Week 10 preview: Caston gets rematch with No. 7 North White

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Caston (1-8) at North White (9-0), 7 p.m.

(Winner plays Carroll (Flora)-Tri-County winner in Class 1A, Sectional 43 semifinals)

After snapping their 20-game losing streak with a 49-14 win over Culver on Sept. 29, the Caston football team lost their final two regular season games, including a 50-0 loss to Knox last week in which the Comets were held to -10 yards of total offense.

The defense also struggled against Knox, a top 10 team in Class 3A who won the Hoosier North crown, according to coach Chris Ulerick.

“Defensively, we would get to the point of attack, and … we did not tackle real well at all,” Ulerick said. “Most of the time, we did not tackle at all. It was frustrating to watch, and it was frustrating for the kids too. … We’ve just got to learn to be more physical.”

Now they will try to bounce back against No. 7 North White, the Midwest Conference champions who completed their first undefeated regular season since 1999 with a 20-18 win over West Central last week.

North White also owns a 14-6 win over the Comets on Sept. 22, but the first Caston game and the West Central game are the only times that an opponent has stayed within 26 points of the Vikings.

Quarterback Eli Quasebarth, fullback C.J. Hunt and halfback Kade DeBoard are the primary ball carriers for North White. Caston linebackers like Kyle Roudebush, Grant Yadon and Jabez Yarber will be in pursuit of North White’s big three.

“We’ve seen him for four years,” Ulerick said of Quasebarth, the son of coach Kirk Quasebarth. “You know, he’s gotten consistently better. He’s quick, and he makes things happen. He’s certainly a force to be reckoned with. The first time around, we held him in check fairly well. We held him to under 110 yards for the game, which most people are like, ‘Oh, that’s too much,’ but I think he averages 250 a game. He can make things happen, and he’s going to be looking to rectify the situation come Friday.”

Quasebarth, Hunt and DeBoard are also three of North White’s top tacklers on defense.

Caston and North White will be playing a sectional game against each other for the first time since 2009, which Caston won 35-20.

North White has not won a football sectional title since 2000. Caston has never won a football sectional.

If Caston wins, they would play No. 3 Carroll (Flora) on the road or Tri-County at home in the sectional semifinals.