Bulldogs complete 2nd undefeated season with 45-13 win at Michigan City

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

10-14-2006

Friday, October 13, 2006,  43 degrees in Michigan City, Duneland Athletic Conference

1st Qtr:  CROWN POINT (7-0)  Tommy Parks, 3-yard run.  2 plays after Nick Cottrell recovered Darius McMillan's fumble at the MC 7-yard line.  Michael Lipton kick.  5:42 left.
2nd Qtr:  CROWN POINT (14-0)  Tommy Parks, 26-yard pass from Blake Mascarello.  55 yard drive, 6 plays.  Michael Lipton kick.  11:54 left.
CROWN POINT (21-0)  Jon Sertich, 3-yard run. 45-yard drive, 4 plays.  Michael Lipton kick.  8:50 left.
CROWN POINT (28-0)  Jon Sertich, 25-yard run. 57-yard drive, 5 plays.  Michael Lipton kick.  3:36 left.
CROWN POINT (35-0)  Tommy Parks, 6-yard pass from Mascarello.  24 yards, 5 plays after interception by Matt Ernest.  Michael Lipton kick.  1:59 left.
3rd Qtr:  MICHIGAN CITY (6-35)  Derrek Devereaux, 22-yard pass from Nathan Scully.  74 yard drive, 12 plays.  Kick blocked by Mike Damjanovic.  6:32 left.
CROWN POINT (42-6)  Ryan Forney, 6-yard run.  58 yards drive, 9 plays.  James Steriovski kick.  2:26 left.
4th Qtr:  CROWN POINT (45-6) James Steriovski, 19-yard field goal. 10 yards, seven plays after interception runback by Anthony Stahl.  11:11 left.
MICHIGAN CITY (13-45)  Prentice Lee, 41-yard touchdown pass from Marc Pytynia.  55 yards, 6 plays after T'Andre Harris recovered Nick Bruno's fumble at the MC 45-yard-line.  Alex Tomsheck kick.  4:03 left. 
 

GAME TOTALS

TOTAL YARDS:  CROWN POINT - 399,  MICHIGAN CITY - 183
FIRST DOWNS:  CROWN POINT (20),  MICHIGAN CITY (6) 
TURNOVERS:  CROWN POINT (1),  MICHIGAN CITY (3)

PASSING:
CROWN POINT: Blake Mascarello (QB) 11-14, 178 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs
    MICHIGAN CITY:  Nathan Scully (QB) 5-15, 68 yards, ONE INT;  Marc Pytynia (QB)  2-2, 47 yards, ONE INT

RUSHING:
MICHIGAN CITY (21-64 yards, fumble):  T'Andre Harris (TB) 6-20 yards; Matt Levandowski (FB) 2-21 yards; Darious McMillion (HB) 2-2 yards; Brock Koehler (FB) 5-8 yards; Adam Harmon (HB) 6-13 yards;

CROWN POINT (39-232 yards, 2 TDs):  Jon Sertich (HB) 10-74 yards; Tommy Parks (FB) 3-16 yards; Blake Mascarello (QB) 7-37 yards; Russell Chick (7-53 yards; Nick Bruno (HB) 5-5 yards, fumble; Brandon Corning (HB) 4-19 yards; Mike Kozlowski FB) 2-25 yards; Evan Nikrin (FB) 1-3 yards.

RECEIVING:
MC:  Adam Harmon (HB) 1-16 yards; Derek Devereaux (WR) 3-43 yards; Zack Martin (WR) 1-9;  Prentice Lee (WR) 1-41, TD;  T'Andre Harris (TB) 1-3 yards. 

CP:  Matt Ernest (WR) 4-58 yards; Zach Cecich (TE) 2-30;  Tommy Parks (FB) 3-55, 2 TDs;  Ryan Forney (WR) 2-34
 

Despite the cold 43-degree temperatures, Crown Point QB Blake Mascarello #6  connected on 11 of 14 passes for 178 yards, 2 TDs, and no INTs, while Tommy Parks #49 served in multiple roles as blocking back, running back and pass receiver  at Michigan City, 10-13-06. (All photos by Mark Smith.)

Crown Point running back, senior Tommy Parks #49, scored one touchdown running the ball (3-yd TD run) and two more on pass receptions (26-yds and 6-yds) in the Bulldogs' 45-13 win at Michigan City's Ames Field, 10-13-06.

