North Putnam Cougars | Archive | November, 2007

Putnam County Consolation Round: Greencastle 41, North Putnam 30

Posted on 19 November 2007 by tfariyah@yahoo.com.

By Bubba Harnist
Staff Writer

GREENCASTLE – It’s early in the 2007-08 girl’s basketball season, but we learned two things watching the consolation game of the 2007 Putnam County Tournament at South Putnam High School.

The first thing we learned is that Greencastle has a chance to be good as the season goes on.  The second thing we learned is that North Putnam has some work to do.

This all came about after Greencastle beat North Putnam, 41-30 in the consolation game of the Putnam County Tournament.  With the win, Greencastle evens their record at 2-2, while North Put falls to 0-5.

“We’re young,” Greencastle head coach Glenn Hile said.  “We’re not as good yet as I think we can be.

The two teams were evenly matched after one quarter with Greencastle holding a slim one point lead, 8-7.

“The offense wasn’t as smooth as it can be (in the first quarter),” Hile said.

The second quarter was a whole different story as Greencastle scored the first eight points of the quarter to stretch the lead to 16-7.

“In the second quarter we found the open post,” Hile said.  “They were overextending on us, which was leaving the backside post wide open.”

After a North Putnam free throw from Shawna Johnston made it 16-8, the Tiger Cubs scored the final six points of the quarter via a three pointer and a three point play from Chelsea Samuels. 

Do the math, second quarter points: Greencastle 14, North Putnam 1.

“We played really good defense,” Hile said.  “We are finding out that we are really doing a good job in out matchup zone.

“It seems to be our best defense and tonight we did a good job of matching up on their shooters and not giving really easy shots.”

North Putnam wasn’t done though as they started the second half on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to seven, 22-15.  Instead of hitting the panic button, Greencastle quickly regrouped and proceeded to go on a 7-0 run themselves to make it 29-15.  When the wild third quarter finally ended, Greencastle was up 11, 30-19.

“In the second half, we turned the ball over too much,” Hile said.  “We need to work on our offense a little bit.”

As the fourth quarter commenced, Greencastle held North Put in check.  The closest the Cougars could get was nine points around the four minute mark, but a Greencastle three point play put the Tiger Cubs lead back to 12, 36-24. 

From there, the two teams exchanged baskets to end the game as Greencastle came out on top 41-30.

Leading the way for North Putnam was Johnston with 11 points.  Taylor Alles and Carlye McGaughey each chipped in six points in the losing effort.  The 0-5 Cougars have the next 12 days off to work on things.  North Put will not have another game until November 29 when they travel to Rockville to take on the Rox.

Leading the way for Greencastle was Becky Grivas with nine points.  Olivia Miller and Cassie Alspaugh each chipped in six points for the winters.  The 2-2 Tiger Cubs get right back after on Tuesday when they travel to Crawfordsville to take on the Athenians.

Good news!  We have video highlights from this game.  CLICK HERE to check them out!

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North Putnam 21, Speedway 8

Posted on 14 November 2007 by tfariyah@yahoo.com.

By Will Willems
Contributing Writer

SPEEDWAY – Class 2A No. 2 North Putnam knew
that things would be a little tougher Oct. 5 when the Cougars traveled to play 2A
No. 8 Speedway.

But one
thing didn’t change – their dominant defense. The Cougars (8-0) were able to
hang on to a 21-8 victory and clinch the West Central Conference crown at 5-0,
while Speedway
falls to 6-2 and 5-1.

“Not to
take anything away from our first seven opponents, but from a concentration
level we knew we had to come in here with a different mindset,” said North
Putnam coach Dave Pasch.

The defense,
which came in having only allowing 34 points the entire season, needed no
change in mind set. The Cougars continued that dominant play by forcing four
turnovers and allowing only 207 yards of total offense by the Sparkplugs.

Two of the
turnovers came on interceptions in the fourth quarter, including one returned
for a touchdown that kept Speedway
at bay and wrapped up the victory.

“We have
had stints this year which we have forced a lot of turnovers,” Pasch said. “When
we got on the bus tonight there was just a different demeanor, and it showed.”

