10/11/2024
BY JACK BULLOCK
HILLSBORO - One might believe that the Vandalia Vandals would be setup for a bit of a let down after an emotional 35-34 overtime win the previous week against rival and previously unbeaten Greenville.

Heading into their contest on Friday night at winless Hillsboro, the Vandals could have taken the game lightly.

They didn't and the game was basically finished by intermission.

Coach Jason Clay and his crew were not in the mood to mess around with the Hiltoppers.

Sophomore quarterback Qwentyn Stombaugh put on a show and with help from a defense that kept Hillsboro from making much noise until the fourth quarter, the Vandals took home a 47-20 victory.

With the win Vandalia, Greenville and Pana are all sitting at 6-1 on the year in a three-way tie on top of the standings of the South Central Conference.

Stombaugh finished his evening with 144-yards rushing (12-attempts) and 223-yards passing (11-of-17) which was impressive.

The sophomore scored four touchdowns on the ground and threw for two additional TD's in the rout of the Hiltoppers.

“He (Stombaugh) is really settling in. He had a really good game tonight running it and throwing it. It was one of his better games throwing it tonight and he had a good all-around night,” said Coach Clay. “He's a special player.”

The numbers were a cruel reminder of how big of a rout the contest turned into.

Vandalia racked up 484-yards of offense, which included 43-yards and a touchdown on the ground by senior running back Jay Keck.

Four of the pass completions from Stombaugh were snagged by junior Kohner Depew, including a 77-yard TD catch and run.

Depew finished with 125-yard receiving while teammate senior receiver Jacob Johnson caught three of the Stombaugh passes for another 54-yards and a score.

Hillsboro did manage to get into the endzone once in the first half and twice in the final two quarters against the Vandalia reserves but the Hiltoppers saw their mark slip 0-7 this season.

Counting the final games of the 2023-24 season, Hillsboro has dropped its last 10-games.

Coach Joe Reed returned to the sidelines after sitting through a in-house six-game suspension and he got to witness first hand how good Vandalia is.

The Vandals defense held the Toppers to just 293-yards of total offense and just 60 of the yards coming in the air.

Hillsboro got 141 of the yards on its final two drives after they trailed 47-7.

“We've relied on our defense most of the year but our offense has come around in the last two weeks,” said Coach Clay. “We've given up yards but we preach don't give up points.”

Quarterback Cody Boerckel completed just one pass (1-of-6) but it was good for a 60-yard score to senior wide out Jackson Tuetken in the first half.

Running back senior Elias Baney finished with 55-yards on four attempts to lead Hillsboro and sophomore running back Tytin Wells finished with 13-carries for 48-yards.

Baney and Wells each scored touchdowns on the ground in the loss.

Ethan Hamby, a junior, added 41-yards rushing on four-attempts.

Vandalia took an early lead and never looked back.

Coach Clay and his crew dropped the opening game of the season to Pana but have notched six-consecutive wins since.

Stombaugh got his team on the scoreboard early, breaking free on a run up the middle for 44-yards on its opening possession.

Although the point after kick was no good, Vandalia led 6-0 early.

Hillsboro lost a pair of fumbles in the game, but the one that really hurt was on its second drive where Vandalia recovered the ball on its own 18.

The Vandals quickly went 82-yards on eight plays with Stombaugh scoring his second rushing TD, this time from 14-yards out for a 12-0 lead.

(CONTINUED)