Solon extends win streak to 15 vs. Mount Vernon

MOUNT VERNON — One play in, it appeared that this game would resemble the last 14 in this rivalry.

By the midpoint of the first quarter, it was obvious.

Coal Flansburg returned an interception 40 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the game, and Solon went on to blank Class 2A second-ranked Mount Vernon, 19-0, in a non-district football game Friday night at Cornell College's Ash Park.

'It feels great to carry on the tradition of beating them,' Flansburg said after the Spartans downed the Mustangs for the 15th year in a row.

Solon scored in all three phases of the game in the first 8 minutes, jetting to a 19-0 lead. And that's how it ended up.

'Defensively, I couldn't be more pleased,' Solon Coach Kevin Miller said. 'We did very well against a very good offense.'

It started on the very first play from scrimmage, 15 seconds into the game. Flansburg stepped in front of a pass by Mount Vernon quarterback Drew Adams and went the distance.

'I dropped back and read pass, then I read (Adams') eyes,' Flansburg said. 'He threw it right to me, and it was green grass ahead of me.'

Then it was the special teams' turn.

With Mount Vernon facing fourth-and-4 from its 16, Solon's Kendrick Harris smothered a punt. The ball skittered around the end zone before Adam Bock jumped on it for a Spartans touchdown.

Another deflected punt led to the Spartans' third score, a 21-yard touchdown run by Spencer Wegmann.

The top passer in 2A last year, Adams finished with 184 yards Friday, completing 23 of 39 attempts. Mount Vernon finished with a 240-211 advantage in yards, but the Spartans kept the Mustangs out of the end zone.

'Our defensive line did a nice job pressuring the quarterback, and our coverage guys did a good job,' Miller said.

Solon hosts Iowa City Regina next week; Mount Vernon hosts West Delaware.

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