Saturday, Oct. 11, 2008

Triad powers past Highland

Running back Jones rushes for 195 yards

HIGHLAND -- J.J. Jones patiently waited for his chance, then pounced.

When he did Friday in Triad's 32-15 victory over Highland, all the Bulldogs could do was watch the back of his white jersey get smaller and smaller in the distance.

After carrying the ball just three times in the first 23 minutes, Jones peeled off a 38-yard touchdown run right before halftime, then burst through a seam for an 80-yard TD run late in the third quarter to power the Knights past their arch rival for the fifth straight year.

"We strategized pretty good," said Jones, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound senior. "Coach did a good job of sending the play to the right side for much of the game and when the time came, he called a pretty good play for me and I did what I could.

"I was able to get some open yards and I saw that end zone. That's what I was trying to get."

Jones rushed for a game-high 195 yards on 14 carries, and Kristian Moon ran for 116 yards on 10 carries and also had an 80-yard TD run as the junior quarterback proved just as elusive as Jones.

"Both of those kids are tremendous athletes," said Highland coach Ron Holt, who watched Triad rush for 462 yards. "They really earned my respect tonight."

Scott Rothe (17 yards) and Ryan Beck (five yards) also had rushing TDs for the Knights (5-2), who won their fourth in a row and clinched at least a tie for the Mississippi Valley Conference crown for the fifth straight year.

Triad, which shared the MVC title with Mascoutah last year, improved to 4-0 in the league and can win it outright with a victory over winless Civic Memorial (0-7) next week.

"It feels great to get a win," Jones said. "It gives us a good chance to maybe get a home game in the playoffs. (Being) conference champs, it feels great."

Triad coach Paul Bassler's strategy of pounding Beck, Chris Rimar and Moon into the middle of Highland's defense laid the groundwork for Jones' breakaway runs.

"We knew they were going to try and take away J.J. and they overloaded to the other side," Bassler said. "Our assistants did a good job of being patient, being patient, then picked the right moment where they could get J.J. the ball. It kind of got their mind off of him. It was a great team effort by everybody."

Triad actually trailed 7-0 after a 1-yard TD run by Bobby Ostrander late in the first quarter, then scored 32 unanswered points.

A 5-yard TD run by Beck tied it, and Rothe's 17-yard scamper with 5:06 left in the half gave the Knights a 13-7 lead. After Highland went three-and-out on its next series, Bassler finally unleashed Jones.

The scatback burst through a hole for a 38-yard TD run, giving Triad a 20-7 lead with 1:11 left in the half.

"I think scoring right before half was the key," Bassler said. "That made it a two-score ballgame and we knew we were getting the ball back at the start of the second half."

After Highland quarterback Travis Becherer was intercepted in the end zone by Clayton Maxfield, Jones made quick work of 80 yards three plays later, putting the Knights up 26-7.

Becherer was picked off in the end zone on Highland's ensuing series, this time by Brian Provo. Triad quickly cashed in as Moon galloped 80 yards with 0.9 seconds left in the third quarter to balloon its lead to 32-7.

"I can't be upset at our effort," Holt said. "They just have more speed and every time we made a mistake or missed a tackle, goodbye, they were off to the races. That's what I was afraid of. You can't miss tackles against that type of speed."

Highland, which was held to 176 rushing yards. scored a late TD on a 17-yard catch by Michael Buehne.

Contact reporter Rod Kloeckner at rkloeckner@bnd.com or 239-2663.