Football: Pirates, Chargers, Bulldogs move on in sectional

North 42, South 14North Decatur knocked off county-rival South Decatur 42-4in the opening round of the football sectional Friday. North advances to the sectional semifinal. The Cougars end the season at 5-5.It was a tale of two halves. The Cougars took the lead 7-0 in the first quarter on a Leonidas Wall 4-yard touchdown run.North got on the board in the second quarter as Simon Barber found paydirt on a 13-yard run. The game was knotted at 7-7 with 8:34 to play in the first half.As time ran out in the second quarter, South’s Braxton Evans connected with Aidan Bryant for the 24-yard touchdown pass to give the Cougars a 14-7 lead at the half.North took control in the second half. The Chargers scored on a Barber 7-yard run and an 8-yard run to grab a 21-14 lead going to the fourth quarter.The Chargers pulled away with 21 points in the fourth quarter. Barber scored his fourth TD on a 4-yard run. Henry Kinker added touchdown runs of 1 yard and 9 yards as North moved on 42-14.North rushed for 445 yards, led by Barber’s 286 yards and four touchdowns. Hayden Koehne added 72 yards rushing. Kinker finished with 53 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns. Hunter Knobbe had 29 yards rushing and Jake Whitaker added five yards rushing.South was led by Kagen Wren with 42 yards rushing. Krystian Rigby and Wall both had four yards rushing. Evans passed for 93 yards and one touchdown.Brayden Murray led the Chargers’ defense with six total tackles. Charlie Parmer added 4.5 tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss. Barber and Spencer Sommers both had 4.0 tackles.Wall led South’s defense with 8.5 tackles. Kyler Leary had 6.5 tackles. Will Ernstes finished with 4.0 tackles.The Chargers (8-2) host Union County (1-8) at 7 p.m. Friday in the sectional semifinal.Greensburg 49, Centerville 27The Pirates defended home turf Friday in the opening round of the football sectional by defeating Centerville 49-27. Greensburg advances to the semifinal. The Bulldogs end the season at 4-6.The Pirates rushed for 320 yards in the win. Josh Alexander carried the ball 24 times for 163 yards and three touchdowns. Luke Muckerheide rushed for 96 yards and two touchdowns. Jayden Jackson-Ray rushed for 57 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown run on Greensburg’s first play from scrimmage.Muckerheide passed for 87 yards and one touchdown. Ryker Martin caught two passes for 58 yards and a touchdown. Layton Henry added three receptions for 29 yards.Defensively, Jackson-Ray led the Pirates with 10 total tackles with 2.0 tackles for loss. Chase Westerfeld and Esdras Mejia both had 8.0 tackles. Bentley Sageser, Adam Powers and Jai Jackson (3.0 tackles for loss) all chipped in with 6.0 tackles. Chance Richards added 5.0 tackles.The Pirates (6-4) travel to Class 3A No. 5 Lawrenceburg (9-1) at 7 p.m. Friday in the sectional semifinal.Batesville 63, South Dearborn 14The Bulldogs easily advanced to the semifinal round with a 63-14 victory against South Dearborn. The Knights end the season at 3-7.Batesville scored 28 points in the first and second quarters to lead 56-14 at the half. A touchdown in the third quarter made the final 63-14.Batesville defense was led by Kaden Vogelsang with 8.0 total tackles, including 2.0 tackles for loss. Clayton Kaiser added 6.0 tackles. Logan Schneider, Max Meyer, Camden Kaiser and Jeff Gerstbauer all finished with 4.0 tackles.Schneider added an interception. Weston Smith, Zadiin Small and Abram Powner all had a fumble recovery.Batesville (8-2) hosts Franklin County (6-4) at 7 p.m. Friday in the sectional semifinal.Franklin County 65, Rushville 19Host Franklin County led 14-6 after one quarter and exploded for 37 points in the second quarter to knock off Rushville 65-19. Rushville ends the season 0-10.For the Lions, Owen Zachery passed for 177 yards and two touchdowns. Kai Pernell tallied 39 yards rushing with a touchdown and five yards receiving. Keegan Pavey rushed for 23 yards. Ryder Hatten caught four passes for 172 yards and a pair of touchdowns.The Wildcats travel to Batesville at 7 p.m. Friday.