MUS Sports News

Roadrunners Pound Owls

The Ridgeway Roadrunners used some balanced scoring and tenacious pressure defense that created 25 MUS turnovers to whip the Owls 67-34 last night at Ridgeway.

University of Virginia signee Derrick Byars led Ridgeway with 17 points, while the two Roadrunner starting guards, Yual Banks and Corey Brown, combined for 27 points on 12-13 shooting, 14 assists, and only 1 turnover to jump on MUS early and never let up.

The Owls really never got any offensive consistency as they were pressured and forced out of their offense all night. Steed Carson led MUS with 11 points, yet Owl guards combined for 14 turnovers and only 6 assists as MUS shot only 28% for the game.

Ridgeway shot 48% for the game as they jumped out early in both halves. The Roadrunners hit their first three shots to begin the game as they held a 30-15 halftime advantage. Then, they hit their first 12-14 shots in the third quarter as they blew the game open with their third-quarter burst.

The Owls, now 2-1, will try to regroup this weekend as they head to Nashville to face some private-school competition. MUS will battle MBA Friday night and Father Ryan on Saturday. The MBA game will be at 7:30PM, while the Ryan game will commence at 2:30PM in Nashville.

Owls' Balance Notches Another Win

MUS used some balanced scoring (8 Owls scored) and solid defense to upend the Wooddale Cardinals 46-30 last Tuesday night.

The Owls, preparing for a stretch in which they face 4 recent state champions, got 13 points from Andrew Hanover and 12 rebounds from Steed Carson to wear the Cardinals down.

Wooddale could only shoot 25% from the floor for the game and had only 3 players score as the Owls extended their 7-point halftime lead.

MUS, now 2-0, plays its first of four consecutive road games at Ridgeway this Tuesday. Then this weekend, the Owls travel to Nashville to battle Father Ryan and MBA before returning to Memphis to take on defending AAA state-champ Bartlett next week. Wooddale falls to 0-1.

Owls Get First Win

Andrew Hanover scored 18 points, and Will Saxton chipped in 11 points and 6 rebounds as MUS got off to a good start in basketball with a 55-47 win over Hillcrest Christian out of Jackson, Mississippi.

With forward Ryan Baum out nursing a sprained ankle, the Owls had to rely on defense because their leading scorer was not playing. But early on, the Cougars took advantage.

Hitting 7-13 from three-point range, Hillcrest held the lead most of the first half as MUS shot only 36% from the field and hit only 7-14 free throws.

But the Owls slowly got the lead and held off the gallant Cougars. MUS hit 13-14 from the line in the second half and limited their second-half turnovers.

MUS, now 1-0, will host Wooddale tonight in another non-conference tilt. Game time is 6:00PM for the JV and 7:30PM for the varsity at MUS.

Eagles Again End Owls' Year

For the seventh time in MUS history, the Brentwood Academy Eagles defeated the Owls in a state playoff game to end their season as the Eagles stymied the MUS passing attack to shut the Owls out 26-0 last Friday night in Nashville.

MUS had several opportunities to put points on the board and put pressure on BA (10-2), but offensive miscues and a lack of execution kept the Owls out of the end zone.

Even though the MUS offense struggled to get any momentum, the defense did play well to keep the game close early on.

After the opening kickoff, the Owls forced three straight BA punts on the Eagles' first three possessions as the game remained scoreless in the first stanza.

However, the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the offense eventually gave Brentwood opportunities that the Eagles took advantage of. After the Owls were stopped and forced to punt deep in their own territory, BA took over at the MUS 44 after the short punt. Five plays later, David Holbert went in from 5 yards for the score. The John Vaughn extra-point gave the Eagles the 7-0 lead.

Then, just 8 seconds later, BA extended the lead as the defense got the first of their two scores for the game. On first down after the ensuing kickoff, QB John Phillips tried to run the option, but as he pitched, he was hit, the ball popped loose, and cornerback Kyle Willis picked up the fumble and took it 15 yards for the score. Derek Clenin blocked the Vaughn PAT, but BA increased their lead to 13, more than enough points on this night.

Vaughn extended the misery right before the half as he booted a 22-yard field goal to make it 16-0.

The MUS offense could only garner 29 total yards in the second quarter as they tried to get back into the game, but with Phillips only completing 2 of 9 passes for 34 yards at the break, and the MUS ground game only amassing 53 yards, the Owls' situation did not look good.

Yet, the coaches had not given up by any stretch. They knew that if Phillips could get hot, and the defense continue to get stops, they would have enough time to get back into the game.

But the Owls hopes were deflated on the first possession. After moving the ball into Eagle territory on 5 runs, Phillips went for the end zone on the 6th play. However, as Phillips went to Estes Folk as he headed to the post, Kyle Willis stepped in and got the interception, and another MUS drive was halted.

Brentwood Academy put the game away on the Owls' next possession. After a completion to Folk, one of 4 for Phillips on this night, the senior wideout struggled for additional yardage. But he was stripped and fumbled, and Tyler Smith picked up the ball and rumbled 40 yards for the score. Vaughn tacked on the PAT to extend the lead to 23-0.

And Vaughn completed the scoring with a 35-yard field goal midway through the 4th quarter as BA took the 26-0 decision.

