Nick LePage | Staff Writer

The Center Grove Trojans (2-2) suffered their biggest loss of the year to undefeated and No. 1 Ben Davis Giants (4-0) by a score of 40-7.

After stopping the Trojans on the first drive of the game, Ben Davis capitalized on their first possession, scoring on a touchdown by quarterback and IU commit Reese Taylor with 5:24 remaining in the first quarter. The Trojans were able to shut down the early 2-point conversion attempt by the Giants, keeping the score to 6-0.

The remainder of the quarter consisted of three punts and no touchdowns, as both teams’ defenses came up big.

“We can build off this, see what we did wrong, learn from it and get back after it next week,” said senior defender Austin Daming.

Much like they did in the first quarter, Ben Davis scored on their first drive after beginning the second quarter with the ball, this time on a 5-yard TD pass.

After going scoreless in the first 23 minutes of the game, the Trojans made sure not to head to the locker room without leaving a tally. With 49 seconds remaining in the half, Jackson Moore connected with junior Sam Hohlt for an 11-yard touchdown pass, putting the Trojans on the board to end the half trailing 13-7.

The Ben Davis offensive spark did not let up after the first half, as the Giants started the third quarter by returning the kickoff to the 49 yard line. Ben Davis capitalized on the return by scoring on their first drive of the half on a Johnny Adams 23-yard rush, extending the lead to 20-7.

Shutting down the Center Grove offense, the Giants forced a couple of CG punts as well as a 28-yard interception. The Giants converted on all three possessions, scoring three touchdowns, all in the air.

The Trojans were unable to score the remainder of the match, giving them their biggest loss on the season. However, the Trojans will use this loss going into practice next week as they look to gather momentum for the remainder of the season.

“We’ve just got to build off of what we gained from tonight,” said junior receiver Jacob Keith. “I think we can prosper off this… and hopefully make it back to the state championship.”

“We’re going to work on a lot of things,” Coach Moore said of next week’s practices. “We’re going to work on Center Grove and getting Center Grove better for the next game.”

The Trojans will face North Central (3-1) on the road next week.

Photos by Rachel Kraus and Gracie Marsh