MONTICELLO – Four second-half takeaways and a big rushing night pushed Monticello into the third round of the playoffs Friday.
The Billies defeated conference rival Hamburg 35-14 at Hyatt Field in Monticello.
Monticello (9-3) sophomore Joseph Accelus carried the ball 31 times for 262 yards and two touchdowns. The Billies as a team finished with 341 rushing yards and four scores. Accelus also caught two passes for 50 yards and a touchdown.
Billies coach Randy Harvey said Accelus has improved a lot this season.
“We’ve kind of held him back a little bit early on, just because sophomore and the number of carries, but the last three of four games, man, we’ve turned him loose,” Harvey said. “I think he had 27 carries last week and maybe 24 the week before that. He’s a very special young man, and we got him for two more years after this.”
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Monticello led 21-14 with just under 6 minutes to play and forced Hamburg (8-4) to punt. The snap went over the punter’s head, but he chased it down and got a kick away. The Billies muffed the kick, and Hamburg senior Carter Lawson recovered it.
The Lions reached the 27-yard line and were looking to tie the game but fumbled a snap. Monticello senior AJ Robinson recovered it.
Accelus started the drive with a 55-yard run, and Jackson Hines finished it with a 4-yard touchdown run. Hamburg fumbled another snap on the ensuing drive, and Robinson collected his second recovery, setting up Accelus for a 21-yard touchdown one play later.
The Lions returned the kickoff to the Monticello 27, but Blaine Hayden collected a fumble three plays later, allowing Monticello to take a knee.
Harvey said the defense played the way it has all season.
“We’ve stopped the run,” Harvey said. “We’ve given up a little bit in the passing game, but most games, we’ve held people 100 yards or less in a lot of games. To do it in this conference, it says a lot for our coaches and our players to be able to come do that. A team knowing us as well as we do, on both sides, for us to be able to play like we did tonight is spectacular for our program.”
Hamburg’s touchdowns came in extraordinary fashion.
The Lions started the game with a hook and ladder on the first play from scrimmage. Quarterback Kaden Thomas threw a short pass to Anthony Smith, who pitched it to Nikel Lewis. The junior got to the 2-yard line, and Thomas ran it in on the next play for a 7-0 Hamburg lead.
Monticello took a 21-7 lead late in the third quarter, and Hamburg was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, allowing the Billies to kick off from the Lions’ 45-yard line.
They tried to take advantage of the field position with an onside kick, but Lawson returned it 64 yards for a Hamburg touchdown, sending the game to the fourth quarter with a 21-14 Monticello edge. The Billies won the fourth 14-0.
With this win, Monticello advances to the third round for the first time since 2009, a state championship season. Accelus said it feels great to be back in the third round 15 years later.
“Feel like we did something in Monticello history,” Accelus said. “Been talking about it. It’s been a big deal around here for a long time, since we won our first game.”
Hamburg rushed for 160 yards, led by 99 from Lewis and 38 from Thomas.