By Todd Kraft

Special to the Journal

WELDON SPRINGS—Troy Buchanan defeated Francis Howell 42-27 Friday evening to take control of the South Division of the Gateway Athletic Conference.

The Trojan defense set the tone early by recovering a fumble on the Vikings’ second play of the game. Senior defensive lineman Marco Herrera recovered the ball at the Francis Howell 29-yard line, giving the ball to the Trojan offense in excellent field position.

“Our defense sometimes gets a little overlooked, but we’ve got an incredibly stout front seven. The defensive line and linebackers make it hard for other teams to run the football,” Head Coach Brett Wiggers said. “I was really pleased with our defensive effort tonight and getting that takeaway early tonight and the momentum was huge.”

The dynamic duo of senior running backs Carter Dowell and Chris Wenger, who both ran for more than 200 yards in the win, covered those 29 yards quickly. Dowell moved the ball to the 18-yard line and then Wenger finished the drive with an 18-yard touchdown run, getting the Trojans on scoreboard (7-0) just one minute and thirty-three seconds into the game.

The Trojan defense asserted itself again and forced a Vikings three and out, resulting in a punt on fourth and 16 from the Francis Howell 22-yard line.

Coach Wiggers confirmed the Troy defense also has a dynamic duo, and they both play linebacker. Senior linebacker Talan Rowland and junior linebacker Eli Conley are the motors that make the Trojan defense cruise.

“Talan is a four-year starter, and he is a tremendous leader. He’s kind of the heart and soul of our team. Talan is a phenomenal football player, and Eli Conley is in his first year starting for us on the outside and he’s done a really nice job of finding the football…a really good football player,” Wiggers said.

The Trojan offense took over at their own 39-yard line and demonstrated its big-play capabilities again. Dowell took the handoff from sophomore quarterback Carter Shafer and rumbled 61 yards. Dowell finished the night with 276 yards rushing on 22 carries and two touchdowns.

Wiggers noted the success of the Trojans’ run game begins at the line of scrimmage.

“This offensive line is a tough group. They’re big and strong and those guys have done a great job of making things happen for us,” Wiggers said.

The touchdown and extra point put the Trojans up by a score of 14-0 with 8:33 left in the first quarter.

Francis Howell received the kickoff and was determined to make it a competitive game. Relying on the legs of junior quarterback Derek Chupp, the Vikings marched 73 yards on the ground for their first touchdown. Chubb carried the ball seven times and scored from the one-yard line, making the score 14-7.

The Trojan defense would come up big again in the second quarter when the Vikings began a drive at the Trojans’ 44-yard line. The swarming defense limited the Vikings to four yards and forced a punt.

The Trojans began the drive at their own 12-yard line and two plays later a fumble resulted in Francis Howell taking possession of the ball at the 11-yard line. Four plays later Chupp added his second rushing touchdown of the evening, tying the game at 14-14 with 2:44 left in the half.

With momentum shifting in Francis Howell’s direction, the Trojan offense answered with a big drive of their own.

A combination of passing and rushing plays moved the ball to the Francis Howell 19-yard line with five seconds left in the half. The Troy Buchanan kick team lined up for a 36-yard field goal attempt.

Senior kicker Noah Vollmer split the uprights and sent the Trojans to halftime with a 17-14 lead, and renewed momentum.

The Trojans received the kickoff in the second half and continued to build on the momentum gained from the end of the first. A Wenger 18-yard rush, followed by a Dowell run of 31 yards and a personal foul penalty on a face mask moved the ball to the Vikings’ four-yard line.

On the next play Shafer handed the ball to Wenger and he finished the drive with a four-yard burst into the end zone giving Troy a 24-14 lead.

Francis Howell answered Troy Buchanan’s touchdown with one of their own. The Viking offense consumed nearly 8 minutes of the third quarter and scored on a 13-yard touchdown reception from Chupp to sophomore receiver Shake Speckert, making the score 24-21.

The three-point margin was as close as the Vikings were going to get to Trojans the rest of the night. Troy scored touchdowns on their next two possessions taking control of this important conference matchup.

Wenger dominated the next possession rushing for 86 yards on four carries, including the touchdown run covering 16 yards. Wenger had 19 carries for 207 yards and scored three touchdowns on the ground.

The Trojan offense put together another efficient, methodical drive in the fourth quarter to create a significant lead. Sophomore running back Tre Lococo scored on a rushing touchdown from 11 yards out with 6:45 left in the fourth quarter. Troy lengthened its lead to 37-21.

“We weren’t going to be complacent with the lead,” Wiggers said. “When we get a lead, we want to end the game, and I thought our guys had multiple drives there in the fourth quarter where they made big plays to finish things off.”

Francis Howell added one more touchdown with 6:08 left in the fourth quarter (37-27) and then attempted an onside kick which the Trojans recovered.

Dowell ended any glimmer of hope Francis Howell had for a comeback as he glided through the Viking defense for a 38-yard touchdown and the last score of the game.

“We have supreme confidence in our team,” Wiggers said. “We love our big guys up front, and we love our two workhorse running backs. We are going to be aggressive and run the football.”

Junior defensive back Markis Reynolds intercepted Chupp on their next possession to seal the win.

The win gives Troy Buchanan sole possession of the lead in the South Division of the Gateway Athletic Conference with two conference games remaining. Troy Buchanan will play at Fort Zumwalt West next Friday beginning at 7 p.m.