Written and photos by Assistant Editor Jerry Lindsey.
A large crowd gathered to recognize the Hall of Fame Inductees and see two undefeated teams battle. It was on a beautiful, fall, Friday night at Morrison, IL, High School on September 8, 2023.
The visiting Orion Chargers took the opening kickoff. They generated an 11-play drive and marched to the Mustang 27-yard line, before Reynolds Reavy slammed their Quarterback, for a three-yard loss on a fourth down attempt to end the challenge. The Mustangs responded three plays later when Quarterback Colton Bielema connected with Daeshaun McQueen, for a 63-yard pass completion that ended on the one-yard line. Chase Newman quickly covered the one-yard for the score, and the Mustangs led 6-0.
The Chargers retaliated on the following possession by driving 70 yards in eight plays and scoring on a 24-yard pass completion, from Quarterback Kale Filler to Jake Bainbridge. The extra point was good, and the Chargers led 7-6 with 11:26 left in the first half. The Mustangs struck again, following a blocked punt by Chase Newman that was recovered on the Chargers’ 20-yard line. Brady Anderson found the end zone on the next snap, to change the score to 12-7. A Colton Bielema pass completion to Daeshaun McQueen on the conversion added two points, and the Mustangs led 14-7.
Noah Robbins recovered a Charger fumble to end the next Orion drive. The Mustangs quickly marched through Charger territory ending in a three-yard touchdown by Brady Anderson. The extra point kick by Josh McDearmon upped the score to 21-7, with 2:58 left in the half.
The Mustangs stopped the Charger offense; retained possession; scored again with 12.7 seconds remaining in the half, when Bielema connected with Newman. The half ended with the Mustangs leading 27-7.
The Mustangs’ defense held the Chargers to a total offense of 40 yards in the third quarter, as their offense scored twice. The first score was a 55-yard scamper by Brady Anderson followed by a McDearmon kick; the MHS advantage changed to 34-7. The second score followed four minutes later. Rylan Alvarado skirted right end to outrun the defense for a 45-yard touchdown.
The fourth quarter started with the Mustangs leading 40-7. The Chargers owned possession time in the final period and completed a 15-play scoring drive with 1:24 remaining, when Aiden Fisher broke loose for a 30-yard score. The extra point kick was good, and the final score was set at 40-14.
A victory for the Mustang moved their record to 3-0. However, the evening was marred by eight penalties and three fumbles, of which one was lost to the Chargers. The next opponent for the Mustangs will be at Erie, IL, Middle School against the Erie-Prophetstown Panthers, starting at 7:00 p.m., on Friday, September 15.