After opening the postseason with a road win at North Putnam last week, the Greencastle Tiger Cubs find themselves on the road again Friday night, traveling to second ranked Linton-Stockton (9-1) in the Class 2A Sectional 37 semifinal.
The winner will play the winner of Cascade and Southmont for the sectional title next week.
Last week, Greencastle (7-2) had to come from behind to knock off county and Western Indiana Conference foe North Putnam, 30-29.
Trailing 29-27 with 8:21 remaining in the fourth quarter, Greencastle methodically moved the ball down the field on the legs of Owen Huff and Lamar Moore to set up a 35-yard field goal attempt from Ian Williamson. With 2:47 remaining in regulation, Williamson drilled the field goal, putting the Tiger Cubs up 30-29 for a lead they would not relinquish.
Greencastle's defense would hold on North Putnam's ensuing possession, forcing the Cougars to throw three straight incomplete passes to turn it over on downs and allow Greencastle to run out the clock for the win.
In the win, Greencastle rushed for 244 total yards, and got a huge game out of Moore, who rushed for 206 yards and four touchdowns. Freshman quarterback Cole Stephens was 7-of-14 for 116 yards and two interceptions.
North Putnam, on the other hand, amassed 219 yards on the ground, with Kramer accounting for 30 carries for 137 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterback Christian Kramer was 14-of-27 for 147 yards and a touchdown through the air.
Greencastle coach Dave Stephens admits there was a sense of relief when the final seconds ticked off the clock.
"It feels great, more of a relief. We knew that they were going to have something new to add to their scheme. We were able to overcome that and our own mistakes," Stephens told The Putnam County Post.
Moore's four touchdowns helped pace the Tiger Cubs last week, but Stephens said that only shows what makes the Greencastle offense.
"The great thing about our offense is you never know whose night it is going to be. We have faith in all of our guys. Lamar was huge," Stephens said.
As for the Miners, Linton-Stockton comes into Friday with a 9-1 record and average 38 points per game and surrender 12 points a contest. The lone loss was a 27-26 double overtime thriller against Monrovia. Since that loss, the Miners have surpassed the 40 point mark five times, including last week's 48-14 sectional opening win at North Knox last week.
Linton-Stockton ran 65 plays in the game and raced out to a 27-7 halftime advantage before cruising in the second half.
Quarterback Paul Oliver was 3-of-10 for 90 yards and an interception through the air, while adding another 100 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
Running backs Christian Shonk and Jesse Voightschild rushed for 46 yards and two touchdowns and 94 yards and two touchdowns, respectively.
The Miners surrendered 109 yards of total offense to North Knox.
According to Stephens, Greencastle has to clean up its defense ahead of Friday.
"We have to do a better job with our defensive assignments. We are often not executing the call that is being sent in. We have to clean that up," Stephens said.
