NANKIN — Mapleton’s Colton Wittman overcame the wind, the rain, and the Plymouth defense on Friday night.
The Mounties’ bell-cow running back ripped off 209 yards on a whopping 37 carries and scored three touchdowns to lead his team to a 20-13 Firelands Conference victory over Plymouth on Friday night.
(These photos were courtesy of Diane Bail-Bemiller)
Wittman put Mapleton on top with 4:07 left in the first quarter on a 1-yard plunge. That score opened a 7-0 edge heading.
Wittman struck twice more in the second periods, scoring on runs of 3 yards and 1 yard for a 20-0 halftime lead.
Plymouth rallied in the second half on junior Ethan Keefe’s 15-yard dash. That sliced the margin to 20-7.
The Big Red drew even closer when junior Kaden Caughenbaugh shook loose for a 55-yard touchdown to close the gap to 20-13 with 4:38 remaining in the game.
But neither team would score again.
Keefe finished with 86 yards on 19 carries.
Mapleton enjoyed a statistical edge in first downs (15-8), rushing yards (327-108) and total yards (327-121). Plymouth threw for 13 yards, while the Mounties didn’t complete either of its two passes.
Mapleton improves to 2-4 overall, 1-2 in the Firelands Conference. The Mounties host undefeated Monroeville next week.
The Big Red drop to 1-5, 0-3 and host Crestview on Friday night.