Both teams’
defenses were stout throughout the contest, with neither team able to muster
anything in the first quarter. North Putnam came the closest to scoring on its
opening drive, but Speedway
blocked a 25-yard field goal attempt by Rob Moore.

After a
fumble by Speedway with 6:07 remaining in the half was recovered by the
Cougars, North Putnam went 73 yards in just 3:56 to take a 7-0 lead on a
six-yard touchdown run by Adam Vondersaar.

Speedway nearly cut the deficit at the half
to 7-3, but a 40-yard field goal attempt by Grant Williams hit the left upright
to keep the score at 7-0.

North
Putnam made the first drive of the second half a dominating performance. After
an incompletion by quarterback Griffen Dahlstrom, the next seven plays all went
for positive yardage, including three plays of 10-plus yards.

The
Cougars went up 14-0 on Vondersaar’s second touchdown run of the game.

“That
drive was huge,” Pasch said. “Their (Speedway’s)
mindset is no different to anyone else’s – they want to kick to us in the
second half to try and establish field position.

“We have
been explosive at times, but on that drive we proved we could grind it out,
too.”

The
Sparkplugs wouldn’t give up without a fight. Even when quarterback Ethan Bartel
went down with a knee injury on the second play of the ensuing drive, forcing
back up Jake Duman into the picture, Speedway
continued to grind it out.

Riding the
back of Jaron Avance, the Sparkplugs drove down into the red zone and scored ultimately
on Avance’s five-yard run. After a North Putnam offside penalty, the ‘Plugs
decided to go for two, and they got it on Avance’s determined run to the right
side.

After a
defensive stop, Speedway
got the ball back with a chance to take the lead. But a pick-six was thrown to North
Put’s Darr Boruff, and the Sparkplugs had all but lost their chance at victory.

Any final
hopes were dashed with just under four minutes remaining when Jerrett Ban
intercepted Duman to seal the deal.

Vondersaar
and Dahlstrom were a two-man machine on the ground for the Cougars, running for
101 and 72 yards, respectively. The duo allowed North Putnam to control the
tempo most of the game.

Pasch said
that although this was a big win, the Cougs still have a lot of football games
left before they can get to their goal of the state title.

“It means
a lot now – it clinches at least a tie for the conference title,” Pasch said.
“We have only done that one other time in school history.

“We are
going to enjoy the bus ride home, but this was a physical, physical ball game.
So we are going to get healed up and go back to work on Monday.”

North
Putnam concludes its regular season Oct. 12 with a home West Central clash
against Cloverdale (3-5, 1-4). Speedway,
meanwhile, will, host 3A No. 11 Brebeuf (7-1) next Friday.

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Sectional 30: North Putnam 27, Speedway 14

Posted on 14 November 2007 by tfariyah@yahoo.com.

By Brandon Jones

All-Purpose Writer
 
SPEEDWAY – The play-action pass is a
beautiful weapon when it works. It worked like a charm on multiple occasions for
the visitors Oct. 26 as Class 2A second-ranked North Putnam down 2A No. 12 host
Speedway,
27-14.
 
Junior
quarterback Griffen Dahlstrom went 7 for 11 for 233 yards and had four
touchdowns in helping the Cougars overcome a distinct disadvantage in field
position. Speedway
began its first seven drives with excellent field position, while North Putnam
started off well on only three of its 10 drives, with just one of those coming
before the fourth quarter.
 
After a
scoreless first quarter, the rain stopped and the Cougars’ passing attack went
to work. A time-consuming 80-yard drive that took 10 plays was highlighted by
two huge receptions by North Putnam senior J.T. Francies. The first was a 20-yard
strike from Dahlstrom, the second a 30-yarder that set the visitors up inside
the Speedway 10.
 
After a
couple of short runs and a penalty, North Putnam pulled a trick out of the bag:
a play-action fake from Dahlstrom to senior Kyle Rooker from 15 yards out. The
point after was no good, but nonetheless the undefeated Cougars (11-0) were on
top, 6-0.
 
Speedway would not be phased.
 
