McIvor, Milton overwhelm Elkhorn
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MILTON — Mike Saunders, Derek Underwood and Justin Spaulding are three of the greatest running backs in the proud history of Milton High football.
But none of them ever produced the kind of game Hank McIvor unleashed Tuesday night in a WIAA Division 2 playoff opener.
McIvor rushed for a school-record 346 yards and scored six touchdowns to lead the Red Hawks to a convincing 62-21 victory over former Southern Lakes Conference rival Elkhorn.
With the win, Milton (8-2) advances to a second-round game Saturday at Franklin (6-4).
McIvor, a 5-foot-8, 170-pound senior, was simply unstoppable against the Elks. He had touchdown runs of 65, 68, 63, 43 and 14 yards, along with a 16-yard scoring pass from Zach Fry.
By halftime, McIvor already had racked up 225 yards on the ground to lead the Red Hawks to a 28-14 advantage.
“That kid is strong and quick, and we just didn’t do a very good job of tackling him,” Elkhorn coach Dean Wilson said of McIvor. “And when you throw in a nice passing attack where they spread the ball around like they do, it makes him even more dangerous.
“There’s not much to say. They kicked us big-time tonight. I don’t know if I’ve ever had 60 points scored against me,” Wilson added.
The Elks (5-5) took a 14-7 lead late in the opening quarter on Mike Finster’s 52-yard fumble return, but it was all McIvor after that. He tied the game with his touchdown reception and gave the Red Hawks the lead for good with a 14-yard scamper with 5:32 left in the half.
After Milton stopped Elkhorn on a fourth-and-one in Red Hawk territory, McIvor got loose for a 68-yard run to push the lead to 28-14.
Milton received the second-half kickoff, and McIvor proceeded to streak 63 yards on the first play of the third quarter to all but end any Elkhorn hopes of a comeback.
“You can’t ask for any more than the performance Hank McIvor gave this team tonight,” Milton coach Jeff Bachinski said. “He’s got more moves than Carter’s got pills, and it showed tonight.
“And really, I was happy with the way the whole team responded to the early challenge. Elkhorn came ready to play, and when they got out to the lead, we battled back right away.”
Fry was productive in a supporting role for the Red Hawks. The senior quaterback completed 13 of 18 passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns. Milton finished with a whopping 562 yards of total offense.
The Red Hawks will be on the road Saturday, but Bachinski believes his team will be more than ready for the Falcons.
“We passed our first test, and now we’ve got to get ready for Franklin,” Bachinski said. “They’ll be a tough test, but I really like the way we’re playing right now.”
MILTON 62, ELKHORN 21
Elkhorn 14 0 7 0—21
Milton 7 21 13 21—62
Scoring summary: M—Hank McIvor, 65 run (Nick Karleski kick). E—Jake Gahart, 22 pass from Eric Bryson (Gahart kick). E—Mike Finster, 52 fumble return (Gahart kick). M—McIvor, 16 pass from Zach Fry (Karleski kick). M—McIvor, 14 run (Karleski kick). M—McIvor, 68 run (Karleski kick). M—McIvor, 63 run (Karleski kick). M—Fry, 2 run (pass failed). E—Lisle Blackbourn, 20 pass from Bryson (Gahart kick). M—McIvor, 43 run (Karleski kick). M—Phillip McCarthy, 19 pass from Fry (Karleski kick). M—Alec Vicenzi, 9 run (Karleski kick).
Statistics: First downs—E 9, M 23. Rushes—E 25-70, M 47-386. Yards passing—E 101, M 176. Passes—E 24-8-1, M 18-13-1. Fumbles—E 0-0, M 3-1. Penalties—E 5-35, M 9-80.
Oct 29, 2008 at 3:16 p.m.
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WAY TO GO REDHAWKS!
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