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BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
LaVille (5-2, 3-2 Hoosier North) at Culver (2-4, 1-4), 7 p.m.
Culver’s 28-6 loss to Pioneer last week dropped the Cavaliers to 0-8 against the Panthers all-time.
Still, the 22-point margin of defeat is the closest game Culver has given Pioneer since they became Hoosier North rivals in 2015.
“I thought we did some really good things on both sides of the ball,” Culver coach Mike Zehner said. “That was our message to the kids after the game and even this week. We’ve improved. That’s been our motto and our goal each week and every week is to improve and get better. Pioneer is going to be one of the better defenses we see all year long, and we rushed for over 200 yards against them, and I thought we did some really good things and put some drives together.”
Zehner also praised center Auston Zehner for his blocking on Pioneer nose tackle Oscar Solano.
A somewhat symbolic play was when Pioneer ran for four yards on a fourth-and-3 play to extend a drive. Pioneer eventually scored on that drive.
“I showed the kids that in film that we’re right there,” Zehner said. “We’ve just got to take that next step and play just a little bit faster and a little bit more intense. … It’s not going to be any different this week against LaVille.”
As for LaVille, the game has been moved to Culver due to poor field conditions at LaVille. (Culver student passes will not be permitted for entry since the game was not originally scheduled for Culver.)
LaVille is coming off a 10-9 overtime loss to North Judson last week. The Lancers have managed a 5-2 record – they lost their scheduled game against Winamac on Sept. 10 due to COVID-related reasons – even though they have scored more than 14 points only once.
This will be LaVille’s eighth straight winning season under coach Will Hostrawser.
Sophomore quarterback Lucas Plummer has thrown for 280 yards and rushed for another 368. Paul DeWitt has rushed for a team-high 401 yards.
“I’ve always been impressed with what coach Hostrawser does on the defensive side of things,” coach Zehner said. “Because they’ve always been known for their defense. They hang their hat on that at the end of the day. I know they’ve had some injuries there offensively. … They have that potential. They have the speed to do that. They’re kind of complex on offense in what they do, but at the end of the day, they’re going to hang their hat on their defense.”