A 73-yard
kickoff return by Sparkplug speedster Calvin Harris on the ensuing kickoff set
the home team up at the North Putnam 7. It did take three plays from there, but
Speedway
punched it in on a one-yard plunge by tailback Jaron Advance, allowing the
hosts to take their first – and final – lead of the evening at 7-6.
 
North
Putnam responded, however. To the surprise of everyone in attendance, the
Cougars’ passing game was the weapon as they traveled 70 yards in just three
plays.
 
After a penalty
pushed the visitors back to their own 18, Dahlstrom once again found Francies
on a gorgeous jump ball where the speedy receiver outjumped (then outran) two
Speedway defenders all the way to paydirt.
 
The
two-point conversion was successful, and North Putnam was on top 14-7 midway
through the second period.
 
That’s
when the vaunted Cougar defense took over, forcing Speedway to turn the ball over on downs. North
Putnam’s aerial attack then went on the offensive once more as Dahlstrom hooked
up with fellow junior Jerrett Ban on a 44-yard strike just before halftime,
allowing North Putnam to extend its lead to 21-7.
 
A key
moment in the first half occurred on the touchdown strike as Speedway junior quarterback/defensive back
Kyle Linville was injured, left the game, and never returned.
 
The second
half was all about clock management and defense, two staples of postseason
football.
 
Both teams
traded punts before North Putnam, whose offense seemed to go a bit conservative
after the break, punted for a second time, setting the ’Plugs up with good
field position. Sophomore receiver J.T. Bouwman then stepped up and showed that
he has a big future on Indy’s westside.
 
Bouwman
had three receptions on the Speedway
march. The first was an eight-yard strike from backup quarterback Ethan Bartel.
Next, a great fade pattern grab of 37 yards set Speedway up inside North Putnam’s 10.
 
Three
plays later, it was once again Bouwman. On a crucial third down from the 9, a
jump ball to the southwest corner of the end zone was Bouwman’s for the taking,
and he snatched it to cut North Putnam’s lead to 21-14 following the extra-point
kick.
 
As it has
all season, though, the Cougars’ offense responded in a big way.
 
A 14-play,
68 yard drive of “dinks and dunks” that consumed a back-breaking 7:22 off the
clock was capped off on a huge third-down touchdown reception by Rooker.
 
In fact,
it was the EXACT same play in which the Cougars scored their first touchdown of
the night. That took the air out of Speedway
as it was the decider in the 13-point victory.
 
North
Putnam, usually known for its running attack, added 137 yards on the ground to
go with Dahlstrom’s 230-plus night.
 
Speedway ends its season at 8-3, while the unbeaten Cougars will travel to Monrovia (7-4) in next
weekend’s Sectional 30 final.
 
North Putnam (11-0)             0          21        0          6
– 27
Speedway (8-3)                     0          7          7          0 – 14
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Sectional 30: North Putnam 30, Monrovia 7

Posted on 14 November 2007 by tfariyah@yahoo.com.

By Bubba Harnist
Staff Writer

MONROVIA – Ask any football coach at any
level, and most will agree that beating the same team twice in one year is one
of the greatest challenges a team can face. For Class 2A second-ranked North
Putnam, it was the second straight week for such a challenge.

The Cougars,
fresh off a 27-14 win at Speedway in the semifinal
round of Sectional 30, once again hit the road Nov. 2 to face Monrovia, which was looking for its first
sectional title since 1989 and only the Bulldogs’ second ever. Riding a strong
second half from both their offense and defense, the Cougars knocked off Monrovia, 26-7.

The road
warriors now get to host next week’s regional, where they will tackle
pass-happy No. 11 Heritage Christian.

“It’s so
hard to win a sectional championship and beat a good football team twice in one
year,” said North Putnam coach Dave Pasch. “When you compound those two things,
it requires a superb effort.

“I thought
our seniors stepped up and gave us an unbelievable effort tonight.”

Monrovia got the on the board first with an
impressive second drive. Starting at their own 43, the Bulldogs marched 57
yards in 11 plays, scoring on a 10-yard touchdown run by Garrett Johnson on 4th
and 2. The extra point from Jeremiah Byrum made it 7-0, underdogs.

