The Jenison Wildcats and West Ottawa Panthers entered Friday night’s game winless in OK Red play. Jenison had secured a non-conference win against Forest Hills Northern, but West Ottawa was looking for their first victory of any kind. A strong showing by Jenison propelled the team to a 35-7 victory, snapping their four-game skid.
On their first drive of the game, Jenison found the end zone. Caleb Dean powered across the goal line from three yards out to put the Wildcats ahead by six. On the ensuing West Ottawa drive, Jenison scored again. Their defense recorded a safety, tackling the Panthers in the end zone. This short field, set up by the free kick, resulted in another Jenison touchdown march. Carter VanManen, the signal-caller for Jenison, used his legs for a 3-yard touchdown. This gave Jenison a commanding 15-0 lead after twelve minutes.
Kobe Haglund snapped the scoreless drought, just fifteen seconds into the second quarter. He carried the football for a 2-yard touchdown. Jenison would respond with two touchdowns to extend their halftime advantage. First, Caleb Dean reeled off a 24-yard touchdown dash. With one second left in the half, Jenison blocked a punt, and Cam Duval returned the block 34 yards for a touchdown. This put the Wildcats ahead 29-7.
In the second half, there were just two scoring plays. Jenison’s Owen Snyder used his leg to extend the final margin. Snyder booted a pair of field goals, converting from 40 and 26 yards to give Jenison a 28-point victory.
Jenison, now 2-5 on the year, will take on Caledonia next Friday. West Ottawa will look to snap their 24-game skid against Rockford, who holds a 7-0 record.
