Football battles Mount Union in physical matchup

The Muskingum football team opened its spring season against Mount Union on Friday night at Zanesville High School. The Purple Raiders handed the Muskies a 51-15 setback in a physical season-opener for both teams.

The Basics

• Records: Muskingum (0-1), Mount Union (1-0)
• Location: Sulsberger Stadium - Zanesville High School
• Attendance: 300

Inside The Numbers

• Junior Jordan Garrett led the Muskie offense throwing for 229 yards and two scores. He completed 20-of-33 passes with one interception. He also rushed for 18 yards.
• Freshman Travis Roberson led the team with 75 yards receiving on four grabs with one touchdown.
• Freshman Gannon Unger had a team-high five grabs for 11 yards and one score.
• Freshman Travanti Keitt and sophomore Ja'Lin Goodman each had three receptions. 
• Senior Cameron Near led the rushing attack with 32 yards on five totes.
• Senior Brian Brown led the Muskie defense with 13 tackles and one forced fumble.
• Senior Nehemiah Bowie added 12 stops and one sack.
• Sophomore Yo-Vonne Roberts had nine hits.
• As a team, Muskingum churned out 293 yards of offense on 70 offensive plays.
• Braxton Plunk led Mount Union, going 20-of-26 for 314 yards and six touchdowns. 
• Josh Petrucelli rushed for a game-high 108 yards on 11 carries.
• KJ Redman added 103 yards rushing on nine totes.
• Jaden Manley led the receivers with three touchdowns.
• Carson Kovath led the Purple Raider defense with nine hits and two tackles for loss.
• Mason McMillen added six stops with 1.5 sacks.
• Mount Union ended the outing with 596 yards of offense and 29 first downs.

The Game

• Mount Union scored the first 21 points to grab the early momentum.
• Muskingum trimmed its deficit after an eight-play, 77-yard drive that culminated with Garrett hitting Unger for a 10-yard touchdown.
• Mount Union tallied the final 14 points of the half to take a 35-6 lead into the break.
• The Purple Raiders scored first after halftime to extend its margin to 42-6. 
• The Muskies kept battling, and Garrett found Roberson for a 15-yard touchdown toss early in the third quarter, and junior Gavin Costello made a 29-yard field goal in the opening second of the fourth to round out the Muskie scoring.

Up Next

• The Muskies next play at Baldwin Wallace on Friday, March 26. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.