Whiteland’s Slate Valentine tries to run over Decatur Central’s Breydon Lafollette during Friday’s regional.
Rob Baker | For the Daily Journal
INDIANAPOLIS
The generations-old adage about it being difficult to beat the same team twice in a season reared its ugly head here Friday night.
Meeting for the 29th time overall but the first in the postseason, Decatur Central and Whiteland combined to run the football 84 times during a Class 5A regional — only the Hawks ran it better in a surprisingly lopsided 41-7 victory.
Led by fleet-footed junior N’po Dodo’s 136 yards rushing on 16 carries, and another 114 courtesy of senior K.C. Berry, the hosts were most unhospitable, churning out a total of 328 yards on the ground.
As a result, the Hawks dashed any hopes the Warriors might have had of returning to the state championship game.
“They’re using their athletes to the utmost,” said Whiteland coach Darrin Fisher, whose squad finishes with a 7-5 record. “(Dodo) is a great back. The more times he had the football, he’s hard to tackle. They did a great job on the perimeter, and again, they didn’t get bored.
“I think sometimes people get bored calling the same play over and over again. But they gave the ball to their best players behind their best players, and they did a great job. They had a good plan offensively.”
Decatur Central rushed for 228 yards in the first half alone to take a commanding 24-7 lead at the break.
The Warriors had the first offensive possession of the game, but it stalled at their own 40 before electing to punt the ball away. The Hawks then journeyed 83 yards on 11 running plays, the final one being sophomore quarterback Bo Polston running it in on fourth and goal from the 1.
Whiteland struck back on the ensuing possession, the offensive line blowing open a massive hole for junior back Slate Valentine, who bolted 69 yards up the middle to paydirt with 3:04 remaining in the opening quarter.
Decatur Central took the lead for good on the first play of the second period, as Dodo cut back to the left for a 22-yard TD run on third and 6.
The Warriors had two drives that barely crept into Hawks territory, only to run out of downs on both occasions.
On a fourth and 6 from the DC 49, Whiteland lined up in punt formation, only to have senior Gunnar Hicks run the football and wind up a yard short. Two plays later, Berry located room along the right side and accelerated for a 51-yard score to put Decatur Central up by two touchdowns.
The Warriors then advanced the pigskin to the Hawks’ 46, this time facing fourth and 5. Valentine’s run up the middle netted 2 yards, which again put Decatur Central in prime position to widen its lead. With 26 seconds left before halftime, it did so with junior Ashton Vogel splitting the uprights on a 27-yard field goal.
Whiteland’s onside kick to start the third quarter traveled 3 yards instead of the necessary 10, once more giving the Hawks great field position. Six plays later, Polston connected with senior Halbert Aguirre for a 14-yard touchdown.
Nine seconds into the fourth, Berry zigzagged his way to a 28-yard touchdown run for a 38-7 lead. Vogel tacked on a 34-yard field goal to account for the final tally with 5:33 remaining.
Valentine carried the ball 14 times for 118 yards.
Afterward, Fisher spent time hugging his seniors, reminding them how much they’ve meant to the Warriors.
“This is the smallest group of seniors we’ve had,” Fisher said. “There are about 12 of them, and they fought through COVID. They were freshmen during COVID, and a lot of their classmates decided that football wasn’t for them.
“But these kids stuck it out. They as a group believed and worked and stuck it out. We tell our guys all the time that if you’ll commit and go for four years, we’ll put a championship ball on the wall. They put a sectional championship ball on the wall.”
