Munster makes most of chances

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MUNSTER -- Munster put a nice finishing touch on its best season in five years with a 40-7 victory over Kankakee Valley on Friday night.

In the process, the Mustangs finished third in the Northwest Crossroads Conference, and more important, convinced themselves and others that they can legitimately compete for a title in the brutal Class 5A Sectional 1.

"We hope we can compete," said Munster coach Leroy Marsh.

"It's obviously a tough sectional. I told the kids it's the start of the second season and we have to get better each week. First thing we have to do is worry about Lake Central next week."

Munster's Ben Balasia had an interesting first-half stat line: five carries, 26 yards, and three touchdowns. Balasia scored on touchdown runs of 1, 2, and 9 yards on the Mustangs' first three possessions. And all three scores were the direct result of Kankakee Valley miscues.

The Kougars had notched a couple of first downs after receiving the opening kickoff when Munster's Aaron Estrada picked off a tipped pass from Kankakee Valley's Zach Overby. Four plays and 49 yards later, Balasia barreled in for the score.

The Kougars made their way deep into Mustang territory on their second possession, only to see a field goal attempt blocked and recovered by Munster at the Kankakee Valley 36-yard line. Three plays later, the biggest of which was a 22-yard reception by Estrada, Balasia scored again.

The Kougars' third possession ended in a blocked punt recovered by the Mustangs at the Kankakee Valley 9, leading to Balasia's third touchdown. And just like that, the Kougars had dug themselves a 21-0 hole that they couldn't climb out of.

"We didn't play anything close to good football tonight," Kankakee Valley coach Mike Peo said.

"Our kicking game was absolutely putrid. We have to get a lot better or we'll be packing up our things next week."

The frustrating thing for Kankakee Valley had to be that the Kougars ran the ball with authority all night long. The Kougars amassed 256 yards on the ground to Munster's 149 and had 18 first downs to the Mustangs' 16. That's usually a recipe for success this time of year, but you can't give away field position all night long.

Adam Mandeville led Kankakee Valley (3-6, 2-4) with 125 yards rushing and accounted for its only score on a 42-yard run in the second quarter to cut Munster's lead to 21-7. But another turnover, this time a fumble, led to yet another Munster touchdown when Estrada hit Larry Allen with a 12-yard scoring pass during a fake field goal attempt just before halftime.

Mustangs quarterback Joe Gill scored on a 1-yard run and threw another to younger brother Justin to round out the scoring for Munster (6-3, 4-2). Gill was 12-for-17 for 185 yards on the night.

"Our running game is doing really well and my wideouts are doing a good job of getting open," said Gill. "We can't wait for sectionals."