Bentworth pulls away from mistake-prone J-M
Jefferson-Morgan’s Joe Headlee runs for a 54-yard, third-quarter touchdown Friday against Bentworth.
Katie Roupe/Observer-Reporter Bentworth’s Ty Mitchell gets a 35-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Josh Hughes in the second quarter of the game against Jefferson-Morgan on Friday, October 2.
Bentworth’s Ben Peternel (82) celebrates with teammate Ty Mitchell after catching a 47-yard touchdown pass Friday against Jefferson-Morgan.
Katie Roupe/Observer-Reporter Bentworth’s Brice Hook tries to get around Jefferson-Morgan’s defense during the first half of the game on Friday, October 2.
Jefferson-Morgan’s Trevor Kniha is tackled during the first half Friday after a five-yard gain against Bentworth.
JEFFERSON – Both Jefferson-Morgan and Bentworth entered Friday night at 3-1 in the Tri-County South, knowing that the winner of the game would have a leg up on a playoff spot.
Bentworth quarterback Josh Hughes and running back Ethan Tush made sure the Bearcats would be that team, spoiling Jefferson-Morgan’s homecoming with a 41-20 victory.
The Bearcats broke open a one-point game by forcing turnovers. Ben Peternel recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass, as did Riordan Tush. Mason Shemasek also recovered a fumble for Bentworth in the fourth quarter.
“They came out in different alignments and we didn’t adjust very well early on,” said Bentworth head coach Ron Skiles. “But we found a way to make a few plays defensively in the fourth.”
Hughes connected with Ben Peternel on a 7-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal to put the Bearcats (4-1, 4-1) ahead 28-20.
Ethan Tush, who had 193 yards on 21 carries, scored on touchdown runs of 51 and 57 yards on his final two carries to put the game away and put the Bearcats on solid footing heading into the second half of their schedule.
The Rockets (3-2, 3-2) squandered opportunity after opportunity, committing four of their five turnovers during the game’s final 12 minutes.
“You aren’t going to win football games turning the ball over,” said J-M first-year head coach Aaron Giorgi. “When it comes down to it, we didn’t execute and they did. It’s pretty simple. They made plays and we didn’t.”
Hughes completed 16-of-27 pass attempts for 263 yards and four touchdowns, pacing the Bearcats attack.
The junior quarterback struck big on the Bearcats’ first drive completing a 30-yard pass to Noah Peternel on the second play of the game. Two plays later Hughes connected with Peternel for a 25-yard touchdown pass to put Bentworth up 7-0.
“We practice throwing the ball a lot,” said Skiles. “And we are good at it. Josh is the catalyst of our offense. He makes everything go. We trust him with the run game as well and to (audible). The final two touchdowns he called those plays at the line.”
Joe Headlee returned the ensuing kickoff 95-yards for a touchdown to make it a 7-6 game.
Momentum swung back and forth as each team connected on big scoring plays.
Hughes hit Ben Peternel with a 47-yard scoring strike to make it 14-6, but Headlee answered with a 51-yard touchdown run to pull J-M within 14-12.
Both Ben and Noah Peternel had solid nights for Bentworth. Ben Peternel had five receptions for 108 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Noah Peternal caught five passes for 82 yards and a score.
Perhaps the biggest drive of the game came right before the half.
Bentworth took momentum into the locker room though as Hughes threw a 35-yard TD pass to Ty Mitchell with 1:38 remaining in the second quarter to give the Bearcats a 21-12 lead.
Headlee tried to keep the Rockets in the game. On the second play of the second half, he broke loose for a 54-yard touchdown run to make it 21-20 entering the fourth quarter.
Headlee had 21 carries for 224 yards and a pair of touchdown runs. He finished with 334 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns.
“He’s a special back,” said Giorgi. “He brings a lot of heart to the team. He runs hard no matter what. Whether the blocks are good or bad he runs 100 miles per hour. He can be a game changer.”
Not on this night against a motivated Bentworth team.
“We take it one week at a time,” said Skiles. “It was a nice win but we aren’t there yet. We aren’t that good. We still have a lot of work to do.”