The offensive woes were astonishing, especially considering that 6 offensive records were set just one week earlier. Phillips finished with only 28 yards passing on 4 of 19, and he was intercepted 3 times. The ground game was somewhat better but could not bail MUS out either as the Owls amassed 188 yards on 36 attempts. Clenin led the MUS rushers with 91 yards on 12 carries.

Even though the BA offensive numbers were not stellar as they gained only 293 total yards, including only 24 passing yards, they took advantage of 5 MUS turnovers to secure the win and move on. In the 2 games played this year between the two schools, the Owls have had 12 giveaways as the Eagles have outscored MUS 56-14.

This game was the last for 15 MUS seniors and 3 senior managers. Though they will be missed, the underclassmen will step in and continue to improve this program. After recording their first playoff victory in the Super 7, the Owls look forward to next year to see if they can improve on their 8-4 record.

Records Fall as MUS Soars into Semis

Going into their opening-round playoff game against Father Ryan, the MUS coaches knew that they must spread the defense and throw the ball down the field to be successful. However, they could never imagine just how successful they would be.

John Phillips threw for a career-high 282 yards, one of 6 school records that fell last Friday night, and the Owls also gained 195 rushing yards as MUS (8-3) posted a 35-16 victory over Father Ryan (5-6) to end the Fightin' Irish's year and advance in the Division II Super 7 playoffs.

Ryan never really stopped the Owl offense all night. After forcing an Irish punt on the opening possession, MUS quickly used their balanced offense to drive. Then, just 5 plays in, Phillips found receiver Estes Folk on a 37-yard pass for a score. However, the kicking woes continued as David Thompson missed the extra point, but MUS had grabbed a 6-0 lead.

Thompson redeemed himself later in the first as he booted a 25-yard field goal to cap a 13-play, 46-yard drive that amassed 4:31.

Father Ryan came back on their next possession to get on the board. The Irish offense kept the MUS defense on its heels as they pounded the ball on the ground. QB Chris Chauvin got Ryan close as he scampered 47 yards on a keeper to get to the Owl 2. Yet the MUS defense held to force a field-goal attempt which Joseph Crane connected on from 20 yards out to cut the lead to 9-3.

But the Phillips-to-Folk tandem continued to click as the Owls extended their lead late in the half.

Following a Ryan fumble at the MUS 42, the Owls used 7 passes to score as Folk caught a 19-yard pass for the touchdown. MUS went for 2, but Folk was tripped up on the end-around, so the Owls held a 15-3 lead at the break.

MUS controlled the halftime stats over Ryan. They had 214 total yards, including 175 passing, and did not punt. They also claimed 2 turnovers from the Irish, who gained 180 total yards.

Coming out of the break, the Owls realized that if they could jump on Ryan early and get another score, they could possibly deliver the knockout blow to dispose of their Nashville opponent. Taylor Trezevant helped deliver that punch.

Culminating an 8-play, 90-yard drive, Trezevant caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Phillips, his third of the game, to give the Owls the 22-3 lead after the Thompson extra-point late in the quarter. The big play of the drive was a 31-yard reception by Folk to get to the Ryan 15 to set up the score.

But the Irish did not die. Chauvin led an 8-play drive and scored on a keeper from 14 yards out to cut the MUS lead to 12 after the Crane PAT.

Yet the Owls put the game away with 2 more scores in the fourth quarter. Derek Clenin only rushed 5 times in the game, but he amassed 64 yards in the second half, and he scored from 1 yard out early in the fourth to extend the MUS lead to 19.

And following a Chauvin-to-Andrew-Ritter touchdown to cut the lead to 29-16, the Owls ran out the clock as Alex Lawhorn completed the scoring with a 2-yard run to culminate the 4-play, 66-yard drive as MUS won 35-16.

The Owl passing attack was potent all night as 6 offensive records fell. Phillips' 282 yards passing was the most all-time for a game, besting the 280 yards put up by Marc MacMillan in 1991 against Harding. His 35 attempts and 24 completions also broke records as the previous highs were 34 attempts by Will Thompson and Paul Gillespie's 18 completions.

Additionally, Phillips' 282 yards passing and 32 rushing yards were the most total offensive yardage ever as he gained 9 more yards than Andy Wright's 305 yards in 1985. He also had 35 passes and 9 rushing attempts to break the most total-offense attempts by 2, set by MacMillan in 1990.

But Phillips' favorite target also broke a record himself. Estes Folk's 11 receptions for 166 yards and 2 touchdowns bests the old mark for catches in a game by 3, set by Thomas Bowden and John Martin. His return from the high ankle sprain will relieve some pressure off of Thompson and the other receivers to give Phillip more options.

Even though Ryan gained 372 total yards, including 206 passing yards and 166 yards rushing, the Owl defense never gave up any big plays and held the Irish's big player, receiver Billy May, in check as he caught only 3 passes for 54 yards. The defense forced Ryan to drive the field and never let them gain any significant momentum.

However, the offense showed up for this game as MUS only punted once and only had 2 turnovers.

The Owls now advance to the semifinal round against the old rival Brentwood Academy. The Eagles, now 9-2, defeated Baylor 31-28 last week and beat MUS in Week 4, 30-14. The Owls hope to avoid the 7 turnovers that plagued them in their first encounter and beat BA for only the 5th time in 18 games. Kickoff is set for 7:00PM in Nashville. The winner will face the winner of the CBHS-McCallie matchup in the state championship game on November 17 in Murfreesboro.