Sports
John Glenn Dominates West Muskingum
By: Nathan Takitch
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The way the John Glenn Little Muskies played in their Week 4 matchup against the West Muskingum Tornadoes made it look like they had something to prove. After losing for the first time this season in Week 3, the Muskies responded, handling West Muskingum and winning by a final score of 61-7.
John Glenn (3-1, 2-1 MVL) was dominant from the opening kickoff, when West Muskingum’s returner muffed the ball. Although the Tornadoes (0-4, 0-3) were able to recover the fumble, they never truly recovered their composure. After going three-and-out, West Muskingum attempted to punt, until John Glenn’s Stone Morgan burst through the line of the Tornadoes to block the kick. Two plays later, Muskies’ quarterback Zach Swingle found receiver Blake Atkins for a 20-yard touchdown strike. Atkins would finish the night with three touchdowns and three receptions for 55 yards.
West Muskingum was incapable of getting a first down while John Glenn’s offense continued to move the ball at will and score touchdowns. Quarterback Zach Swingle was effective when the Muskies needed a pass. He was 6-for-8 with 107 yards and two touchdowns.
In the second quarter, the Muskie defense decided to get in on the act of scoring points too. John Glenn jumped on a West Muskingum fumble in their endzone. Two defensive stands later, defender (and punt-blocker) Stone Morgan cut off an out route, picked off the pass, and ran it back for another score. The Muskies would force two more turnovers by the end of the game.
West Muskingum was not able to overcome a bigger John Glenn squad. The Muskies dominated the line of scrimmage, getting to Tornado quarterback Clay Musselman seemingly every snap. Musselman was only able to complete one pass for five yards in the entire game.
Additionally, West Muskingum was not able to obtain a first down until there were just over three minutes left in the first half, and by then, the Tornadoes were already down by 42 points.
West Muskingum got a big effort from their running back Grant Pumphrey. The Tornado rusher went for 105 yards on 22 carries and scored his team’s only touchdown of the night.
West Muskingum will have to play a much cleaner game if it hopes to compete against Maysville (3-1, 2-1 MVL) when they host the Panthers next week. Meanwhile, John Glenn will look to eclipse their win total from last season, but will have to be at the top of their game again to do so. The Muskies will stay at home to play a tough Philo Electrics (3-1, 2-1 MVL) team in Week 5.