MANSFIELD- Being scheduled on Mansfield’s Homecoming was all the motivation needed for Flower Mound Marcus (2-1) as they defeated the Mansfield Tigers 31-14 in front of their home crowd Friday night inside the friendly confines of Vernon Newsome Stadium.
Flower Mound Marcus running back Justin Dinka churned out another remarkable performance as he rushed for 222 yards and three touchdowns and helped spoil the festivities for the Mansfield crowd.
“They thought it was going to be easy but Marcus is tough. We are a tough team,” Dinka said.
He added being the slated opponent for homecoming was more than enough fuel to want to put a damper on the night for Mansfield.
It didn’t take too long for both Mansfield and Flower Mound Marcus to get on board as both were able to score following punts on their respective opening drives. Despite them being forced to punt, the big play unfolded quickly for Mansfield and gave them an early edge to begin the game.
Quarterback Shawn Hartsfield found wide receiver Jackson Gleeson open and let him do the rest as Gleeson darted up field for the 78-yard touchdown to put Mansfield up first with the clock reading 3:44 in the first quarter. Marcus would then begin a run of 17 unanswered points in the first half that would leave them in the lead for the remainder of the game.
Dinka’s first touchdown run would showcase his ability to maneuver through traffic and break away from congestion as he bounced off several defenders and some of his own linemen in the backfield to break away downfield for the 61-yard touchdown.
With the score tied at 7 at the 2:53 mark in the first quarter, Mansfield looked to let quarterback Shawn Hartsfield unleash an air raid as he attempted to pilot the Mansfield offense near the end zone. The Marcus defense would respond prior to the end of the first quarter however with Marcus defensive back Daniel Sheehan nabbing an interception as Hartsfield attempted to hit a receiver a few yards out from the end zone.
Mansfield would be able to stop the Marcus offense from capitalizing on the interception but would score on the ensuing drive. The next drive for Marcus would allow them to go up 10-7 following a 35-yard field goal from kicker John Mayers.
Marcus would barely give the Mansfield defense a break and put them back on the field following a bobbled kick return from Mansfield that Marcus recovered and allowed Justin Dinka to score from 31-yards out two plays later.
Refusing to let Marcus steal one away from them, Mansfield worked to lower the deficit at halftime and running back Avery Chatman showcased his running back skill set with a 61-yard scamper to the end zone that had Mansfield down 17-14 prior to the halfway point.
With a halftime score of 17-14, that would be the closest Mansfield would get the rest of the night as the run game of Marcus proved to be the difference maker in the game.
Quarterback Rasheed Noel would throw a touchdown pass to Blake Covin from 22-yards out and Justin Dinka would run the ball in one more time to put Marcus at 31-point mark.
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