East Central Indiana high school football rundown: Breaking down who won & lost in week 4

MUNCIE, Ind. — It was a tough Friday night for East Central Indiana football teams.

Just one area team won out of the eight total games played involving local schools, the minimum numbers since one matchup was Delta at Yorktown. Although there were a few blowouts, a couple teams lost hard-fought contests and can build on some positives heading into next week.

Here are the scores, available statistics and breakdowns of each local Week 4 matchup:

More:Your one-stop shop for everything East Central Indiana football in 2022

Yorktown 35, Delta 21

In perhaps both teams' most anticipated regular-season matchup every year, Yorktown won at home against Delta 35-21.

The Tigers have now bested the Eagles in consecutive seasons after suffering six straight losses previously. Following 2021's 28-27 overtime victory, Friday featured another competitive bout in front of a packed crowd.

Yorktown forced a Delta punt to start the game and out together a solid drive that culminated in a swing pass from junior quarterback Mason Moulton to junior running back Jalen Thomas that went for a short touchdown. The Eagles responded with an impressive offensive sequence of their own, highlighted by junior quarterback Kaiden Bond connecting with junior receiver D'Amare Hood through the air on fourth down after overcoming a 3rd-and-26 disadvantage.

But the Tigers stood their ground at the goal line, stuffing Bond's sneak attempt on 4th-and-goal to force a turnover on downs at the 1-yard line. Delta forced a 3-and-out to start the second frame, then had another sustained drive that finished with a score from a 20-yard rush by senior running back Palmer Samuels.

The Eagles then earned a huge momentum shift on Yorktown's first play of the next drive as sophomore defensive end Landon Brooks deflected Moulton's pass into the arms of senior linebacker Dylan Manor for an interception.

Already with good field position, Delta was helped by a Yorktown personal foul penalty in the redzone, and senior running back Marquel Bond took advantage with an 8-yard rushing TD.

The Tigers overcame their offensive drought the next drive when Thomas gained 23 yards on a screen pass, which setup a terrific throw from Moulton to junior receiver Bailey Armstrong that tied the score at 14-14.

Delta then punted with under one minute left in the first half, and Yorktown quickly got in scoring position from a 39-yard catch by sophomore WR Ephraim Daugherty. But Eagles senior safety Noah Pickering was in perfect position on the next play and intercepted Moulton near the endzone with a few seconds left on the clock.

The back-and-forth first half was followed by a Yorktown-controlled final 24 minutes. Senior Kolton Nanko provided the spark with a strip sack near Delta's endzone, and the ball was recovered by junior Ayden Ewing for a defensive score.

Another Yorktown defensive stop led to a methodical Tiger offensive drive, with Thomas eventually breaking through a crowd of defenders for a 24-yard rushing TD that out his team up 28-14 by the end of the third quarter.

Yorktown's defense stood tall again, and trying to control the game clock, the offense leaned on its running game. Thomas, though, found his groove and notched another long run for a score, this time for 48 yards.

That'd be the final Tigers score as it essentially put the game out of reach. Delta eventually found some offensive rhythm, putting together a drive that ended in a touchdown pass to Hood, but the team was forced to pass nearly every play and ran out of time to realistically even the score.

With less than two minutes remaining, Delta drove down the field again before Bond was intercepted by junior defensive back Connor Stevens, clinching a Tiger win.

Yorktown's offense was led by Thomas, who totaled 224 yards and three touchdowns. Moulton completed 11-of-19 passes for 161 yards, two TD's and two interceptions, and Ephraim Daugherty caught two passes for 53 yards and a score.

Bond completed 18-of-32 throws for 221 yards, on TD and one interception, with his favorite target being Hood, who caught 10 balls for 108 yards and a score. Samuels carried the ball 15 times for 56 yards and a TD, and Ryder Turner led the defense with 11 tackles.

Both teams are 3-1 (1-1 HHC).

Yorktown 7 7 14 7 — 35

Delta 7 7 0 7 — 21

Kokomo 54, Muncie Central 27

Muncie Central moved to 0-4 on the season in a 54-27 loss to Kokomo.

Kokomo got on the board early with a 20-yard pass from Evan Barker to John Curl and scored again late in the first quarter with a 2-yard run from Junior Story to go up 14-0.

Keegan Name extended the lead to 20-0 with a 42-yard TD run early in the second quarter. Muncie Central’s first score game midway through the second quarter when Trenton French hammered in a 2-yard TD run. Kokomo scored three more TDs — a 46-yard pass from Evan Barker to Andrew Barker, a 1-yard run from Story and a 2-yard run from Shayne Spear — to go up 41-7 at halftime. Kokomo’s other two scored came on an 18-yard pick-six from Dre Kirby and a 17-yard run from Buddy Love.

Muncie Central scored three times in the second half. Demarkis Cole caught a 17-yard TD pass from Trenton French midway through the third quarter while Josiah Ullom returned a kickoff 81 yards and caught a 48-yard pass from French in the fourth quarter.

