdown with four seconds left in the half.

Then, behind that veteran line of Anthony Todd, Joe Pier, Daniel LaVoie, Matt Phillips and Shawn Llamas, Allen and Spangler ran wild, combining for 245 yards and three scores — all the while a Central defense with size and speed stacked the line.

“That’s our strength, and it’s no secret,” Wilhelm said. “When we have this experienced of an offensive line, we have to take advantage of it and pick and choose when we throw the ball.”

Miller, who finished 5-of-12 for 84 yards, shrugged off the pivotal drive, saying, “I really wanted to help our team out, get it tied going into halftime and give us a positive attitude (going into the locker room).”

Yorktown’s Wayne Morrow takes off downfield with the ball for a Yorktown first down Friday evening during the game at Muncie Central.

Once in the locker room, it was no surprise who got the Tigers (2-0) going.

“Anthony Todd, he gets us up,” Spangler said of the Ball State-bound center. “He’s our guy.”

Andre Wells bulldozed his way for 133 yards on 14 carries, including two scores — the last of which came with 1:54 remaining. But Spangler recovered the onside kick and the Tigers ran out the clock.

“The plan was right, and the kids executed the plan,” Central coach Adam Morris said. “But we dropped some passes, missed some tackles. … It’s little stuff.”

Contact sports features writer Ryan O’Gara at (765) 213-5829. Follow him on Twitter @RyanOGaraTSP.

Monroe Central’s Tyler Writtenhouse practices with teammates at Monroe Central High School Tuesday.

Monroe Central’s Tyler Writtenhouse blocks during a drill at Monroe Central High School Tuesday.

PARKER CITY — Monroe Central coach John Hochstetler had already seen Tyler Writtenhouse make an impact immediately.

When Writtenhouse and his family moved in from Yorktown, he started catching attention. He wasn’t big, but as a seventh-grader on an eighth-grade team, he posted big games. He had the speed, the quickness, and Hochstetler remembered him having a knack for running the ball.

But that guaranteed nothing when Writtenhouse, now a sophomore, made the move up from junior varsity.

Not that it stopped him.

“I definitely wasn’t really expecting how it’s been,” Writtenhouse said. “I didn’t play varsity last year much at all.

“It’s been really exciting actually.”

There were two schools of thought on how much the team could see his early impact coming. Senior Beau Combs said he’s been surprised, and with a smaller sophomore, that’s certainly a fair take. On the other side, quarterback/safety Logan Conklin knew what Writtenhouse could do. He saw the damage Writtenhouse did on JV and through the summer.

All the young back has done is surpass 100 yards in each of his first two varsity games and become a source for big plays in an offense that needed to replace playmakers in a big way. Against Centerville, he needed only 14 carries to get to 119 yards. Against Union County, a 59-yard scamper helped him get to 109 on eight carries.

“If you get him in open space, he’s real hard to deal with,” said Hochstetler, whose team faces powerful Northeastern on Friday night. “(He has) speed and ability to redirect and move, very good feet.”

A season ago, the Golden Bears (2-0) relied on a stable of runners. Then the three most productive — Sam Nash, Marcus Drummer and Austin Jones — all graduated.

But the multi-threat arrangement persists. Combs is an athlete used all over the field. Josh Randall is a mid-sized back, while Jansen Blevins is a hammer. Conklin and Wyatt Snyder both run from the QB spot.

And that leaves Writtenhouse, all 5-foot-6 and 160 pounds of him, to add in explosive plays.

“No teams really expected us to just have another guy that could fill the same spot, fill the same void as Tyler did,” Conklin said. “He’s doing an awesome job.”

Much like the split about his expected impact, people around the team had some divides about his personality. Hochstetler called him peaceful, while Combs characterized him as more outgoing. In spots he’s soft-spoken, but he has the respect of his teammates.

You might get a similar description if you asked about Drummer, Writtenhouse’s older brother.

Drummer, now running track at IU East, was on the sidelines for the season opener, imparting wisdom to his sibling. He didn’t sugarcoat it, saying Writtenhouse had big shoes to fill.

It’s not the first time the older brother imparted lessons about the game and blazing the trail when they made the move across Delaware County.

“He basically showed me everything I know,” Writtenhouse said. “I’ve been watching him since I was little. And he’s always been that big guy up there doing great things.”