“I thought
we came out, for whatever reason, a little bit flat,” Pasch said.

Added
North Putnam quarterback/linebacker Griffen Dahlstrom: “They really drove it on
us there. It kind of surprised us – they had more intensity than we did.”

North
Putnam’s second drive was also impressive, but also much shorter. Dahlstrom took
the Cougars’ first play 78 yards to the house and, just like that, we had a tie
game. Only we didn’t – Monrovia
blocked the ensuing extra point to keep it at 7-6.

Believe it
or not, that was the score when the two teams went to intermission. North
Putnam had its chances, but the Bulldogs’ defense rose up to the challenge each
time, including two stops in the red zone.

Monrovia had chances also, but two
turnovers proved costly as the stout Cougars’ defense held up their end of the
bargain.

“All year
long, our defense has stood in there,” Pasch said. “Defensively we were up to
speed, and we recognized some things and were much more consistent.”

To start
the second half, North Putnam used 7:30 off the clock in marching 79 yards down
the field to gain the lead. Riding the legs of Dahlstrom and Kyle Rooker, North
Putnam wore down the Monrovia
defense.

Finally,
on the drive’s 14th play, Dahlstrom scored from two yards out. The Cougars went
for two, but J.T. Francies dropped Dahlstrom’s pass in the back of the end
zone, giving North Putnam a 12-7 lead.

“We
finally started executing a little bit in the second half,” Pasch said. “I didn’t
think we matched their effort early.

“We had
some problems to solve at halftime, something we haven’t had to do much of this
year. We made our adjustments and came out with a different look and used some
things we didn’t think we were going to have to use.”

After the
Bulldogs’ third turnover 2:30 into the fourth quarter, the North Put offense
again went back to work. On the drive’s third play, a personal foul moved the
Cougars back to their own 25. But Dahlstrom hit Jerrett Ban for a 75-yard
touchdown pass the very next play.

Again, the
Cougars went for two, and this time they converted when Dahlstrom scampered in
to make it 20-7.

After Monrovia’s fourth and
final turnover on its next possession, North Putnam scored one last time. This
time it was Rooker tallying on a 23-yard touchdown run with only 2:01 left. Rooker
was stopped on the two-point conversion attempt, leaving the final at 26-7.

“Once we
took over physically, we were able to have success in the second half,” Pasch
said.

Added Dahlstrom:
“The intensity from the offense really picked up after halftime. We knew we got
outplayed in the first half, (and) we also knew intensity would be the
difference.”

“We made
the adjustments and everyone stepped up.”

The loss
ends the season for Monrovia
at 7-5 in coach Kevin Hutchins’ first season at the helm. Looking for progress?
This is the Bulldogs’ first winning season since 2001, when they went 6-4. It’s
also the school’s most wins since 2000, when Monrovia won 10 games.

With the
win, North Putnam advances to the regional round for the second straight year
and third time ever.

“It’s
great (winning two sectionals in a row),” Dahlstrom said. “It’s the first time
it’s been done in school history.”

“Some
people still have their doubts, which really motivated us to come out and get
the job done tonight.”

Last year,
the Cougars knocked off Speedway
in the regional. This time it’s Heritage Christian. The Eagles, who are coming
off a 35-0 win over Lawrenceburg that improved their record to 11-1, have won
10 in a row.

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Regional 15: Heritage Christian 14, North Putnam 7

Posted on 10 November 2007 by tfariyah@yahoo.com.

By Bubba Harnist                                                                                                                   

Staff Writer
 
ROACHDALE
– With each passing week, Heritage Christian is going places no other team in the
school’s six-year football history has. One week after winning their first-ever
sectional title, the Class 2A 11th-ranked Eagles added a regional
trophy to their growing gridiron lore with a 14-7 upset of 2A No. 2 host North
Putnam.
 
“Who would
think that this program in six years is going to semistate?” said Eagles coach
Ron Qualls. “Unbelievable!”
 
