Carmel looks like a No. 1 team in 31-21 win at Center Grove
By CRAIG DRAGASH
ISL Correspondent
GREENWOOD, Ind. — Carmel justified its No. 1 ranking on Friday night.
John Lampe replaced Brandon Lugar at quarterback for the Greyhounds on their third possession and he made the most of his opportunity, completing 24 of 31 passes for 248 yards and one touchdown in a 31-21 win over Center Grove.
Chris Perkins led the Greyhound rushing attack with 86 yards and two touchdowns. Austin Roberts had his best game to date as a Greyhound with nine receptions for 115 yards.
Lane Morris carried the ball 17 times for 124 yards to lead the Trojans.
Center Grove unveiled a brand new scoreboard for their conference opener vs. the 5A top-ranked Greyhounds. It got put to good use in the first half.
After punting on their first possession, the Greyhounds put the ball in the end zone on three of their next five possessions, taking a 21-14 lead into the locker room at halftime after Joe Scheffer caught a pass from Lampe, barely keeping his foot in bounds with 1.8 seconds remaining in the half.
Center Grove was on the receiving end of a one yard punt from the Greyhounds after their first possession, but Race Johnson quickly intercepted a pass from Luke Calvert to give the Greyhounds possession on their own 33. After an 11-yard screen pass to Jack Thompson on 3rd and 5, quarterback Brandon Lugar broke loose for a 51-yard touchdown run to give the Greyhounds a 7-0 lead.
The Trojans quickly answered with a 68-yard touchdown run by running back Conner Stapleton to even the score at seven apiece. Then, after a Greyhound punt gave Center Grove possession at their own 22, the Trojans drove the ball down to the Greyhound 12, where Max Norris picked up a fumble in the backfield and ran the ball into the end zone to put the Trojans up 14-7.
After a sack put the Greyhounds on their own 44 yard line, Lampe connected with Jack Thompson on another screen pass for 14 yards to set up 4th and 1; Thompson then converted on 4th down, giving them a 1st down at the Center Grove 38. Carmel would face another 4th down, this time on the Center Grove 31 yard line. Perkins gave the Greyhounds another first down on a 6-yard run, and he would later score on a reverse from the 30 to tie the score at 14.
After a scoreless 3rd quarter, Billy Stumbo gave the Greyhounds a 24-14 lead with a 33-yard field goal. Facing 3rd and 10 on their own 32, senior linebacker Donald Patterson knocked the ball out of the hands of Trojan quarterback Luke Calvert, and fellow linebacker John Kenny picked up the loose ball and returned the fumble to the Center Grove four yard line. Perkins ran the ball into the end zone on the next play to give the Greyhounds a 31-14 lead with 6:40 remaining.
Center Grove answered with a 79-yard drive in 1:50, ending in a Luke Calvert sneak into the end zone from the one yard line to cut the lead to ten. But after a big conversion on 4th & 4 from the Center Grove 38, the Greyhounds ran out the clock.
