**ARTICLE BY LIEN VELDBOOM**
Unity Christian took their undefeated record on the road to Holland to battle the Maroons. These teams know each other well from formerly being in the OK Green conference together since 2005. The Crusaders have been dominating this rivalry as of late. This trend continued Friday night when Unity Christian took the game 49-20.
The Crusader’s offense destroyed the Maroons defense, scoring fast and frequently. Unity Christian held Holland Christian to one touchdown in the first half which came from the Maroon’s first possession of the game. Eli Boyce kept the ball and ran it 2-yards into the endzone. The Crusaders were able to put 28 on the board. The ball was well distributed between the run and pass game. Nolan Vis was able to run the ball in twice, 2-yards and 18-yards respectively. The Crusaders were also able to score through the air when Mitch Tibbe found Isaac Stienstra open to run it into the endzone. This occurred twice once for 60-yards and the other for 26-yards.
The scoring frenzy from Unity Christian continued into the second half where they were able to score 3 more touchdowns to close out the game. The first one came from Stienstra on the ground this time. The next two were from Gavin VanKoevering and Cam Vruggink. They each ran it in once for 6 points on the night.
The Maroons were also able to put together a couple of scoring drives, but it wasn’t enough to lift them above the Crusaders. Lucas Conklin was able to run it through the Unity Christian defense for a 2-yard score, while Eli Boyce was able to find an open Caleb Meyaard for 6 points.
Unity Christian relied heavily on their running game ending the night with 331 yards. Their lead rusher was Nolan Vis who had 113 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Maroons distribute the ball well through the air and on the ground. Eli Boyce had 200 yards through the air and 31 on the ground.
Next week, the Maroons will look to bounce back against the 2-5 Falcons of Allendale. They will be on the road pushing for a late playoff spot as the season whines down. The lone undefeated team in the OK Blue will face Spring Lake who is 2-5 in the 2022 season after gaining their first win this Friday.
