Indians come back to ground Ro-Hawks


Jourdanton’s Jarel Lilly tries to shake a Randolph tackler on Friday. JOE DAVID CORDOVA | PLEASANTON EXPRESS

Jourdanton’s Jarel Lilly tries to shake a Randolph tackler on Friday. JOE DAVID CORDOVA | PLEASANTON EXPRESS

The Jourdanton Indians rallied from a 21-point deficit in the first quarter to beat the Randolph Ro-Hawks 41-35.

After Randolph jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first, the Indians rattled off 21 unanswered points to enter halftime tied.

Randolph had an opportunity with 50 seconds left in the game to tie and even regain the lead. Brett Berg was in the right place to force a fumble and Colton Schuchart was Johnny on the spot to recover the loose ball at their own 12-yard line and seal the win.

The win clinched the Indians’ spot in the playoffs.

In a game that was highlighted by explosive offenses, Jourdanton’s defense proved to be the deciding factor. Senior defensive end Derek Jenschke stepped up to lead the defense with 17 tackles, two sacks and a four tackles for a loss to go with a pair of forced fumbles. Robert Miranda was not far behind with 16 tackles.

Berg and Jacob Brister each tallied 13 tackles for Jourdanton. Schuchart had nine tackles to go with his win-sealing fumble recovery.

At the end of the day, Jourdanton posted 412 yards of total offense.

Junior quarterback Cole Andrus went 17-of-30 passing for 252 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Jacob Reyna and Nick Cordova were the recipients of those passes.

Reyna would lead the team with 87 yards on six catches. Jarel Lilly picked up 85 yards on five catches for the Indians.

Cordova would lead the way for the Indians’ rushing attack with a pair of touchdowns and 90 yards on seven carries. Aidan Borth had 13 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown.

Jourdanton (8-1, 4-1) will look to clinch a share of their first district title since 2011 when they welcome San Antonio Cole (4-5, 2-3) to Indian Stadium on Friday.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *