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Tiger Cubs get big game from Lenihan in win
CLAYTON -- With all the talk of Greencastle's passing game, running back Derrick Lenihan has been the unsung rock of Greencastle's offense in 2011.
On Friday he was front and center, taking advantage of Cascade's run defense. Lenihan ran 22 times for 242 yards and three touchdowns as the Tiger Cubs (6-2, 3-2 WCC) cruised past the Cadets (1-7, 1-3 WCC) 48-8.
"After watching (Cascade) play Edgewood I thought they were going to be susceptible to the pass but they came out and had a great game plan against us," coach Josh Buis said. "They were changing up coverages against us -- it made it difficult for our quarterback to read.
"That's when we decided to hand the ball off to Derrick Lenihan and get some yards on the ground."
Lenihan let the Cadets know he meant business early, taking his first handoff 65 yards to the Cadet 10 to set the Tiger Cubs up first-and-goal. Four plays later, he ran it in for his first score of the night.
The Tiger Cub defense got into the act on the next possession, as Ryan Pettit took a Cadet fumble 45 yards to the house to put GHS up 13-0 with 4:28 remaining in the first.
The Cadets took back some momentum with 1:55 remaining in the quarter with an Anthony Arthur rushing touchdown and ensuing 2-point conversion to make it 13-8.
The second quarter belonged to Lenihan, though. He took his first carry 55 yards to paydirt and added another score late in the quarter, rushing for a total of 103 yards in the second.
"He runs with an extreme amount of passion. He's a first year starter who's worked his butt off and done a good job this year as a senior," Buis said. "He's been really positive with the offensive line. At practice, you don't hear the kid say boo."
Quarterback Nick Gilliam added a rushing touchdown and GHS led 34-8 at the break.
Buis spent much of the second half trying to get the passing game back in sync and found some success, with Gilliam finding Ryan Battin and Mac Shuee on a pair of long third-quarter touchdowns.
The two bombs brought the game to its final score of 48-8.
Gilliam finished 6-for-20 for 175 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
Still, Buis gave much of the credit to the men in the trenches for opening holes for Lenihan all night.
"Really what won us this ballgame was our offensive line. Our offensive line did a tremendous job of staying covered up," Buis said.
As always, he saluted the Tiger Cub defense. Besides allowing only eight points, GHS forced six fumbles, four of which they recovered. Stuckwisch also picked off Colin Smith in the fourth.
"Our defense has a habit of creating some turnovers. They created some tonight and luckily we were able to fall on the ball," Buis said.
GHS concludes the season at 7 p.m. Friday with a trip to Owen Valley.
At Cascade
Greencastle 13 21 14 0 -- 48
Cascade 8 0 0 0 -- 8
1st Quarter
GHS -- Lenihan 3-yd. run (Stuckwisch kick) 7:31
GHS -- R. Pettit 45-yd. fumble return (Stuckwisch kick failed) 4:28
Cas -- Arthur 1-yd. run (Smith run) 1;55
2nd Quarter
GHS -- Lenihan 55-yd. run (Stuckwisch kick) 10:15
GHS -- Gilliam 5-yd. run (Stuckwisch kick failed) 6:40
GHS -- Lenihan 3-yd. run (Hutcheson pass from Muncie) 0:47
3rd Quarter
GHS -- Battin 66-yd. pass from Gilliam (Stuckwisch kick) 10:17
GHS -- Shuee 46-yd. pass from Gilliam (Stuckwisch kick) 3:20
| TEAM STATS | GHS | Cas |
| First downs | 13 | 13 |
| Total offense | 419 | 237 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1-0 | 6-4 |
| Penalties-yds | 11-112 5-35 |
INDIVIDUAL STATS
GREENCASTLE
Rushing (33 rushes, 244 yards) -- Lenihan 22-242, Scott 3-7, Shuee 1-5, Hesler 1-3, Mitchell 1-1, A. Pettit 1-0, Gilliam 4-(-15)
Passing (6-20, 175 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) -- Gilliam 6-20-2-1, 175 yds.
Receiving -- R. Battin 1-66, Shuee 1-46, Hutcheson 3-42, Stuckwisch 1-21
CASCADE
Rushing (43 rushes, 162 yards) -- Arthur 19-94, Bobidilla 6-38, Smith 10-18, Butler 4-8, Scott 1-(-6)
Passing (9-17, 75 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT) -- Smith 9-17-0-1, 75 yds.
Receiving -- Arthur 3-33, Blinn 1-21, Batts 3-17, Bobidilla 1-4, Scott 1-0