Mustangs stand tall: Mustangs turn close game into rout in second half

AMBOY – The wet weather didn’t drive away Amboy’s fans Friday night.

The first 4 minutes of the third quarter did.

The Morrison Mustangs turned two Clipper turnovers into quick touchdowns in the matchup of previously undefeated teams in the Big Rivers. The swing helped turn a close game into a 35-6 rout for the Mustangs.

“I thought we played pretty well in the first half,” Amboy coach Gary Jones said. “We were down 7-0, then we come out after half with a couple mistakes and all of a sudden Morrison’s up by three touchdowns. It just snowballed from there.”

A sack by Morrison’s Alec Klimson on Amboy’s first possession of the second half forced a punt attempt after third down.

A surge of Mustangs blocked Taylor Doege’s punt on the first possession of the second half. It was the second blocked punt of the game for Morrison (6-0, 6-0).

Just as the first block, by Cory Swanstrom, led to a Morrison first-quarter touchdown, this one also put points on the board. Andrew Cook found Swanstrom open on first down for a 20-yard touchdown pass.

“I  think we caught them off guard a little bit,” Cook said. “Being able to throw the ball is important for us in big games. That started us rolling.”

The Clippers fumbled the ball away two plays into the next drive, setting up the Mustangs at Amboy’s 30-yard-line.

On the next play, Conner Bealer cut up the middle for the touchdown that put Morrison up 21-0 with 8 minutes, 11 seconds left in the third quarter.

“I think defensively we have been solid all year and we were again tonight,” Morrison coach Cory Bielema said. “We did a good job of taking the ball away and we made the most of those opportunities.”

Amboy (5-1, 5-1) had more penalties (8) than first downs (7). The Clippers also had seven fumbles, losing four. Eighty-six of their 219 total yards were accounted for on Brian Appelman’s touchdown run to end the third quarter.

Josh Vos’ first-quarter touchdown was the first half’s only scoring play. Then, the teams scored three times in 24 seconds to end the third quarter and start the fourth.