Marengo High rolls, eyes ALJ

DIXONS MILLS – Marengo High School’s Panthers rolled to a 60-14 win over J.U. Blacksher Friday night, setting up an intra-county battle with A.L. Johnson next week, a game with major playoff implications.

“We need to go to A.L. Johnson and take care of business,” said Marengo head coach Dredrick Bell. “We’ve got to rise up for this game, but we feel we can play our game. I’ve got confidence in our team. I’ve always believed in this team, and now they’re starting to believe in themselves.”

With the win over Blacksher, Marengo improved to 5-3 on the season. JaMarkus Pritchett led the way with three touchdowns. “JaMarkus had a great game offensively and defensively,” said Bell.

Michael Lewis added two touchdown runs and a TD reception. “We made a change and started a freshman quarterback, Cordarius Pritchett, and he had a good game, too,” added the coach.

With only two regular season games remaining, Bell said he is pleased with his team’s progress. “We still haven’t peaked yet,” he said. “We are still a very young team with only five seniors. But those seniors are starting to take on a leadership role.”