CP's senior linebacker Mike Damjanovic #45 applies pressure on Michigan City QB Nathan Scully #10 in the Bulldogs' 35-0 first half action at Ames Field, 10-13-06.

With regular starting center Matt Polus out with an injury, senior right tackle Andrew Krumwied #65 returned to his old center position he played in 2005 for one game.  Offensive guards Kurt Wermers #70 and Matt Childress #71 flank Krumwied as Mascarello #6 calls the play at he line of scrimmage against the Wolves, 10-13-06.

The Crown Point defense has again proved to be strong in 2006.  Pictured are defensive linemen Nick Hladek #93 and Zach Brum #60, linebackers Mike Damjanovic #45, Andrew Szymborski #20, Joe Patrick #48 and Nick Cottrell #33 and defensive backs Anthony Stahl #23 (partially hidden) and Ryan Forney #12 at Michigan City, 10-13-06.  (All photos by Mark Smith.)

MICHIGAN CITY, IN (10-13-2006) -  There was so little doubt and so little celebration, you wonder if there was anything on the line in Crown Point's 45-13 win at Michigan City Friday night.  There was.  It wasn't a surprise that CP was a big winner in the final regular season game of the 2006 season, but it is a little odd that, after so many years of being a cellar dweller or a middle of the road team in whatever league they were in, that CP's completion of a two-year run as the undefeated champ of Northwest Indiana's premier conference came and went so quietly.

But it's probably because there was a question.  The question still stands:  Is Crown Point going 9-0 a great accomplishment that stands alone?  Or is it meaningless, especially when you do it a second time, if you do not at least, win the sectional championship?

"If we don't win the sectional, is the season a failure?" asked sixth year coach Chip Pettit rhetorically.  "No.  You don't put in that kind of time and effort (for nothing).  We talk about winners and how they prepare.  The mental approach.  The work ethic.  And a lot of that has nothing to do with the numbers on the scoreboard."

I would hope that all of the Crown Point players and coaches believe that and I would like them to.

But I sincerely doubt they do.  When you defeat everyone in your league two years in a row and you, almost exclusively, face rematches with league teams at sectional time, you feel you have to win that sectional crown.  That's the dark side of going undefeated.  It raises the bar so high sometimes you can't get over it.

"In the playoffs, everything starts all over again," said senior Michael Damjanovic.  "Everybody's record is 0-0.  Any team can get beat out there."

So there was a quiet on the field after CP beat Michigan City and the boys hit the locker room and left quickly.  Some of that was 40-degree October weather and a long bus ride ahead. Some of it was the realization that the Bulldogs' season goal can't be reached until November.

Friday night's win was a notch short of championship caliber, but it was impressive.  CP starters only played the first half and the Bulldogs led 35-0 at the break.  They were stuffed on a 4th-and-1 at the Michigan City 8-yard line and they had a TD called back on a clipping penalty.  But QB Blake Mascarello led the team to five consecutive TDs, all scored by senior running backs Tommy Parks and Jon Sertich.  The Bulldog defense, which had allowed 62 points in two previous games, shut out the weak MC offense allowing just one first half first down.

Zach Cecich and Matt Ernest made spectacular one-handed catches to jack up Mascarello's completion percentage.  Parks caught two TD passes and Sertich ran for two second period scores.  The Bulldogs scored four TDs in a 10-minute span of the second period as Michigan City could not mount a pass rush to bother CP's left-handed quarterback.

The Wolves' eighth consecutive loss became Crown Point's school record 18th regular season win in a row and the Bulldogs' 14th consecutive Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) victory.  There was little excitement on this night and that was good for the out-of-towners.

The standout this night might have been senior lineman Andrew Krumwied, who has played tackle all season.  Due to a concussion suffered by junior center Matt Polus against Chesterton on Oct. 6, he was not allowed to play Friday.  Krumwied, who played center in 2005, moved from tackle, his 2006 position, back to center for one night.

"It was an easy move for him, said line coach Mark Croell.  "The rules haven't changed since last year.  The hardest thing was that Blake had to be ready to handle the snap.  Krumwied snaps the ball a lot harder than Polus does.  But he made the switch easily."

