The Mount Vernon varsity football team returned to gridiron action Friday night at home, where they defeated their hosts, Center Point-Urbana, 33-14.
“They were physical up front, and they changed their defensive look probably 15 or 20 times,” said Mustangs head coach Lance Pedersen. “And so it gave us some challenges. But our kids did a great job of rising to the challenge, communicating up front, and doing a great job on the offensive side.”
Another positive of the night, Pedersen indicated, is the team “scored the most points that have been scored against them all season.”
The Mustangs needed just over two minutes of game play to score their first touchdown, with Owen Brase crossing the goal line after an 18-yard run. A point after kick from Ben Crock was good, and with 9:56 remaining in the first quarter, Mount Vernon led 7-0.
Brase was in on the next Mustangs strike as well, completing a pass to Trenton Pitlik for 40 yards and a touchdown. Crock’s point after was good, and the Mustangs were now up 14-0 with 1:06 to go in the opening period.
Center Point-Urbana retaliated in the form of a pass from senior Braylon Havel to fellow senior Collin Hoskins for a 19-yard touchdown. The team’s point after was good, and CPU cut the lead to 14-7 with 7:35 to go in the half.
Just before the half, Brase snuck across the goal line with 33 seconds to go. The one-yard trek gave the Mustangs a lead of 20-7. A point after attempt was off target.
The score would remain 20-7 until the fourth quarter, when CPU struck again, with 9:38 to go, with a pass from Cole Werner to Tucker Clark for an 11-yard touchdown. Their point after was successful, and the Mustang lead was now down to 20-14.
Pitlik would score the game’s two final touchdowns, with a one-yard run with 5:53 to go, and a four-yard run with 2:01 left in the game. Crock punctuated the second score with a point after kick, providing the game its final score of 33-14.
Mount Vernon improved to 2-1 with the win.
Up next for the Mustangs would be the 3-1 Benton Bobcats at Benton on Friday night at 7:15 p.m.
The Bobcats have won their last three games.
“They have a lot of momentum on their side,” said Pedersen. “We go to their place, play on the turf stadium.”
“They have a kicker that can make it from 45 yards, no problem, kicks the ball in the end zone on a regular basis. They have an outstanding quarterback Their line is big and physical on both sides of the football.
“It’s going to be a very, very difficult challenge for us, but we look forward to the opportunity to play them on Friday night,” Pedersen said.
Mustang footballers improve to 2-1
Trent Bowman
September 23, 2021