Coming
into this game, one would think there would be plenty of offensive fireworks as
North Putnam averaged 35.5 points per game and Heritage Christian 39 an outing.
Taking those staggering numbers into consideration, you can see why many people
were scratching their heads when it was 0-0 at the half.
 
That’s
what will happen when each team has only three first downs the entire half.
 
Try these
first-half numbers on for size: North Putnam had five possessions (not counting
the final one of the half when the Cougars took a knee), and all five ended
with a punt by the Cougars.
 
“We have
been telling people all along that we (the HC defense) feel like we can stop
anybody in the state,” Qualls said. “It is a pretty effective defense that sure
worked tonight.”
 
Heritage
Christian, meanwhile, didn’t fare any better on offense early on. The Eagles
had six first-half possessions, five of which ended with a punt and one that
halted when North Putnam’s Justin Ensor picked off quarterback Garrett Meador.
 
The second
half didn’t start any better for the hosts. Getting the ball first, the Cougars
went three-and-out and once again punted away.
 
A decent
return gave Heritage Christian the ball in North Put territory at the Cougars’
38, and a penalty on the drive’s fourth play gave the Eagles the ball at the
14. Two plays later, Heritage Christian finally got on the board when Meador
hit Morgan Cook on a six-yard touchdown pass, and the extra point from Alex
Butterworth made it 7-0.
 
North
Putnam’s Jerrett Ban fumbled on the ensuing kickoff return, and Heritage
Christian’s Jay Wilsey recovered at the North Put 34. Four plays later, Meador
scored from four yards out, and the point after from Butterworth made it 14-0
just 6:20 into the second half.
 
“Our
coaches do a very good job of halftime adjustments, from knowing what’s there
and taking a look at the full field and saying here is what we do,” Qualls
said. “Every game this year, if you look at our third quarter, there is a huge
surge.”
 
North Putnam
punted again on its next possession, giving Heritage Christian the ball back
with just under a minute left in the third quarter. At that point, however,
things got **** for both teams as on the next five possessions, there were five
turnovers.
 
Two miscues
came when North Putnam quarterback Griffen Dahlstrom was picked off by Tommy
Eggleston, whereas Heritage Christian was at fault on the other three – two
interceptions by Meador and a fumble.
 
The fumble
proved costly because it gave North Put and their fans hope when the Cougars took
over at their own 38 with only 6:25 left. Finally able to move the ball, the
Cougars went 62 yards in seven plays that consumed only 1:07.
 
The
Cougars finally reached the end zone on a QB keeper from one yard out by Dahlstrom,
and the extra point from Rob Ford made it 14-7 with 5:18 left.
 
With a
shot to ice it away, Heritage Christian started its next drive at its own 20. After
getting a couple first downs on a run by Meador and a 15-yard pass to Austin
Olvey, however, the offense stalled.
 
Starting
at their own 23 with 2:11 left after a punt, the Cougars were able to march all
the way to the Heritage Christian 23 thanks to Dahlstrom passes of 42 yards to
Kyle Rooker and 18 yards to J.T. Francies. But North Putnam stalled once the
drive got to the Eagles 23 following three incomplete passes and a sack.
 
The sack
was the 11th and final play that the Heritage Christian defense made North
Putnam’s offense lose yards.
 
“They had
momentum, but there were a couple things we wanted to make sure and do,” Qualls
said. “Don’t let them cross the goal line, and if they threw it in front of us
or got some shorter plays, it’s OK because the clock keeps running, they are
out of timeouts, and there is nothing they can do.
 
“We have
smart kids and the guys played smart there (on the last drive).”
 
The loss
ends the season for North Putnam at 12-1, the second straight year that the
Cougars have had only one loss. Heritage Christian, on the other hand, improves
to 12-1 and moves on to semistate play next week, when they will travel to
Southridge to take on the defending 2A state runner-up Raiders.
 
“It’s one
of those feelings that indescribable,” Qualls said. “We are only six years in
here – this is all new to us. So for us to be in this spot, with the
opportunity now to go to semistate, four quarters away from the Dome …
 
“It’s
indescribable.”
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