Quick start carries Knights to 55-22 win over East Mills


Fremont-MIlls’ Braxton Blackburn ran for 187 yards and six touchdowns in the Knights’ 55-22 victory over East Mills Friday in Malvern.

Fremont-Mills scored a touchdown 29 seconds into the game and never let up as the Knights rolled to a 55-22 eight-player District 10 victory over East Mills Friday night in Malvern.

The Knights dominated play at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball against a Wolverine team decimated by injuries.  

“Our defensive line stood out,” Fremont-Mills Coach Greg Ernster said. “We got a lot of pressure. We didn’t get very many sacks but just pressure and knocking down balls when they ran screens.”

Fremont-Mills took advantage of its size and experience advantage by racing to a 41-0 halftime lead. Braxton Blackburn was the workhorse of the Knights’ offense, rushing for 187 yards on 14 carries and scoring six touchdowns in the game.  The senior scored on runs of 9, 37, 5, 42, 10 and 20 yards.

“With their offensive line, they can just pitch ball to Blackburn and let him run,” East Mills Coach Kevin Schafer said.

J.W. Linkenhoker and Lucas Madison accounted for the Knights’ two other scores. Linkenhoker returned a blocked punt 11 yards for a touchdown midway through the first quarter and Madison scored on a 25-yard scamper late in the third quarter.

Playing at a decisive size and experience disadvantage, the Wolverines tried to penetrate the Fremont-Mills defense with their passing game but had limited success. Starting quarterback Caleb Urban completed 14-of-37 passes for 120 yards before leaving the game with an apparent shoulder injury that looked to be season-ending, according to Schafer. Coupled with the injury-related loss of their first starting quarterback, Zach Thornburg, East Mills finds itself without a quarterback on its roster.

“I’m guessing he (Urban) is done for the year,” Schafer said. He was our backup quarterback.  The kid we put in to replace him is a running back.”

Thrown into the fire after Urban’s injury, freshman Greg Lewis was given the task of running the Wolverines’ offense. He provided a spark, scoring two of the Wolverines’ second-half touchdowns on a 78-yard kickoff return and 50-yard return of a Fremont-Mills fumble. Quinn

Poorker also scored a touchdown for the Wolverines when he recovered an East Mills offensive fumble in the end zone.

Fremont-Mills finished the night with a 361-180 advantage in total yards. Ernster praised his team for not letting up after grabbing an early lead.

“That’s something we talked about – not settling and just keep going,” Ernster said. “Our boys stayed focused all night.”

Led by Blackburn, the Knights accumulated 321 rushing yards. Additionally, quarterback Sawyer Forney completed 3-of-7 passes for 40 yards. On defense, Forney recorded a team-high 5.5 tackles and two interceptions.

East Mills’ leading rusher was Nick Maurer with 25 yards on three carries. Jack Gordon hauled in four pass receptions for 38 yards and Jackson Embree tallied nine tackles.

Fremont-Mills improved to 3-2 with the win. The Knights return home Friday night for a homecoming matchup with Exira-EHK (2-3).

Meanwhile, the remainder of East Mills’ season is in jeopardy because of its dwindled roster. The Wolverines, now 1-4, are also celebrating homecoming this week with a game against Griswold (0-5). Schafer said the game could be the Wolverines’ final varsity game of the season.

“We don’t have enough kids,” Schafer said. “If we can’t finish the season, maybe we can find one JV game.”

Schafer said injuries aren’t the only reason the Wolverines’ are short on players. He said there are several boys at East Mills who didn’t go out for football this season that could have contributed and provided depth to the roster.

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