Byron capitalizes on turnovers, blows by Dixon

Dukes can’t come from behind against Tigers

Dixon's Jath St. Pier catches a pass for a touchdown in third quarter action against Byron during Friday, Oct. 14 action.

BYRON – After 2 weeks of late-game comebacks and close wins, the Dixon Dukes couldn’t make it three in a row for folks who like their endings in dramatic fashion against the Byron Tigers.

The Tigers’ running game had its way against the Dukes, outgaining them nearly three-to-one on the ground in the first half to cruise to a 49-14 win at Everett Stine Stadium.

Dixon (5-3) came from behind 2 weeks ago to beat Rockford Lutheran at home, and then eked out an overtime win at Genoa-Kingston last week, but any late-game heroics were out of the question this week. Byron (7-1) amassed more than 350 yards on the ground compared to the Dukes’ 120, and took advantage of Dukes turnovers that led to almost half of its touchdowns.

“They’re a good football team,” Dukes coach Jared Shaner said of the Tigers. “We competed in the first quarter, and in the second quarter they kind of got away from us. We moved the ball well on offense, but just had a couple of turnovers and couldn’t score a couple of times.”

Dixon's Andrew Scheffler (54) and Tyson Dambman (21) look to stop Byron's Carsen Behn after a big gain during Friday, Oct. 14 action in Byron.Andrew

Byron scored the game’s first touchdown less than 2 minutes into the game, as senior quarterback Braden Smith scored on a keeper from 19 yards out for a quick 7-0 lead. However, the Tigers coughed up the ball near midfield and Dukes junior linebacker Hunter Vacek recovered it. The Dukes capitalized on the turnover as they scored on a 6-yard run from junior running back Aiden Wiseman to tie the game with 2:42 to go in the opening quarter.

The next three possessions for the Tigers in the first half, they made sure they didn’t give it up. Junior running back Carsen Behn scored on a 1-yard TD scamper with 9:02 left in the second quarter to put Byron ahead for good at 14-7, before Smith added a 45-yard TD and Ashton Henkel scored on a 5-yard run – on his first carry of the game – to propel the Tigers to a 28-7 halftime lead. Henkel’s score came after junior linebacker Jacob Ross pounced on a Dixon fumble at the Dukes 35.

Byron amassed 215 yards on the ground by halftime to Dixon’s 72, with the Tigers’ signal caller accounting for 109 of them on nine keepers.

“I thought the first drive was a great drive for us, then we fumble the ball and they score, and instead of 14-0 we’re sitting at 7-7,” Tigers coach Jeff Boyer said. “I thought we had a good second quarter, and going into the half 28-7, that was good.”

Dukes senior wide receiver Jath St. Pier scored the next TD on a 16-yard reception from junior quarterback Tyler Shaner with 8:32 left in the third quarter to narrow the Tiger lead to 35-14, but that’s as close as they would come to the Tiger lead. After the teams traded punts, Henkel ended a Dixon drive with 16 seconds left in the third quarter with an interception of a Shaner pass in the end zone, and the ensuing drive ended with Byron’s sixth TD on a 4-yard scoring run from Behn to make it 42-14.

Dixon's Tyler Shaner follows a block from Peyton Dingley during Oct. 14 action against Byron.

Senior reserve running back James Cone capped the scoring with a 3-yard scoring run with 2:50 to play. Byron’s defense took down Dixon runners eight times in the backfield, with junior defensive end Kyle Jones tallying three tackles for loss.

Henkel also snared an additional interception in the second half to help keep the Dukes at bay. The two catches ended a slump of sorts for him in recent games on defense, he said.

“It was tough going in, but this is what you’ve got to expect going against a playoff team,” Henkel said. “When we get to the playoffs, we’ll see a lot of schemes like this and expect a lot of it. So it was good seeing that against a good team.”

Tyler Shaner ran for an even 100 yards on 10 carries to lead the Dukes’ offense, and he also threw for 97 yards. After rushing for more than 100 yards last week against Genoa-Kingston, Wiseman finished with just 27 yards on 11 carries, but led the defense with two tackles for loss.

Even with the win, Byron’s chances to win the Big Northern championship outright have been dashed with Stillman Valley’s win over Rockford Lutheran on Friday to give the Cardinals at least a share of the title. The Cardinals face Genoa-Kingston next week, and even if they lose to the Cogs, their Week 1 head-to-head win over the Tigers keeps them on top.

“That was a great game to get heading into the playoffs,” Boyer said.

Dixon's  Aiden Wisemanr protects the ball during Friday, Oct. 14 action in Byron.