The Racine Raiders completely dominated the previously unbeaten Indy Bison in all three phases of the game en route to a 28-0 win in Noblesville, Ind. The Raiders scored a touchdown in each quarter and the defense held their opponent scoreless for the third time this season. The Raiders scored in every quarter.
The Raiders scored on the first drive of the game as quarterback Andre Locke was able to avoid some pressure and loft the ball to a wide open Will Norwood for a 36-yard touchdown to put Racine up 7-0 with 11:49 to play in the opening quarter.
The Bison would go on their longest drive of the game, going 73 yards on 14 plays in just under seven minutes on the ensuing drive. The drive would stall at the Raiders 12 yard line after a fourth down stop by the defense.
Neither team could get much going on their next several possessions. The Raiders would find the end zone with 5:28 to play in the half when Locke connected with Joe Garcia for a nine-yard touchdown pass. The touchdown was set up by a 38-yard pass play on the first play for the drive from Locke to Jordan Payne. The Alex Gonzalez extra point was good and Racine led 14-0.
The Bison again marched down the field after a Raiders score on their drive. They went 64 yards on 12 plays in nearly 5-1/2 minutes but would again come up empty. With Racine leading 14-0, the Bison got to the Racine one-yard line. The momentum in the game could’ve totally flipped with a touchdown by the Bison as they were also set to receive the second half kickoff. On 4th-and-1 with one second to play in the half, Montrez Hearon tried a quarterback keeper. Despite a strong push from behind by running back Corey Bridges, Hearon couldn’t break the plane of the goal line and the Raiders would take their 14-0 lead into halftime.
The Raiders would find pay dirt on their first drive of the second half. Locke completed four-of-five passes on the drive to three different receivers. Garcia caught the first pass of the drive for 22 yards and finished it off with a 44-yard touchdown reception with 8:34 to play in the third quarter to give Racine a 21-0 lead.
The Raiders would finish off the scoring with Sawyer Schick at quarterback late in the fourth quarter. Following a 47-yard reception by Alex Rewolinski to put Racine at the Indy one-yard line, Schick hit Jashon Foster in the back of the end zone for a six-yard touchdown pass for the final tally of the game with two minutes to play.
The defense would lock down the Bison offense one last time. Racine improved to 6-0 with the win. This game counted in the Gridiron Developmental Football League standings for Racine as well and they improved to 5-0 in league play. The Indy Bison fell to 6-1, taking their first loss of the season and doubling the number of points they’ve allowed on the year.
The Raiders had 317 yards of total offense with 289 coming through the air. They held the Bison to 264 yards with 134 coming through the air and 130 on the ground. Locke finished 14-of-24 for 236 yards and the three passing touchdowns. Tom Benko was the Raiders leading receiver with 32 yards on eight carries. Nine different receivers caught passes with Garcia leading the way with three catches for 75 yards and the two touchdowns. Payne had three catches as well for 63 yards. Darrell James caught four passes for 52 yards.
Defensively, Justin Benko led the team with 11 tackles. Gary Young recorded nine tackles with two tackles for loss and a sack. J.D. Hardy had eight tackles and three passes defensed, twice knocking the ball from the grip of Bison receivers.
The Raiders return home for a four-game homestand beginning against the Illinois Cowboys on June 24th. The Cowboys will be the third straight unbeaten team the Raiders will face as they are currently 7-0 overall and 6-0 in the Northern Lights Football League. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 pm.
