MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Mustangs football team overwhelmed an injury-plagued Willits Wolverines squad 49-0 in Middletown Friday night, finishing their regular season as undefeated North Central I North league champions for the third year in a row.
The weekend victory ensures a playoff berth for the Mustangs in the upcoming North Coast Section Division IV tournament, while the battered Wolverines – who suited just 14 players Friday night – will sit out the post-season due to extensive injuries.
Also for the third straight year, the Mustangs finish the year with an overall 9-1 record, putting them tied for first place with St. Patrick/St. Vincent and Fort Bragg in the Division IV football standings.
“I think this is probably my best overall team of the last three years,” longtime coach Bill Foltmer said before the game.
After a failed attempt by the Wolverines to open the game with an onside kick, the Mustangs quickly took control, needing just four offensive plays before running back David Pike scored on an eight-yard dash.
After both teams traded interceptions, Middletown struck again on a nine-yard end zone pass from quarterback Kyle Brown to wide receiver Connor Chick, and the Mustangs went ahead 14-0.
Middletown put one more score on the board before the first quarter ended when Pike carried the ball three consecutive plays, capping the drive with a seven-yard touchdown run to bring the score to 21-0.
Pike scored twice more in the second quarter – on carries of 38 yards and 8 yards – breaking Lake County’s all-time record for most touchdowns scored in a single season at 29.
Jereomy Hoefer scored Middletown’s next touchdown on a three-yard scamper, and defensive back Andres Fernandez posted the Mustangs’ final score of the night when he intercepted an errant Willits pass and ran it all the way back to the Wolverine end zone to bring the score to 49-0.
The Friday night win is Middletown’s third consecutive shutout victory – and their six of the season – and extends Middletown’s current winning streak to nine games.
“They’re a class act,” Willits head coach Nat Collicott said of the Mustangs. “It’s an honor to play Coach Foltmer on his field and hey, they’re good. I wish them the best in the playoffs.”
Collicott said of his team, “We’re pretty beat up. We had some very key injuries. We lost all of our running backs and some starting defensive players.”
Foltmer noted the Wolverine injuries and said, “It wasn’t the same Willits team that it was earlier in the season.”
Willits finished the game with just 64 yards total offense on 21 carries, while Middletown had 255 yards total offense on 31 carries.
Kyle Brown completed three of four passes for 67 yards and Pike carried the ball 13 times for 131 yards for the Mustangs.
Looking ahead to the playoffs, Foltmer sounded upbeat about his team’s prospects.
Foltmer specifically cited star defensive linebacker Jake Davis – who was last year’s All North Central I League Most Valuable Defensive Player and sat out the first half of this season with a broken jaw – calling him “my best player, and arguably one of the better players I’ve ever had.”
“We’ve got a pretty strong defense, and I think defense is what will help you go a little bit deeper in the playoffs,” Foltmer said.
He added, “There’s an old saying in football: ‘Offenses put butts in the stands, but defenses win championships.’”
In JV action, the Mustangs beat Willits 38-6, finishing their season with an 8-2 record, while the Wolverine loss to Middletown brought their JV team record to 1-9 for the year.
Middletown’s next game – their first of the post-season – will be determined by North Coast Section Division IV tournament directors on Sunday, Nov. 14.
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