They admittedly don’t look that similar on the field. Drummer was a slasher, a bit of a workhorse at times and tireless. Writtenhouse isn’t that, but in space he can go, a series of explosions, in his coach’s words.

But teammates see one link.

“Him and Marcus have the same attitude when it comes to football,” Combs said. “I think Tyler is a little more competitive than Marcus.”

That’s a good start, and Writtenhouse has already proved adept at learning the schemes the way his brother did.

Monroe Central runs one of the most complex offenses in the area, with a litany of different looks and approaches for different situations. When Writtenhouse was on the JV team, the playbook wasn’t too thick.

Now he’s had to rise to the moment, as his brother did, as the program has, increasing win totals in back-to-back seasons. But like his success and production, that impact, once again, came quickly.

“This year, I’ve had to memorize a lot of plays,” Writtenhouse said. “We have various sets, and I thought it would be pretty hard, but it’s actually easy once you get out there.”

Contact sports writer Ben Breiner at 213-5848. Follow him on Twitter @BenBreinerTSP.

Friday’s local games

•Central at Anderson, 7 p.m.

•Monroe Central at Northeastern, 7 p.m.

•Wes-Del at North Decatur, 7 p.m.

•New Palestine at Yorktown, 7:30 p.m.

•Hagerstown at Winchester, 7 p.m.

•Jay County at Southern Wells, 7 p.m.

•Delta at Shelbyville, 7:30 p.m.

•Eastbrook at Blackford, 7 p.m.

•New Castle at Pendleton Heights, 7:30 p.m.

Yorktown’s Cole Barr runs the ball downfield Friday night during the home game against New Palestine. Yorktown lost 63-7.

YORKTOWN — As New Palestine’s Duke Blackwell sprinted toward the left pylon, Daniel LaVoie gave chase.

The Yorktown senior lineman wasn’t going to catch Blackwell, who reached the end zone easily. And the Tigers weren’t going to catch the Dragons, who went up 49 points after the score. But that’s beside the point for a Yorktown team which started 11 juniors and two sophomores and played countless others.

Games like Friday night, when visiting New Palestine rolled to a 63-7 victory, are more about building for the future. That’s a foundation the Tigers’ seniors are tasked with establishing.

“We can always try harder,” LaVoie said. “Some of us come out and try hard, some of us knew we were going to lose. Those plays, if I know it’s an awesome play, I’m still going to go try to stop it. Just for motivation and to increase morale.”

Many of the Tigers didn’t play prominent roles on teams that combined to go 21-4 the last two seasons. So Friday night was a teaching moment, and what Yorktown coach Mike Wilhelm needs out of his seniors.

Yorktown simply didn’t have the talent to keep up with New Palestine, and there’s no shame in that – the Dragons are the defending Class 4A state champs, and this year they’re ranked No. 1 in 5A. But what will a young, impressionable group take away from this game more than the tallies on the scoreboard?

That’s where the seniors come in.

“A tough game like this, you have to show heart,” senior lineman Joey Pier said. “You have to keep (the younger guys) motivated, even though we’re losing.”

Added Wilhelm: “If my seniors are out there trying to lead by example like they did tonight, we’re going to be fine this season.”

New Palestine (3-0) amassed 357 yards on the ground and 192 more through the air, while Yorktown (2-1) had just 184 total. And that doesn’t even take into account the Dragons returning the opening kick in the second half for a touchdown and then returning a punt for a score just minutes later.

It was lopsided, but that’s OK for the Tigers. New Palestine had won its first two games by a combined score of 128-21, and there will probably be plenty more blowouts for the Dragons as the season progresses.

More important for Yorktown was Brogan Miller, making his third varsity start at quarterback, connecting with sophomore wideout Brandt Applegate for 55 yards to set up Jordan Spangler’s 3-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal. And later, Cole Barr – back on the team after taking a year off to focus on baseball – intercepting the accurate Alex Neligh at the end of the first half.

Those are the things the Tigers aim to build on going into their game at rival Delta next week.

Moments after the game, Wilhelm had already shrugged off the loss and moved on. That’s about all you can do after a game like that.

“I don’t even know if I want to watch the film,” he said, laughing. “I will, but we’re not going to gain too much from it. We knew they were good.

“We needed the rain to not stop, and we needed the wind to blow.”

Contact sports features writer Ryan O’Gara at (765) 213-5829. Follow him on Twitter @RyanOGaraTSP .