Knights roll over Kettering for homecoming win

Walled Lake Northern climbed back up to the .500 mark with a 40-16 victory over Waterford Kettering on homecoming on Friday, Sept. 30.

The Knights led 26-8 at halftime and didn’t look back as Northern moved to 3-3 overall and 2-2 in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association (KLAA) North Division with the win.

“It was a good game for us. Our kids played well and stayed focused even for it being homecoming,” said Northern Head Coach Brett Moore. “We still have too many penalties at crucial times in games.”

Northern quarterback Kirk Thomas finished completing 10-of-16 passes for 158 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in addition to rushing for 69 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.

Jake Ginster led the Knights in rushing with 128 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries while Matt Kosmalski had 62 yards and a touchdown on four carries.

Kosmalski also caught 4 passes for 55 yards and a touchdown.

Northern generated 466 yards of total offense while its defense held Kettering to only 107 yards of offense.

Meanwhile, Kettering remains winless on the season at 0-6 overall and 0-4 in the KLAA North, and has now lost eight straight games.

“Walled Lake Northern’s overall team speed was the ultimate demise of (our team). They are the fastest team I have seen in quite a few years. They fly around the field,” said Kettering Head Coach Mike Fras.

Justin Santana scored on a 1-yard touchdown run for Kettering, while Alec Spurlock also had a 5-yard touchdown run and a two-point conversion.

Dylan Denomme led Kettering with 10 tackles while Spurlock had 7.

Matt Okaiye, Santana and Brent Mortimore had 6 tackles each, while Okaiye also recovered a fumble. Dan Scott and David Rojas also each had 5 tackles.

Northern will host its neighbor, Huron Valley Lakeland, in the “Battle of Bogie Lake” tomorrow, Thursday, Oct. 6.

The Knights have lost five straight meetings with the Eagles, including last season’s 35-13 defeat.

Meanwhile, Kettering will host its rival, Waterford Mott, on Saturday, Oct. 8. The Captains’ last victory was a 21-14 win on Oct. 9 of last year, which was also their third straight triumph over the Corsairs.

Both teams are winless and only one will end their losing streak on Saturday.