LocalSportsJournal.com
SHELBY — White Cloud earned a 40-20 season-opening game victory over Shelby on Friday night.
It was a tough night for the Tigers, who were hoping for a fast start before their home fans.
But, things just didn’t pan out for the Tigers as the Indians flexed their muscles on offense and established control of the game early on.
The Tigers took a 12-0 lead, but the Indians fought back to take a 13-12 lead into halftime.
Jace Silverthorn racked up 315 yards and scored four touchdowns to lead the Indians. Landyn McGowen added 110 yards and a touchdown.
Mason Ruether threw for 37 yards including a touchdown pass to Nate Compeau.
Silverthorn and Lloyd Sebright-Johnson each had 11 tackles to lead the defense. Carlos Brown added 10 tackles with a quarterback sack and an interception. Other defensive contributors included Alex Cruzan with seven stops, Xander Traynor with six tackles and a forced fumble. McGowen added four tackles and a fumble recovery.
“In the second half, we were able to muster one score, and they had a goal line stand against us as well,” said Shelby coach Phil Fortier. “That was a big momentum shift there.They were able to dominate the running game. We’re a much-improved football team, there’s no question. But we could not match their physicality up front.”
Fortier was impressed with Boughan at quarterback.
“He did a great job throwing the ball, a great job running the ball,” Fortier said. “There were times when we were in control of that game. But we were unable to maintain and sustain.”
Boughan scored twice on the ground and had 41 yards rushing on 20 attempts. He was 12-of-24 passing for 156 yards and threw a touchdown pass to Bishop Lee, who also had a solid game for the Tigers with five receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Boughan led the way with 12 tackles. Treyjin Waller had four tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery.
White Cloud hosts Hart on Thursday. Shelby hosts Ludington. Both games are Thursday.