The Bearcats were led by French (10-for-18, 204 passing yards, two TDs, one interception), DaeJeon Golston (two catches, 78 receiving yards), Demarkis Cole (five catches, 65 receiving yards) and Ullom (two catches, 48 receiving yards). Marquis Allen (10 tackles, one TFL) and Orlando Golston (six tackles) led the defense while Brady McNabb hit three extra points.

Muncie Central is 0-4 (0-2 NCC).

Kokomo 13 33 6 7 — 54

Muncie Central 0 7 7 13 — 27

Tri 55, Wes-Del 0

Wes-Del was shutout for the third consecutive week, this time at home against Tri 55-0.

The Titans led 14-0 midway through the opening frame and finished the first half up 42-0. The team rushed for 458 yards on just 36 carries, a 12.7 yards per carry average, and Tri's defense recovered one fumble.

Quarterback Triton Blevins completed 1-of-4 passes for 40 yards and an interception, and Tre7 Adams led the offense with 62 total yards. The defense was led by Grayson Mealy with seven tackles.

The Warriors are 0-4 (0-1 MEC).

Tri 14 28 7 6 — 55

Wes-Del 0 0 0 0 — 0

Shelbyville 22, New Castle 20

New Castle lost a heartbreaker this week at Shelbyville, 22-20, for the team's third straight defeat.

The game started off well for the Trojans, putting together a methodical drive that culminated in a Tyson Lewis 1-yard TD run on 4th-and-goal. But they missed the extra point and the Golden Bears marched right down the field for a score, going ahead 7-6 to end the first frame.

Neither team did much on its next drive, but a Lewis pass was later intercepted and returned to the 2-yard line. New Castle's defense made a goal line stand, however, and turned Shelbyville over on downs, only to have a snap go over Lewis' head on the team's first offensive play and result in a safety. Shelbyville then scored on its subsequent offensive drive to lead 16-6.

Both offenses stalled for a bit before New Castle senior Quintin Boatright scored on a 65-yard run. The Trojans then forced a punt but didn't have much time left in the last, and entered the locker room down 16-13.

New Castle got the ball to start the third quarter and senior RB Jon Eberhart carried the ball six consecutive times, rumbling 65 yards for a score to take the lead. Another Trojans defensive stop appeared to capture momentum, but a Trojan fumble gave Shelbyville hope as the frame ended 20-16.

The Golden Bears converted two fourth downs on the scoring drive to take a 22-20 lead in the beginning of the fourth quarter. Shelbyville eventually got near the goal line again, only for the Trojans to get a fourth down stop at the 1-yard line. New Castle looked like it was putting together a game-winning drive when the team lost another fumble, effectively thwarting its chance for a comeback.

Lewis led the Trojans' offense, completing 8-of-18 passes for 142 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Eberhart carried the ball 19 times for 115 yards and a score, and Boatright caught three passes for 98 yards and a TD.

The team's defense was led by seniors Wyatt Maiden and Brevan Thrine who each had 15 tackles, and junior Brenndon Thompson tallied two TFL's.

New Castle is 1-3 (0-2 HHC).

Shelbyville 7 9 0 6 — 22

New Castle 6 7 7 0 — 20

Adams Central 48, Jay County 7

Jay County suffered its worst loss of the season, 48-7 at conference opponent Adams Central.

The Patriots notched their only in the first quarter on a Sean Bailey 58-yard TD pass to Patrick Hemmelgarn.

Jay County is 2-2 (1-1 ACAC).

Adams Central 21 21 6 0 — 48

Jay County 7 0 0 0 — 7

Madison-Grant 47, Blackford 0

Blackford was shutout for the second consecutive week and the third time in 2022, this time 47-0 at home against Madison-Grant.

Madison-Grant quickly gained a 14-0 lead after a successful offensive drive and forcing a Bruins fumble. All 47 Argyll points were scored in the first half.

Blackford is 0-4 (0-2 CIC).

Madison-Grant 21 26 0 0 — 47

Blackford 0 0 0 0 — 0

Centerville 42, Winchester 6

Winchester endured its second straight in-conference loss, this time 42-6 at Centerville.

The Golden Falcons again struggled to get much offense going until scoring in the fourth quarter. The team averaged just 2.7 yards per carry, led by sophomore Evan Duncan with 13 carries for 55 yards and one TD.

The team's defense was led by sophomore Nate Winkle (five tackles), and freshman Carter Campbell recovered a fumble.

Winchester is 0-4 (0-3 TEC).

Centerville 13 15 14 0 — 47

Winchester 0 0 0 6 — 6

North Decatur 36, Shenandoah 0

Shenandoah lost its first conference game 36-0 at North Decatur.

More:Shenandoah's Dylan Ayres named The Star Press' ECI football Player of the Week

The Chargers scored on a fake punt in the first quarter, and the game never got easier for the Raiders thereafter.

Shenandoah's defense was led by sophomore Levi Jackson with eight tackles, junior Landen Redick caught one interception, and seniors Dylan Ayres and Kolbey Siler each forced and recovered one fumble.

Shenandoah is 1-3 (0-1 MEC).

North Decatur — 36

Shenandoah 0 0 0 0 — 0

Gus Martin is a sports reporter at The Star Press. Follow him on Twitter @GusMartin_SP, and contact him at gmartin@gannett.com.