Indians top Mounts

The stakes were clear for Donegal: Win or go home for the Indians, who were on the bubble as the No. 16 team in District Three Class AAA prior to Friday.

Donegal (4-2 LL, 7-3 overall) made sure its season would continue for at least another week in a rut of Ephrata (0-6, 0-10) in an LL Section Three football game. The 67-21 [box score] win guarantees the Indians a spot in next week's district playoffs.

"We were all upset with the loss last week." Donegal coach Jeff Polites said of his team's 34-21 loss to Northern Lebanon. "We wanted to get back on track heading into the playoffs."

Donegal scored 54 points in the first half Friday and scored on all but one possession in the first two quarters. Connor Maxwell and Bryce Sadler combined for seven touchdowns and 303 rushing yards for the Indians in the first half before the starters gave way to their replacements at the end of the second quarter.

Turning point: There was no real turning point in the game, but Donegal had plenty to play for. Besides their playoff future, the Indians were playing the final game at their current stadium - a new one is expected to be complete by next year - and wanted to send their seniors out with a win for their time in Mount Joy.

"If it goes as planned, this will be the final varsity game at this stadium," Polites explained. "And we wanted to close it out on a good note."

Star of the game: Maxwell rushed for 193 yards on just 10 carries and went over 1,000 yards for the season. He scored on runs of 4, 34, 15, and 75, caught two passes for 48 yards and recovered a fumble on defense.

"He's been that way for two years," Polites said of his senior.

Key statistic: On Donegal's first eight possessions of the game, the Indians churned out 444 yards on 27 plays that spanned 10:55 and resulted in eight touchdowns.

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