New Palestine High School

The No. 1 New Palestine football team opens sectional play Friday at Kelso Stadium against arch-rival Mt. Vernon. Mt. Vernon Marauders (4-5, 4-3 HHC) at 4A No. 1/1 New Palestine Dragons (8-0, 7-0 HHC) Time: 7 p.m. Friday Location: Kelso Stadium Tickets: $7 at gate or online at https://public.eventlink.com/tickets?t=98567 Audio: NewPalRadio.com SETTING THE SCENE The Dragons open tournament play against their oldest and biggest rival, Mt. Vernon. The schools have met in each of their 57 seasons of varsity football. This is the ninth tournament meeting, with NP winning six of the previous eight. The winner of the NP-MV tourney matchup has gone on to win the sectional each time. The Dragons lead the all-time series 40-24-1. The Dragons have won five straight meetings over the last three years, including a 56-8 victory this season in which Jacob Davis threw for 240 yards and three TDs, while Josh Ranes ran for 119 yards and four touchdowns. This is the third consecutive year they’ve met in the sectional. The Dragons are 74-38 all-time in IHSAA tournament games, including 58-27 in the sectional. NP has won 14 sectional titles, including eight in the last 11 seasons. Under coach Kyle Ralph, the Dragons are 22-3 in the sectional and 35-8 in tournament games. NP is seeking its first-ever sectional four-peat. DRAGONS NOTES The Dragons posted their third consecutive undefeated run through the Hoosier Heritage Conference. It’s their 10th in 12 years and their 12th in 15 years. The Dragons have won 14 HHC titles, all since 2005. Thirteen have been outright. They have 24 overall conference titles in the program’s 57-year history. Over the last four weeks, the Dragons’ defense has been dominant, allowing fewer than 85 yards in each game. Three of the four games have been shutouts, with the Dragons allowing fewer than 50 yards in each. Last week, Delta earned four first downs, 49 total yards and nine rushing yards against the Dragons in a 38-0 victory. As a team, the Red Rage is allowing 3.2 yards per play and 140.3 yards per game. RB Josh Ranes posted his eighth consecutive 100-yard game and his second 200-yard game of the season, tallying 235 yards on 19 carries in the victory over Delta. Ranes now has 1,401 yards this sseason, 14th on the NPHS single-season list. QB Jacob Davis spread the ball around last week, with three of his six completions going for touchdowns - of 33 yards to Cameron Rollyson, 34 to Eli Wasson and 51 to Austin McMahan. Senior K Jake Wells set a school record with a 49-yard field goal last week. It was his second straight week with a long field goal, as he drilled a 40-yarder the week before at New Castle. The Dragons have scored eight touchdowns from beyond midfield this season. Four are TD passes to McMahan, one to Wasson and three TD runs by Ranes. Last week, the Dragons gained 347 yards on the ground and 494 total yards. Davis accounted for five TDs, as he also ran for two in addition to his three passing TDs. The Dragons are plus-14 in turnover ratio, with 17 takeaways. The Dragons have forced a running clock in seven consecutive games. SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS MV enters having won four of its last five games, although its four-game streak was snapped last week in a 28-27 loss at Yorktown. Senior RB Joliba Brogan has eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark. He averages 131 yards per game rushing and is among the HHC’s top running backs. Sophomore QB Mason Meyer averages 95 yards per game passing. Senior Ryker Baer is his top target. LOOKING AHEAD The winner of tonight’s game will face either Yorktown or Richmond in the semifinal round. If the Dragons win, they would visit Yorktown or host Richmond. FOLLOW US All New Palestine games are broadcast free-to-listen at NewPalRadio.com. All home games are also video streamed at IHSAAtv.org on a pay-per-view basis. NPHS Athletics is on Facebook and Instagram (@NewPalestineDragons), Twitter (@NPHSDragons) and online (NewPalestineAthletics.com). Photo credit: Aaron Smith