Solon overcomes sloppy start to beat Mount Vernon

SOLON - Late in the third quarter, Solon wide receiver Halston Durr slipped on the Mount Vernon 6-yard line.

A Mount Vernon interception appeared likely, but somehow Durr popped up and made the catch.

So it went for the Solon Spartans in the their 35-14 win over rival Mount Vernon on Friday night.

'I think I was pretty lucky that Blayze (Griffis) put it in the right spot,” said Durr, who finished with five catches, 170 yards and four touchdowns.

The ugly plays happened early for Solon. A fumble on a punt return. A bad exchange on a handoff. A 97-yard Mount Vernon kickoff return by Mickey Hines had the Spartans reeling despite a narrow 7-6 lead early in the second quarter.

'I think we had a hangover from last week,” Solon Coach Kevin Miller said. 'Those are some of the same things we did against Regina.”

Somehow the Spartans made it work. Four first half interceptions, including a pair by Nate Christensen, kept the Mustangs out of the end zone. Timely tackles-for-loss frustrated Mount Vernon drives.

'When we shook out of that funk, we kind of got into a rhythm,” Miller said.

Late in the second quarter, the Spartans began to bloom. Durr grabbed a pair of touchdowns from backup quarterback Griffis and the Spartans regained their confidence with a 21-6 halftime lead.

'We had good momentum going with Blayze and a good connection between us, so we just kept it going,” Durr said.

The Spartans kept grinding away in the second half. The Spartans converted Durr's slip-and-catch into a 4-yard touchdown run by Graeson Dall.

'They're a talented team, we just had better guys on the outside,” Griffis said. 'They ran well, but we just got the job done.”

Durr added his fourth TD grab midway through the fourth to seal the win for the Spartans.

'When we got into our no-huddle and going fast, I think it kind of changed the complexion of the game,” Miller said.