Another busy week of Plymouth High School Athletics featured strong individual performances, conference competition, comeback victories, and a championship showing from the Plymouth cross country teams. The Rockies and Pilgrims competed across football, volleyball, tennis, girls golf, cross country, and soccer as the fall season continued to move deeper into September. Football The Plymouth varsity football team traveled to Steele Stadium Friday night for its Northern Lakes Conference opener against Mishawaka, falling 20-13 in a physical, hard-fought contest. Plymouth grabbed an early 7-6 advantage before the Cavemen took a 12-7 lead into halftime. The Rockies responded in the third quarter to regain the lead, 13-12, but Mishawaka scored eight unanswered points in the fourth to secure the victory. The Rockies found success on the ground with 218 rushing yards. Quarterback Ryder Goodman led the attack with 111 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries, including a 36-yard run. McKoy Gantz added 64 yards and a touchdown on eight carries, while Owen Verhaeghe contributed 43 yards. Goodman also completed 6-of-10 passes for 59 yards. Grady Scott led the receiving corps with three catches for 34 yards, including a 14-yard reception. Defensively, Brody Lebo recorded three solo tackles and nine assists. Urijah Cain added two tackles and five assists, while Levi Wright finished with two tackles, three assists and a tackle for loss. Dominick Vasquez and Caz Hundt also recorded tackles for loss, and Mateo Galeano Oliva forced a fumble. The Plymouth C-Team put together a strong week, earning a pair of victories. The Rockies shut out South Bend Adams 42-0 before battling back for a 26-22 victory over Mishawaka. Against Adams, Plymouth scored 16 points in the second quarter and 20 more after halftime. Gavin Bowen returned an interception for a touchdown, Jensen Hunter added another interception, Lyrik Downs caught two touchdown passes, Alexander Robbins rushed for two scores, and Marcus Arroyo added a rushing touchdown. Against Mishawaka, Plymouth led 16-0 after the opening quarter before finding itself behind 22-16 entering the fourth. The Rockies responded with 10 unanswered points while the defense pitched a fourth-quarter shutout to secure the comeback. Downs and Hunter caught touchdown passes, while Clay Lawson added a rushing score. Volleyball Plymouth's varsity volleyball team faced a pair of tough opponents during the week, falling 3-1 to both Valparaiso and NorthWood. Against Valparaiso, the Lady Rockies battled back to capture the third set 25-20. Trinity Ringer led Plymouth with 10 kills, while Sophia Stein and Cordelia Cofer each added six. Kristin Manges and Olivia Gonzalez shared setting duties with nine assists apiece, and Gonzalez led the defense with nine digs. Plymouth started quickly against NorthWood, winning the opening set 25-21 before the Panthers responded to take the next three. Cofer turned in an outstanding performance with 14 kills and a team-high three aces. Manges added nine kills and 14 assists, Gonzalez distributed 18 assists, and Claire Rosas led the defense with 20 digs. The JV Lady Rockies continued their strong season by sweeping Valparaiso 25-15, 25-20 and then earning a three-set NLC victory over NorthWood, 25-23, 18-25, 18-16. Against Valparaiso, Harlow Davis led Plymouth with three kills, while Bri Butcher recorded four aces. Against NorthWood, Lexi Grindle filled the stat sheet with four aces, four kills and seven digs. Ella Davis led the defense with 11 digs. The C-Team also picked up a three-set victory over NorthWood, 20-25, 25-22, 15-3. Boys Tennis Plymouth's varsity boys tennis team faced three NLC opponents during the week, falling 4-1 to NorthWood, 4-1 to Bremen and 5-0 to Concord. Liam Hanyzewski earned Plymouth's victory against NorthWood with a three-set win at No. 1 singles, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. Adam Macias picked up the Rockies' point against Bremen with a 7-5, 6-1 victory at No. 3 singles. The JV Rockies finished their week on a high note with a 4-3 victory over Concord after matches against NorthWood and Bremen. Girls Golf The Plymouth girls golf team posted a team score of 208 in a three-way match with Rochester and Bremen. Taylynn Johnson paced the Lady Rockies with a 43, followed by Hanley Feldman with a 49 and Lydia Wray with a 52. Olivia Warner shot a 64, while Celeste Frias finished with a 63. Cross Country One of the week's biggest highlights came from the Plymouth cross country program at the Hokum Karem, where both the girls and boys teams finished first. The Plymouth girls scored seven points to finish ahead of Mishawaka Marian (16) and North Judson (22). The duo of Brooklyn Scruggs and Taylor Schadek captured first place, while Deimante Zabulyte and Amelia Gifford finished second. The Plymouth boys made it a sweep with eight points, finishing ahead of Mishawaka Marian (16) and South Bend Career Academy (21). Nolan Carroll and Rusty Antrim won the event, while Takoda Anderson and Jaxon O'Connor placed second. The strong showing gave Plymouth a clean sweep of the top two pairings in both races. Girls Soccer The Plymouth varsity girls soccer team opened the week with an exciting 3-3 draw against LaVille. LaVille struck first, but Alydiah Quint answered in the 16th minute off an assist from Eva Macey. Layla Warner then scored in the 21st minute, assisted by Macey, to give Plymouth a 2-1 halftime advantage. After LaVille tied the contest, Carley Diaz scored off a Kenzie Ganshorn assist in the 54th minute to put Plymouth back in front before the Lancers eventually tied the match at three. Goalkeeper Ella Muffley recorded 13 saves. Hudson Reed led Plymouth defensively with 31 steals, followed by Hayden Shipley with 21 and Talynn Avendano with 17. The Lady Rockies returned to NLC play Thursday against Goshen, falling 7-0. Despite facing consistent pressure, Muffley made 10 saves. Plymouth generated eight shots, including five on goal. Shipley led the defense with 32 steals, while Quint added 25. The JV girls battled Goshen to a 1-1 draw. After falling behind early, Nevaeh Arnold scored in the 24th minute off an assist from Amelia Kraemer to even the match. Goalkeepers Lily Drevecky and Lilly Jackson each recorded four saves. Ana Leanos and Averie Stevenson led Plymouth defensively with 21 steals apiece. Another Busy Week Ahead Plymouth Athletics now turns its attention to another full slate of competition, highlighted by Senior Night at the Rockpile as the Rockies host NorthWood in football Friday night at 7 p.m. The evening will also recognize Plymouth's senior football players, cheerleaders and band members. In conjunction with the week of September 11, Plymouth Athletics will also honor first responders during Friday night's game. Thank you to the Plymouth community for its continued support of our student-athletes and coaches throughout the fall season. #WeAreBigRed | Go Pilgrims! Go Rockies!