L-S football dominates Central Decatur in regular-season finale

SULLY — The Lynnville-Sully football team already knew it was a playoff qualifier heading into a Week 8 home game against Central Decatur.

But a victory over the Cardinals would lock up the No. 3 seed from Class A District 6.

And the regular-season finale wasn’t much of a contest as the Hawks scored 21 points in each of the first two quarters and routed Central Decatur, 45-0, on Senior Night.

The Hawks rushed for 142 yards and four touchdowns in the win, and the defense allowed only 29 total yards and finished with four sacks, 14 tackles for loss and two interceptions. It was the first shutout win of the season for L-S, too.

Lynnville-Sully (5-3, 4-2 in the district) advances to play Riverside in the opening round of the Class A playoffs at 7 p.m. on Oct. 25 in Oakland.

Gavin Fisk scored the first two touchdowns of the game. He went in from 2 yards out with 10:15 to go in the first and then added another 2-yard TD run with just less than 7 minutes to play in the quarter.

Dawson James also rushed for two scores. His first was a 20-yard TD run with 1:46 to go in the period and then added a 21-yard scoring run midway through the second.

James added a career-best 70-yard touchdown catch from Lannon Montgomery with 6:15 to go in the half.

Montgomery, who returned from an injury sustained on Sept. 20, threw for 149 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions on five completions in the victory.

Jack Bowlin capped the Hawks’ first-half scoring with a 51-yard pick 6. Gavin Olea’s 27-yard field goal in the fourth finalized the scoring.

James led the Hawks with 52 rushing yards and two TDs on three carries and caught two passes for a career-best 86 yards and one TD.

Fisk rushed for 71 yards and two scores on seven carries, Bowlin caught two passes for 52 yards and Jace Johnson’s first career varsity catch went for 52 yards.

Connor Deal completed 1-of-2 through the air for 52 yards and Matthew Mintle added one catch for 11 yards. Kimball Elliott rushed for nine yards on two carries.

James led the L-S defense with 6.5 tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. Terran Gosselink added 6.5 tackles, 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss and Carson Maston tallied 4.5 tackles, one sack and four tackles for loss.

Gosselink’s 22 tackles for loss this fall ranks tied for second in Class A and James’ 13.5 tackles for loss are tied for 10th.

Wyatt Mathis finished with four tackles and two tackles for loss, Mintle contributed three tackles, two tackles for loss and one interception. Johnson had 3.5 tackles and Richards and Fisk each chipped in three tackles.

Bowlin had the pick 6, Trace Carlson snagged one interception and Trace Alberts recovered a fumble. Bowlin’s four interceptions rank in the top 10 of Class A and he’s one of five players, along with Mintle, in the class with two pick 6s.

Bowlin returned a kickoff 32 yards and Carlson’s lone punt went for 39 yards.

Central Decatur (2-6, 1-5) rushed for -19 yards on 29 carries. The Cardinals ended the regular season with three straight losses and were outscored 124-6 in those games.

Lynnville-Sully takes a two-game win streak into the playoffs. The Hawks outscored those two foes 93-7.

Riverside (6-2) enters the playoffs with three straight victories. The Bulldogs outscored their last two opponents 85-12.