Dominant second half leads Golden Bears to 49-21 win over Mt. Vernon

After a lackluster first two quarters, Shelbyville produced one of its most scintillating halves of football in recent years.

The Golden Bears scored on all five of its offensive possessions in the second half Friday to turn a 14-14 game into a rout that closed with a running clock and ended a 9-game losing streak to Mt. Vernon.

Senior Donavon Martin (photo) carried the ball 33 times for 214 yards and four touchdowns. Grantland Fitzgerald added 140 yards of offense (87 rushing, 53 receiving) and Camden Thoman had 121 yards receiving and two touchdowns.

"I emphasized at halftime that this is the team I want to see because this is the team I know we are," said Shelbyville head coach Scott Fitzgerald. "And that's what I told them after the game. That's the team I know we are. We have to carry that into the rest of the season. We have to have that same energy, that same drive, that same passion every game from start to finish if we want to have an opportunity to set a record here and win a sectional."

With the win, Shelbyville improved to 4-4 this season and 2-4 against Hoosier Heritage Conference opponents. The Golden Bears last win over the Marauders came in 2017. In its final meeting with Mt. Vernon as a member of the HHC, Shelbyville matched its career high for points scored in the 31-game series.

On Senior Night at McKeand Stadium, Shelbyville ended its first four possessions with two interceptions, a punt and a turnover on downs. Its only points early came on an Austin Martzall interception return for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead.

"That was a great read. He jumped right in front of it and took it to the house," said coach Fitzgerald (photo). "He did a fantastic job there. That was something we saw that they would be able to do. He came downhill and jumped in and gave us a big spark."

Mt. Vernon quarterback Mason Meyer, an Arizona State baseball commit, ran for a 4-yard touchdown following Layden Fitzgerald's second interception of the first half, and added a second 4-yard scoring run just before halftime after Shelbyville's offense started to find its rhythm.

The Golden Bears executed a 12-play, 62-yard drive that saw Fitzgerald bounce back and complete two passes for first downs while Martin did the rest of the work and scored his first touchdown of the night.

Mt. Vernon (0-8, 0-6 HHC) punted on its first two possessions of the second half and the Golden Bears started powering their way up and down the field.

Martin's second touchdown closed out an 80-yard drive that was highlighted by a 35-yard run from Grantland Fitzgerald (photo).

Thoman (photo) dropped a potential touchdown reception in the opening quarter but hauled in a 12-yard pass for his first touchdown against the Marauders that made it 28-14.

On the next possession, Thoman took a short pass on third-and-19 play and raced 77 yards for another score.

Martin added two more scoring runs in the fourth quarter to push his season total rushing yards near 1,000.

The 49 points is the most by a Shelbyville squad since it defeated Greenfield-Central, 52-31, on Sept. 16, 2016.

In other HHC games Friday, Class 5A, No. 1 New Palestine blanked New Castle, 70-0; Greenfield-Central topped Delta, 24-13; and Class 4A, No. 6 Pendleton Heights slipped by Class 4A, No. 11 Yorktown, 24-22. 

Shelbyville closes out the regular season next Friday at Pendleton Heights (7-1, 5-1 HHC). It will be the final HHC game for the Golden Bears who will join the Hoosier Legends Conference in 2026.

"Being 4-4 is great but let's battle next week and see where we are at," said coach Fitzgerald. "We have an opportunity once again to play a top 10 team in Class 4A. Let's see where we are at and go test ourselves. Let's trust this team that played in the second half. That's the team we can be against anybody. That's the mentality we have to drive into these guys. Hopefully, we can get them there."