Sunday, Nov. 16, 2008

Mater Dei offense picks up; Knights outscore Mascoutah 35-7 after halftime

MASCOUTAH -- After a sluggish start, Mater Dei's offense played up to its familiar standard and its defense was up to the challenge Saturday.

Senior quarterback Justin Vonder Haar passed for three touchdowns and rushed for two, while the Knights limited senior running back Melvin Banks to 56 yards on 14 carries in a 42-14 victory over Mascoutah in the quarterfinals of the Class 4A playoffs.

"I don't know if it was easy," said Vonder Haar, whose 34-yard TD pass to junior John Huelsmann on Mater Dei's first possession of the second half put the Knights ahead for good at 14-7. "We started playing our game and I didn't throw any interceptions. The first half, I had two interceptions and I questioned my mental toughness.

"But we were able to bounce back at halftime and come out and play."

Vonder Haar was 25-for-47 for 350 yards, including two other TD strikes to junior Lucas Hemann and senior Aaron Fuehne. Hemann also rushed 16 times for 133 yards and one TD and Fuehne had seven catches for 128 yards.

"At halftime, we made a couple of minor adjustments," Mater Dei coach Ray Kauling said. "Our kids started to step up and make plays. We just stayed the course, tried to be patient and play four quarters of football. We preach it all the time, and we had to go in at halftime and preach it some more."

The Knights (12-0) will play at Bloomington Central Catholic (12-0) in the semifinals Saturday. Central Catholic overcame a 17-7 halftime deficit Saturday and defeated Quincy Notre Dame 21-17 in the quarterfinals.

Mascoutah (8-4) played a staunch first half, which ended in a 7-7 tie. After Vonder Haar's 23-yard TD pass to Hemann made it 7-0 in the second quarter, Banks broke free down the right sidelines for a 57-yard touchdown run that tied the game.

Banks also had a 2-yard TD run that made it 35-14 late in the game. Other than his two scoring runs, however, Banks had 12 carries for minus-3 yards as the Knights managed to plug the middle and contain his speed on the outside.

"That was big," Indians coach Terry Moeller said. "When you can't score enough points to keep up with them, that's a tremendous factor.

"I don't have a lot of words, gentlemen. I think we played a great team. They did very well. They're advancing and we're not."

In Mascoutah's two playoff victories against Waterloo and Herrin, Banks had 354 yards and four TDs on 38 carries. Kauling knew how the Knights' defense fared against Banks would be a key.

"I think we played an outstanding game defensively," he said. "I can't say enough about what our defense did today. To bottle (Banks) up. He's an outstanding, electric ballplayer."

Senior Austin Givens had two interceptions of Vonder Haar in the first half, keeping the Indians in contention. Givens' second pick came in the end zone on a first-and-goal play from the Mascoutah 6 late in the second quarter.

But things began to sour for the Indians early in the second half when Mater Dei marched 80 yards on 14 plays, a drive culminated by Vonder Haar's 34-yard TD pass to Huelsmann, who bobbled the ball before gaining control and racing into the end zone.

After Mascoutah punted on its next possession, the Knights faced a third-and-10 from their 10-yard line. Vonder Haar stepped back into the pocket and rifled a 24-yard completion to Huelsmann over the middle for a key first down.

Seven plays later, Mater Dei took a 21-7 lead on Hemann's high-effort 23-yard TD run. The drive was kept alive on the previous play by a pass interference call against Mascoutah on fourth-and-5.

"It probably did (change the game)," Kauling said of Huelsmann's key reception on third down. "But it's a mentality. Third-and-10 for our kids isn't much anymore because we've seen a few of them. With our passing game, we can get 10, we can get 15. We've just got to be patient and stay focused on what we're doing."

Vonder Haar's 10-yard TD run early in the fourth quarter made it 28-7, and his 35-yard TD pass to Fuehne made it 35-7 on the Knights' next possession. B

Banks' 2-yard TD run made it 35-14 before Vonder Haar's 1-yard TD run put Mater Dei over the 40-point mark for the 10th time this season.

"To go to the semis is great," Kauling said. "It's great for the kids, because that's who it's all about. It's not about me or the rest of the coaching staff. It's about the kids and the community.

"For our kids and our community to get into the semifinals again, that's a great accomplishment."

Contact reporter David Wilhelm at dwilhelm@bnd.com.