For the Bulldogs to roll up 225 first half yards with basically a substitute center in bad weather was an achievement.  But it speaks to how well they are prepared for games and how steady they have become.  The fumble that soph halfback Nick Bruno lost in the fourth period was just the sixth turnover all year for CP.  The Bulldogs have not trailed in the second half (they were tied against LaPorte and Hobart) all season and, in perhaps the most amazing piece of trivia, CP has failed to score in a quarter only 9 times in nine games.  But they'll probably have to win the next three games, starting with Lake Central next Friday, before everybody on the CP sideline can enjoy the neighborhood they've moved the Bulldog football program to the last two seasons.

"We just wanted to come out and get the job done tonight," said Damjanovic, who has played in all 18 of CP's consecutive regular season wins.  "It was just a team effort.  It always is.  LC is going to be a good game.  I know they'll bring it and I know we'll bring it.  We'll just have to see what happens."

Pettit, who will never brag or boast publicly, even about his team, puts it very much the same way.

"If we can continue to prepare and be mentally ready to play," said Pettit, "I'm not going to say that we're sure to win.  But someone's going to have to come and beat us.  You just have to let it play out.  That's all you can do."

DOG TALES:  Junior linebacker Nick Cottrell, who recovered a fumble which led to the first CP score, suffered a leg injury in the third quarter and he had to be helped off the field.  Cottrell (5-9, 205) did not return and there was no definitive news on him after the game.  Senior Eric Manley (6-3, 240) filled in admirably for Andrew Krumwied at right tackle, while Krumwied replaced injured Matt Polus at center.

The playing surface at Ames Field was much more worn down than it was when CP played there two seasons ago, possibly a product of heavy rains this fall while three teams (varsity, JV and freshman) played in the stadium.  The crowd was about 1,500 on 'Senior Night' and some of them left after halftime as the score mounted and the temperature dropped.  Michigan City starting QB Nathan Scully was the third MC QB to start a game this season.

What was said here about Crown Point's playoff path last week was incorrect.  If CP can win on the road at Lake Central on Oct. 20, they will host the sectional semifinal against any foe and would host the title match against either Chesterton or Merrillville.

Chesterton beat Merrillville 22-13 last Friday and those two could meet again on Oct. 27 in the Sectional one semifinals.  Being at home or on the road in the DAC really isn't a large issue in some sectionals and sectional one is one of them.  The seven DAC schools in sectional one face each other every regular season anyway.  Portage, for example, would be playing at Crown Point for the second time this season if they meet the Bulldogs on Oct. 27.  Home field becomes a much more significant advantage when you get to the regional level.

CP's sectional foe Lake Central gave up 350 total yards and 22 first downs Friday in a 28-14 loss to Valparaiso.  Since a season-opening three-game win streak, the Indians are 1-5.  LC has allowed 210 points in their last six games.

Portage (5-4) crushed LaPorte 24-7 Friday behind 220 yards rushing by junior Albert Evans.  Since a mid-season 17-10 loss at Crown Point, Portage is 4-0.  Crown Point's 34-20 win over Hobart on Aug. 25 was Hobart's only loss of the regular season.  Hobart (8-1, 7-0) won at 3A No. 1 Griffith 28-17 to win the LAC Black championship for the second time in three years.

Lowell (4-5), a 17-0 loser to Crown Point in the season opener on Aug. 18, won for the third time in four games, 47-14 over Highland last Friday.

CP may end the season fourth in the state polls.  No. 1 Warren Central (9-0) bombed Center Grove 34-3.  No. 2 Hamilton Southeastern (9-0) beat McCutcheon 35-0 Friday.  No. 5 Carmel (7-2) beat Ben Davis 20-7 and may jump past CP in the final poll on strength of schedule.  Carmel's losses are to Warren Central and to 4A No. 5 Indianapolis Cathedral.

On The Radio & Internet:  Crown Point opens the IHSAA Class 5A Football Sectional 1 tournament on the road at Lake Central on Friday, October 20.  WWLO, 89.1 FM and Internet Radio (www.Indiana-Sports.com and www.USA-365.com) will both provide live coverage the Bulldogs throughout the playoffs as long as Crown Point remains in the running.  The pregame shows start Friday nights at 6:30 p.m., CDT and the kick-off is at 7:00 p.m., CDT.  The radio broadcast is then re-played, immediately after the postgame show, which is usually occurs about 9:30 p.m., CDT.

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Revised: October 16, 2006 .