RANDOLPH — Without its two primary offensive weapons, Ithaca became easy prey for host Randolph Tuesday night.
The Rockets administered a 52-0 drubbing to the Bulldogs in a Level 1 Division 7 football playoff matchup. In Randolph’s first postseason action in five years, the Rockets held an advantage in total yardage of 546 to minus-26.
“We told our kids at halftime we still have to prove we can play a complete game,” Randolph coach Pat Winch said. “We finished what we needed to get done, which was nice to see.”
Ithaca was without quarterback Josh Cornett, who threw for over 1,000 yards this season, due to a concussion. When the Bulldogs lost freshman Mitchell Ricco, their top rusher, they had no answers offensively.
Defensively, Ithaca couldn’t hold up to Randolph’s offensive line. Brian Kampstra finished with 104 yards on 14 carries while Tylor Grant added 100 on just four.
“I’d like to see what Ricco was made of and their other kid ran hard,” Winch said. “We kind of took their heart and soul and took over.”
Each team punted on its opening possession, but with Ricco sidelined due to injury, the Bulldogs tried a pitch to Trevor Osborne. He fumbled at his own 25 with Ben Syvertson recovering for the Rockets.
Kampstra capitalized from a yard out six plays later. Tylor Grant set up the next Rocket score on a 53-yard counter which led to Syvertson following a scrum from 4 yards out with Malachi Stone tacking on the conversion run.
Syvertson completed both pass attempts on his next drive, leading to Kampstra’s 10-yard scoring run to the right pylon. After forcing a three-and-out, Randolph capped the half when Syvertson went up top to T.J. Huizenga for a 67-yard fade route to make it 26-0 with 2:36 to play before halftime.
“He played well,” Winch said of Syvertson, who completed 5 of 8 passes for 148 yards.
“I saw the way he took a leadership role in the huddle last week and got the offense rolling.”
Kampstra picked up where he left off in the first half, capping the opening drive of the second half with a 40-yard scoring run up the middle. He finished with 104 yards on 14 carries with three touchdowns.
Grant finished his day with 100 yards on four carries, including a 39-yard dash late in the third quarter. Randolph’s reserves got in the act, with Jay Peters finding a wide-open Aaron Retzlaff from 30 yards out and Drew Reyes taking in a 30-yard run to complete the scoring.
In addition to forcing reserve Bulldog QB Ryan Huffar into a 2-for-15 effort, the Rockets sacked him four times.
Next up for the Rockets is Saturday’s Level 2 clash with Shullsburg. The Miners hammered host Cambria-Friesland, 49-6, to advance.
RANDOLPH 52, ITHACA 0
Ithaca 0 0 0 0 - 0
Randolph 14 12 14 12 - 52
R - Kampstra 1 run (kick failed), 1st 05:03
R - Syvertson 4 run (Stone run), 1st 00:45
R - Kampstra 10 run (run failed), 2nd 06:37
R - Huizenga 67 pass from Syvertson (run failed), 2nd 02:36
R - Kampstra 40 run (Kampstra kick), 3rd 08:59
R - Grant 39 run (Kampstra kick), 3rd 02:23
R - Retzlaff 30 pass from Peters (kick failed), 4th 09:54
R - Reyes 35 run (kick failed), 4th 05:45
TEAM STATISTICS
First downs - I 3, R 11. Rushing (Att.-Yds.) - I 22-(-48), R 44-369. Passing yards - I 22, R 177. Passes (Comp.-Att.-Int.) - I 2-15-0, R 6-10-177. Fumbles-lost - I 4-2, R 0-0. Penalties-yards - I 4-2, R 0-0.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: I - Ricco 2-8; R - Kampstra 14-104, Grant 4-100. PASSING: I - R. Huffar 2-15-0-22; R - Syvertson 5-8-0-148. RECEIVING: I - Osborne 2-22; R - Huizenga 2-79.