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Milton passes by Parker

JANESVILLE — The Milton Red Hawks missed the postseason for the second straight season this year.

After watching them play one quarter against Janesville Parker on Friday night, it was hard to figure out how.

Evan Phillips and the Milton no-huddle spread offense erupted for 28 points in the second quarter en route to 31-7 nonconference win over Parker at Monterey Stadium. Milton (3-6) moved the ball at will the second quarter, while the Red Hawk defense clamped down the entire game.

“That was the team I anticipated we’d be all season long,” Milton coach Jeff Bachinski said of the Red Hawks’ impressive second-quarter performance. “I’ve said all along this season that if it wasn’t for bad luck, we wouldn’t have had any luck at all.

“It comes down to finishing in the red zone. Something we did tonight that we couldn’t do so many times earlier this season. That kept us out of the playoffs.”

Parker’s opening drive was its most impressive of the season. The Vikings ate up more than nine minutes of clock with an 86-yard, 19-play scoring march capped off by Tyler Brooks’ 1-yard plunge on fourth-and-one.

Milton took control from there. The Red Hawks scored on four straight possessions to open up a 28-7 halftime lead. Parker looked confused defensively trying to adapt to the no-huddle, spread offense that Phillips directed to perfection.

Phillips’ 20-yard touchdown pass to Montana Deegan tied the game with 8:36 left in the half. Devon Hartman then caught a 7-yard scoring strike from Phillips with 3:56 left quarter to give the Red Hawks the lead for good at 14-7.

Parker opted to punt on fourth-and-a-short-one on the ensuing possession and the strategy backfired. Phillips and Montana hooked up on a 67-yard play to take the ball down to the Parker 1, and Phillips banged in from there on the next play to push the lead to 14.

Milton capped off its most productive quarter of the season when Phillips hit Hartman for the second time—this one from 21 yards—to make it 28-7. A Parker fumble set up the one-play scoring drive.

Phillips completed 17 of 25 passes for 231 yards in the first half.

“The second quarter has hurt us all season,” Parker first-year coach Eric Skrzypchak said. “And tonight’s game was no different. We made a couple of mistakes, missed some assignments, and Milton capitalized.”

Parker’s offense managed only 159 total yards for the game, but the defense played well the second half. Milton managed only Michael Guenther’s 23-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter.

“We were a competitive team in multiple games,” Skrzypchak said of his team that finished a disappointing 2-7. “Our kids busted their tails and did everything we asked of them. Things just didn’t go our way at times.”

MILTON 31, PARKER 7

Milton 0 28 0 3—31

Janesville Parker 7 0 0 0—7

Scoring summary: P—Tyler Brooks, 1 run (Charlie Palan kick). M—Montana Deegan, 20 pass from Evan Phillips (Michael Guenther kick). M—Devon Hartman, 7 pass from Phillips (Guenther kick). M—Phillips, 1 run (Guenther kick). M—Hartman, 21 pass from Phillips (Guenther kick). M—Field goal, Guenther, 23.

Statistics: First downs—M 20, P 13. Rushes—M 39-135, P 36-86. Yards passing—M 266, P 73. Passes—M 29-19-0, P 25-11-1. Fumbles—M 3-1, P 4-2. Penalties—M 5-50, P 6-50 .