Staff Report

Ferguson’s five touchdowns carry Muncie Central past Kokomo

KOKOMO — Mason Ferguson threw four touchdown passes and ran for another Friday night, helping Muncie Central build a commanding lead before turning back Kokomo’s late rally for a 34-23 sectional victory at Walter Cross Field.

The Bearcats scored the game’s first 20 points, led 27-7 at halftime and stretched the advantage to 34-7 early in the fourth quarter. Kokomo answered with two late touchdowns but could not overcome Muncie Central’s productive first half.

Ferguson completed 16 of 19 passes for 211 yards, with one interception, and added 64 rushing yards on 11 carries. Four different receivers caught his touchdown passes.

Muncie Central opened the scoring with a methodical 10-play, 71-yard drive that consumed nearly six minutes. Ferguson finished it with a 16-yard touchdown pass to R. Vargas with 2:18 remaining in the first quarter. Tobias Gruver’s extra point made it 7-0.

The Bearcats accelerated in the second quarter. Ferguson found Carlos Echols for a 20-yard touchdown just 34 seconds into the period, doubling the lead to 14-0. His 27-yard scoring pass to D. Montgomery with 7:54 left capped a four-play, 69-yard possession and pushed the margin to 20-0.

Kokomo broke through with 2:26 remaining before halftime when Bryce Jackson scored on a 3-yard run, cutting the deficit to 20-7.

Muncie Central responded before the break. The Bearcats traveled 60 yards in nine plays, with Ferguson scoring from a yard out with 20 seconds remaining to restore a 20-point cushion.

Neither team scored in the third quarter. Muncie Central then completed an eight-play, 77-yard drive with Ferguson’s 25-yard touchdown pass to Kye Hiatt at the 9:22 mark of the fourth, extending the lead to 34-7.

Kokomo needed only 25 seconds to answer. Jackson connected with David Powell for an 84-yard touchdown, and a successful two-point conversion made it 34-15. Jackson added another 3-yard touchdown run with 2:51 remaining, followed by another conversion to complete the scoring.

Vargas led Muncie Central’s rushing attack with 133 yards on 21 carries. The Bearcats finished with 454 total yards, including 243 on the ground, while their defense intercepted three passes and limited Kokomo to 61 rushing yards.

Muncie Central improved to 7-3. Kokomo finished its season 4-6.