MUNCIE, IND - High school football in October was in full swing at Delta tonight with the cool, crisp fall air and fireworks going off.
The Eagles hosted Hoosier Heritage Conference rival Pendleton Heights tonight in what turned out to be a thriller. Both teams scored early with touchdowns on their second drives after punting on the first.
Pendleton Heights lit up the scoreboard first with a pass from senior quarterback Colton Frank to senior wideout Nate Derolf with 5 minutes to go in the first. On Delta’s side, the offense had things rolling on the ground. Senior Chase Ritchie scored from 19 yards out to knot it up.
Head coach Chris Overholt was happy with his team's effort tonight after dropping their last three games. The Eagles finally had a healthy lineup tonight and that made the difference according to Overholt.
“This is the healthiest we've been since week three,” he said. “So we had a starting lineman back, we had another running back come back, and we felt good about that. So there were just no excuses for us not to come out and perform, especially on senior night. That one was good for the soul.”
Delta took the lead for the first time early in the second quarter off of a one-yard rush from senior quarterback Bronson Edwards. The scoring drive came off the back of senior Nolan Carpenter who eclipsed 2,000 career rushing yards.
He was not aware that he was close to passing 2,000 yards but gave all the praise to his offensive linemen.
“To be honest, I had no idea coming into it,” he said. “This is a great achievement and I give credit to all my offensive linemen. None of us guys would be here without them, so I give all credit to them.”
An Arabian field goal followed by a sputtered out Eagles drive rounded out a quick first half of football. The second half began with a bang after Pendleton Heights recovered a successful onside kick.
Overholt thought that the onside kick, along with some changes made on the Arabian defensive line, led to a shift in momentum towards the Pendleton Heights sideline.
“Yeah, well, they made some substitutions on their D line, and they went a little bigger, and then they went smaller,” he said. “They were doing some stuff up front that just kind of made a muddy read with things. So by them committing a little bit more to the run, it opened up our passing game.”
Delta had some miscues in the third with a fumble after an Arabian field goal. Delta’s defense was able to get the Pendleton Heights offense back off the field. After some back-and-forth punts, Bronson Edwards was able to punch another keeper in from one yard out.
All Edwards wanted was a senior night win for himself and his senior teammates. He knows this one was big for the Eagles moving into the tough part of their schedule.
“It’s huge because anytime you can just come out and play a team like that and you execute, and you can just come in here and get a huge win,” he said. “Then obviously it gets harder and harder throughout the rest of our schedule. So to get a win like this is huge.”
Pendleton Heights got the ball back with just under five minutes to play in the game. The Arabians were able to score but were unsuccessful on the two-point conversion. Delta got the ball back with under a minute to play.
A huge gain on a pass from Edwards to fellow senior Zane Cline set up the Eagles nicely on the Arabian five-yard line. The next play, a quick crossing route from junior Cole Mynett and the pass from Edwards gave Delta the late lead.
“I was just thinking, you know, we just have to get six to win. So that was really the only thing that was really going through my mind.”
Overholt, although ecstatic after the score, knew that with Pendleton Heights, and the wise words of Yogi Berra ‘It ain’t over till it’s over.’
“It was a great call by our offensive staff to be able to get that done,” he said. “But with Pendleton, you're never at the end. So we still had to execute. I thought we had a lot of grit down there and [Bronson] had a great pass to Cole Mynett, something that he hasn't thrown since week one against Muncie Central. So it was something we’ve had out there and something we've practiced.”
The game ended on a field goal attempt that was left short by Pendleton Heights. Carpenter knew this win was big not only for the seniors but for the program as a whole.
“Moving forward, in this season, having a win like this, against a good opponent like Pendleton. It's a great feeling,” he said. “Especially on senior night, and we're back. Delta is back.”
The remainder of the schedule has the Eagles slated to play two of the top teams in the HHC. Carpenter, and his teammates, know that they are overlooked but will still put up a fight every Friday night.
“We're always going to be overlooked but we're always going to put up a fight,” he said. “We’re just always going to come out here with that mentality.”
Delta will host Greenfield-Central next Friday, the 11th, with a 7:30 p.m. scheduled kickoff. Pendleton Heights will also play next Friday night at home against Yorktown with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
Contact Logan Connor with comments at logan.connor@bsu.edu or on X @_loganconnor
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