Offensive woes cost Central in road defeat

SYCAMORE -- Burlington Central entered uncharted territory on Friday night, falling to 0-2 for the first time under coach Aaron Wichman.

Sycamore beat the Rockets 33-14 in non-conference action.

For the second straight week the Central offense sputtered early on, leaving a weary defense susceptible to big plays.

"We just didn't match their intensity at the start," said Wichman, in his fifth season at the helm. "I don't want to use our inexperience as an excuse, but it is a matter of fact that we are a young team.

"We went up against a playoff-caliber team tonight. They have a nice, balanced offense and were just bigger and stronger than us."

The Rockets managed just 85 yards of offense in the first half, while Sycamore (2-0) found the end zone twice. A 43-yard run set up the Spartans' first score and then a 38-yard run by Markie Hayes later in the first quarter made it 13-0 Sycamore.

The score remained that way until early in the third quarter.

The Rockets fumbled away the opening kickoff of the second half and the Spartans added another touchdown five plays later to go up 19-0.

Sycamore also scored on touchdown passes of 92 and 42 yards in the second half.

"We just gave up too many big plays on defense," said Wichman. "We have to find a way to be more consistent and make the other team work for their points."

Central finally got on the board on the first play of the fourth quarter on a 6-yard touchdown run by Kevin Kellish that capped a 52-yard drive.

Later in the fourth quarter, the Rockets drove 70 yards for their second score -- a 21-yard pass from Tim Maroder to Jeremy Lee. Maroder completed 5 of 10 passes for 121 yards.

The Rockets, however, managed just 116 yards on the ground and were plagued by nine penalties.

Maroder led all Rockets' rushers with 58 yards on 15 carries.

"I'm not too concerned about our start," said Wichman. "We are playing hard. We've played two tough teams. I think we're a better team tonight than we were a week ago (a 31-7 loss to visiting Kaneland).

"If we can keep working hard we'll become a better team."