BY DAN STICKRADT
CORRESPONDENT
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
FENTON — Not a drizzle, not a steady rain and certainly not Holly’s defense could stop Fenton’s high-powered offensive machine Friday night.
Perhaps not even a Canadian National freight train on the nearby railroad tracks could have stopped the Tigers, either.
The result was Fenton’s 54-35 Flint Metro League rivalry game victory over visiting Holly in a game that featured 89 total points — 62 in the first half alone where Fenton rolled up a commanding 41-21 lead at the break.
Fenton (4-2, 4-0) amassed 579 total yards offense — 386 yards with the ground assault and 193 in the air — to haunt Holly.
Senior quarterback Josh Czarnota finished 12-for-17 passing for 193 yards and also ran for 188 yards on 23 carries, while senior Dylan Crankshaw chalked up 129 rushing yards on 17 carries in the rout.
“This puts us in the driver’s seat a little bit,” beamed Fenton coach Jeff Setzke. “One of our goals is to win that sixth straight league title, which would be the record. This was big win and this puts us in a really good position going down the stretch.”
Fenton never trailed after Crankshaw scored on a 26-yard sprint with 3:18 left in the first quarter.
After Holly (4-2, 3-1) tied it at 7-7 when Cade Dallwitz connected with Jacob Honstetter for a 25-yard scoring toss, Fenton got untracked.
Chanse Setzke caught a 30-yard dart from Czarnota with 10:26 left in the second quarter that put the Tigers up for good at 13-7.
Crankshaw (4-yard run) and the Czarnota-to-Alex Marshall combo (15-yard touchdown pass) gave Fenton a 27-7 cushion with 5:30 still to play in the second period.
Holly kept it close with a pair of kickoff returns sandwiched around a 3-yard touchdown gallop by Crankshaw. The first was an 88-yard return from Kyle Staple and the second a 76-yard return by Griffin Backs, the latter that closed the gap down to 34-21 with 4:11 left in the first half.
Fenton added another scoring run by Czarnota 3:45 before the half for its 21-point lead at the break.
“I tell you what. Find me another All-State quarterback that can both run and throw the football like Josh. I wouldn’t trade him for anything,” said Setzke, who also credited Fenton’s offensive line for the 54-point outburst. “The whole line play great, but Reid Thompson was a man out there. He’s got to be one of the best (offensive) guards in the state.”
In the second half, Fenton scored on its first drive of the third quarter, this time a 14-yard run by Crankshaw. The talented back also scored on a 1-yard plunge in the fourth quarter for Fenton’s final points.
Holly picked up touchdowns by Paris Partee (2-yard run) and Honstetter (5-yard run) in the second half. The Bronchos were paced by Staple’s 63 yards on nine carries.
“I tell you what, our kids don’t quit,” noted Holly coach Ryan Culloty. “You could have given them two more quarters and they still would have gone out there and battled.
“I really liked our special teams play with the three long returns, but we could never fully catch up,” added Culloty. “We gave them some really good field position there in the second quarter, which led to a couple of quick touchdowns. You can’t allow that against a really good football team like Fenton.”