By RICK SPRUNGER
FORT WAYNE — Norwell bit off a mouthful in opening round Class 3A sectional play Friday night.
The Knights traveled to Fort Wayne Bishop Luers and came home with a 42-7 bruising, ending their season at 2-8.
Luers advanced to a second round date at Jay County with a 6-4 mark.
In the end, Norwell was simply worn down by Luers’ relentless onslaught.
“We have five kids sitting on the bench (with injuries) who should have been starters,” commented Norwell coach Josh Gerber after the game. “We are a young team, and we’re asking kids to do some things they’re not physically ready to do. But our guys battled, and I was extremely proud of the way our kids competed.”
The Knights had some successes.
There was a huge goal line stand late in the first quarter when the defensive line stood up Luers quarterback Jayce White on fourth down from the three-yard line.
There was the fumble Norwell forced at the Luers 26 midway through the first period to give themselves tremendous field position in the red zone.
There was a 40-yard gallop by Adam Mahnensmith deep into Luers territory, also in the first quarter.
But in the end, there was just too much Luers. The home team held Norwell to just 176 yards in total offense and forced four turnovers, three of them on interceptions. And Luers broke enough big plays to take gradual control.
White hit Dee Hogue in stride behind the Norwell secondary for 62 yards on Luers’ first offensive series.
The Luers defense came up big on the second play of the second quarter when Brayden Mygrant forced a fumble and took it 15 yards into the end zone.
White then found Jaston White for another big play, a 46-yard scoring pass that gave the Knights 21-0 command at halftime.
But things went downhill quickly for Norwell in the second half.
On just the third play of the half, Hogue broke two tackles at the line and dashed 47 yards for Luers’ fourth score of the night.
Then, on Luers’ very next snap and immediately following a Mygrant interception at the Norwell 28, Daryea Williams raced the distance for the touchdown that got the clock running.
Norwell averted a shutout late in the fourth quarter, however, when Cayden Cassell hit Brady Smith for a 36-yard scoring pass on a fourth-and-10 play.
“I am tremendously proud of the way our kids competed,” Gerber repeated. “They showed a lot of heart and played hard.”
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FORT WAYNE LUERS 42,
NORWELL 7
At Bishop Luers
Norwell 0 0 0 7 — 7
Bishop Luers 7 14 14 7 — 42
First Quarter
BL—Dee Hogue 62 pass from Jayce White (Angel Rojas), 8:19.
Second Quarter
BL—Brayden Mygrant 15 fumble return (Rojas kick), 11:20.
BL—Jaston White 46 pass from Jayce White (Rojas kick), 6:33.
Third Quarter
BL—Hogue 47 run (Rojas kick), 10:44.
BL—Daryea Williams 28 run (Rojas kick), 8:25.
Fourth Quarter
BL—Danny Arnold 2 run (Rojas kick), 10:36.
N—Brady Smith 36 pass from Cayden Cassel (Trey Privett kick), 3:26.
Team Statistics
NOR BL
First Downs 10 16
Rushes-Yards 28-89 28-208
Yards Passing 87 197
Passing (C-A-I) 10-19-3 7-11-0
Penalties-Yards 3-35 4-45
Fumbles-Lost 3-1 2-1
Punts-Average 2-33.0 1-35.0
Time of Possession 27:15 20:45
Individual Statistics
Rushing: Norwell-Adam Mahnensmith 16-71, Cayden Cassel 6-(-14), Kaidyn Inostroza 5-21, Ben Peterson 1-11; Luers-Jacob Felger 9-25, Dee Hogue 6-101, Danny Arnold 4-9, T.J. Epperson 3-33, Brandon Gaither 2-32, Jayce White 2-(-9), Daryea Williams 1-28, Tommy Reichert 1-(-11).
Passing: Norwell-Cayden Cassel 10-19-3 87; Luers-Jayce White 7-11-0 197.
Receiving: Norwell-Garry Riley 5-16, Brady Smith 2-61, Lance Meriwether 1-8, Max Babcock 1-2, Adam Mahnensmith 1-0; Luers-McKale Woodson 2-51, Dee Hogue 1-62, Jaston White 1-46, Ben Kiracofe 1-20, Ayle Taylor 1-18, Danny Arnold 1-0.
