All week long, the message for the Western Boone football team was “play to your potential.”
While they were the heavy favorites on paper against host Crawfordsville, the Stars wanted to make sure they handled their business and continue the momentum they have inherited during a five-game winning streak.
And the Stars (9-1) did just that, scoring on their first five offensive possessions, and cruising to a 42-7 win over Crawfordsville.
“We were just trying to play to our potential and if we get beat, we get beat,” Western Boone head coach Justin Pelley said. “Playing to our potential has to be our goal every week, and if we do that, we should be able to win a few games.”
Western Boone got a punt return for a touchdown from Marcus Fortner, touchdown runs from Ethan Bayles, Rowen Durbin and Trevor Weakley in the first half, and a touchdown pass from Durbin to Bayles.
The Stars’ starters played just a half, but Durbin finished the game 5-of-5 for 78 yards, and Weakley had 8 carries for 74 yards in the win.
Bayles had three catches for 58 yards, and a six-yard rush.
“That was a good half for them,” Pelley said. “We had some different linemen in and out, so I was really happy with how we managed the game. Scoring once on special teams is a big deal, and having short fields helps too.”
Crawfordsville’s season ends with a 3-7 record.
The Athenians had some good moments, amassing more than 200 yards of offense and driving into WeBo territory three times, but could only come up with one score late in the game.
“Western Boone is a fantastic program, and you have to execute 100 percent on every play just to stay in the ball game,” Crawfordsville head coach Brad Clark said. “We moved the ball a little bit, but we weren’t able to execute at the right times ad put more points on the board. But hats off to them, they are a fantastic team.”
WeBo set the tone early in the game.
After forcing a three-and-out, the Stars got on the board thanks to a 55-yard punt return touchdown from Marcus Fortner, giving WeBo a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the game.
Fortner nearly had another punt return touchdown in the second quarter, but was ruled to have stepped out at the 3, leading to a Weakley 3-yard touchdown run to make it 35-0.
“We see that in practice and know he has it, it is just letting him showcase it,” Pelley said. “He had three big plays, the two punt returns and he had another big catch in the second half. I was happy to see that and see him come out of his shell a little bit. Hopefully that gives him some confidence.”
Western Boone went up 14-0 on a 1-yard run by Durbin with 5:23 to go in the first quarter.
The Athenians drove to the Stars’ 36 before stalling on their next drive, and WeBo marched down the field and scored on a 6-yard run by Bayles.
After a Crawfordsville put, the Stars went 62 yards in 10 plays, scoring on a 14-yard pass from Durbin to Bayles.
After an Athenian three-and-out, Fortner returned the ensuing punt to the 3 before Weakley carried it in.
Crawfordsville looked like it would get on the board right before the half.
A 60-yard pass from Kaden Patton to Javier Resto got Crawfordsville down to the Stars’ 12.
They eventually got down to the Stars’ 4, but WeBo’s defense held firm and kept the first-half shutout.
“It’s good for us when that stuff happens, because it shows a little bit of character and pride,” Pelley said. “Our backs were against the wall there and there was a little pressure, and your back is against the wall a lot in this tournament, because if you lose you go home. It’s all fun and games until its fourth and goal from the 5, so it was good to see that response.”
Western Boone made it 42-0 on its first drive of the third quarter, getting a 6-yard run from Mason Amich.
Crawfordsville got on the board in the fourth quarter with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Patton to Ethan McLemore.
Patton was 15 of 31 for 209 yards. McLemore had six catches for 74 yards.
“It probably wasn’t our No. 1 gameplan going in (to throw the ball), we wanted to establish the run a little bit more,” Clark said. “But our guys started executing in the passing game and we stuck with it. We had some guys really step up and perform well.”
The Athenians came into the year having won just three games combined in the past five seasons.
They won three this year, and while Clark knows there is a ways to go, he is happy with the progress they made this season.
“I am super proud of our kids and our seniors especially,” Clark said. “They had only won two games in their careers, and to cap it off with three is a step in the right direction. We understand we have a lot of work to do, but I couldn’t be more proud of our team and our seniors.”
Western Boone advances to the sectional semifinal, where they will host Danville.
