With Homecoming on tap Friday night, East Clinton students will be out in full force to cheer on the Astros against Mississinawa Valley.
East Clinton will look to break a three-game losing streak Friday night when Mississanawa Valley visits Lees Creek for the first time Friday night.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
After starting 2-1, East Clinton has lost to McClain, Hillsboro and Bethel-Tate. The 26-16 loss to the Tigers turned on a 99-yard fumble return for touchdown by Bethel-Tate for the final score of the game.
“This one was tough,” said Olds. “I think games like that might break other groups but our boys are resilient and they’ll bounce back. They have had a great attitude all year and I don’t expect that to change now.”
Mississinawa Valley has lost 14 consecutive games since a 55-0 win over Dixie in Week 2 last season.
”Offensively they are running the spread and will try to get their athletes the ball in space,” Olds said in his scouting report. “On defense we have seen them in a 4-3 and we expect they will try and load the box to stop the run. This is only the second time that we have played them, so there is an element of the unknown that should make for an interesting game.”
The Blackhawks have one winning season since 1993. They were 7-3 in 2019. They have won 18 games in the last 12 seasons.
SERIES: East Clinton and Mississinawa Valley have met just one time, last year’s 26-22 win by the Astros in Week 7 in Union City.
HOMECOMING: It will be Homecoming for East Clinton. Festivities tonight include a parade that starts 6 p.m. tonight at the Sabina Farmers Exchange and ends on College Street. The bonfire will be held on the EC campus, across from the board office. The king and queen crowning ceremony will take place prior to kickoff Friday night.
RECORDS: East Clinton is 2-4 overall and 1-1 in the SBAAC National Division. Mississinawa Valley is 0-6.
PLAYOFFS: East Clinton is currently 24th in Div. V Region 20 and while the focus is clearly on this week, there is opportunity with an upset or two, for the Astros to make the post-season. The Blackhawks are winless to not much help in the rankings come from a win but confidence can be gained going in to the final three weeks of the season.
“We still feel like we have everything to play for and that will be our approach over the last month of the season,” Olds said. “Our only focus right now is to get a win on Friday against Mississinawa and then we will shift our focus to the next one.”
