The engine hum of cars practicing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was within earshot of Speedway high school, but the roar of the Indian Creek offense overwhelmed the Sparkplugs 35-21 on Friday night.
INDIANAPOLIS
The engine hum of cars practicing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was within earshot of Speedway High School, but it was the roar of the Indian Creek offense that overwhelmed the Sparkplugs, 35-21, on Friday night.
The first ever-meeting between the schools was highlighted with chunk plays thanks to a Braves offensive line that blew open holes all night.
“When you can run the ball, it creates for our athletes on the edge and that makes us able to get more one-on-one matchups,“ Braves coach Casey Gillin said of the offensive line’s importance in the win.
Malachi Mink, Jalen Sauer and company took full advantage of those big men up front. Indian Creek rushed for 270 yards as a team, with senior quarterback Sauer gaining 168 and Mink rushing for 58. Sauer didn’t just have a big night on the ground, as he also threw for 152 yards.
“Sauer is huge, not just his play but his maturity and his leadership, he just helps us out and keeps us focused. He is wonderful to have,” Gillin said.
The Creek defense shut down the Sparkplugs (2-5) in the second half and forced three turnovers on the night. They were led in tackles by Carter Modlin.
“(Modlin) is a maniac and a competitor,” Gillin said. “Every week you hear his name over the loudspeaker, and that guy is really good.”
It was close at the beginning as both teams scored on their first drive, albeit much differently. Speedway went 78 yards on 12 plays and took the lead on a Jazz Coleman touchdown at the 7:50 mark. Indian Creek (4-3) matched the score just a little over a minute later, going 57 yards on just four plays before Mink’s first TD made it a 7-7 game.
Another long drive by Speedway ended with a Levi Pappas interception deep in Brave territory, and just two plays later Sauer bolted up the gut and sped past Speedway’s secondary for 68-yard score. Late in the half, after Speedway had tied the game, Indian Creek forced a turnover on downs and the offense again got a long TD drive. Jaxon Ramey and Bobby Emberton had big catches from Sauer to set up Mink’s second TD and a 21-14 halftime lead.
The second half started with a long kickoff return by Mink, igniting a drive that ended with a touchdown for Jaxson Palmer from a yard out. After a Speedway score to bring the Sparkplugs within seven again, Mink took the kickoff return to near midfield to begin the drive and ended it with another 1-yard TD run to end the scoring.
