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Washington Evening Journal
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Pekin pummels Earlham
Panthers improve to 9-0, win first game of Class A playoffs
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
Pekin remained undaunted to start postseason play. The Panthers endured second have surges by North Mahaska, and most recently by Danville, which threatened to derail not only Pekin’s undefeated season but could have put its Class A District 5 title in jeopardy.
The Panthers dug deep and came away with victories in both games. With their perfect record intact, they left nothing to chance in round one of the Class A playoffs. Pekin set the tone when it forced and recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff, and went on to win 42-7 over Earlham on Friday.
“They stick together,” Pekin coach Klynt Weber said of his team. “We found that out at the very end when we played Danville. We were probably beat twice in that game, and just relentless, never quit attitude and they found a way to make it happen. We ask for three things every day in practice and its get 1% better, have energy and no excuses. This group doesn’t make excuses and they battle 48 minutes a night and it showed.”
Senior Nolan Glick led the way for Pekin with 145 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. He sprinted in from 32 yards out to cash in the Panthers opening kick recovery.
Glick’s third score of the game made it 35-7 early in the fourth quarter a few plays after Pekin picked up a key third-and-9 with a unique play call. Landon Crow lined up under center, but the snap went to Henry Adam in the shotgun. Adam faked a handoff to quarterback Riley Smith, who motioned from the right, then spun back and raced forward for 17 yards.
Takeaways were critical for Pekin to keep a firm grip on the game. Up 28-0 with 1:58 to play in the second quarter and the ball on the Pekin 49, the Panthers went for the jugular. But instead, Glick mishandled a handoff to Adam and the Cardinals fell on the football in Pekin territory.
Earlham’s opportunity to cut into the lead before halftime was increased after a pass interference call on the first play of the drive. Another of Pekin’s opponents could potentially swing the momentum of a game the Panthers initially dominated.
Instead of relenting and giving up points, Pekin stripped Earlham’s Brady Reynolds. Crow zoomed toward the loose ball, diving on it first and preserving the first half shutout.
“We play like one of the top teams in the state when we have momentum,” Glick said. “You’ve got to love that. We’re always fighting out there. We’re never down.”
Crow led the way for Pekin in the turnover department. The senior recovered two fumbles and had an interception Friday. Pekin recovered three fumbles total, and won the turnover battle 4-1.
Along with the takeaways, Pekin limited an Earlham team that stacked the line of scrimmage and ran much of its offense out of the single wing to just 78 yards rushing. Save for their lone touchdown drive, the Cardinals struggled to get their offense going for much of the game.
“They pack you in a phone booth and try to shove you backwards, and they did for one drive,” Weber said. “But outside of that we were able to bottle it up and I’m proud of our defensive line. We were undersized on the D-Line tonight, and that’s a testament to their hard work and their pad level and we were able to penetrate the offensive line and bottled up some runs that forced them to pass.”
Pekin limited Earlham quarterback Brady Reynolds to just 5 of 11 for 28 yards and a pick. Six Pekin players had at least four tackles. Brogan Spray co-lead the team with 5.5 and had one of two Pekin sacks Friday.
Smith added a rushing touchdown to go with Glick’s four when he ran it in from 12 yards out to make it 21-0 Pekin. Smith also had an efficient day through air, completing 7 of 11 passes for 111 yards and a touchdown. He hit Alijah Brock on a screen pass that Brock took 34 yards to put Pekin up 14-0.
The win extends Pekin’s record to 9-0 this season. The Panthers advance to the Class A second round, which is where their season came to an end last year with a 33-0 loss at the hands of Madrid.
Pekin will face off against No. 10 North Linn in its second round matchup. The Lynx went 7-1 in the regular season and beat fellow Class A-5 side Columbus 59-14 in the first round.
Kickoff between the Panthers and Lynx is set for 7 p.m Friday on Tom Stone Field.
