(LAPORTE, IN) - Sectional favorite Valparaiso traveled to Kiwanis Field Friday night and eliminated the La Porte Slicers 42-3 in 5A sectional play.
The Slicers received the opening kickoff. On 3rd down, the Slicers fumbled, and Valpo recovered at the La Porte 18-yard line. Two plays later, the Vikings scored on a 13-yard run by Thomas Burda. Drayden Wilcox kicked the extra point, and Valpo led 7-0 at the 9:52 mark of the 1S quarter.
La Porte got on the board at the 1:59 mark of the 1S quarter on a 32-yard field goal by Jack Doty. Doty's kick capped a 55-yard drive and scored. The big play was a 58-yard completion from Dylan Salisbury to Ollie Kring to the Valparaiso 19.
Valpo scored early in the 2nd quarter on a 5-yard run by quarterback Justin Clark. This capped a 1-play 80-yard drive. Wilcox's extra point made it 14-3. There was no more scoring in the first half.
The Vikings broke the game open in the 3rd quarter with two long scoring drives and a 75-yard end-around.
The initial Valpo drive of the 2nd half was all on the ground, capped off by a Burda 2-yard run at the 6:54 mark. Burda had another 2-yard touchdown run at the 3:08 mark. The final 3rd quarter touchdown came on a 75-yard end-around run by Julian Stokes with 28.6 seconds left in the quarter. Wilcox kicked all three extra points, and Valpo led 35-3 after 3.
The Vikings got their final score when backup tailback Jacob Clardy capped a 13-play 70-yard drive with a 7-yard run at the 5:12 mark of the 4th quarter. Wilcox's kick made the final 42-3.
La Porte had trouble establishing any running game. Nathan Donah finished the game as LP's only healthy running back with 29 yards on 14 carries. Kai Jones ran five times for two yards before leaving with an injury in the 1st half. Dylan Salisbury was 11-24 passing for 180 yards with two interceptions. Ollie Kring had a big night catching six balls for 131 yards.
The Slicers finish the season at 2-8. Valpo will travel to Chesterton next Friday for the sectional championship. The Trojans beat Michigan City 28-20
