POWERS — Top-ranked North Central had an answer for nearly everything Newberry tried to do here Saturday in a 54-0 eight-player football victory over the Newberry Indians.

The Jets’ defense limited the Indians to 73 yards in total offense in this non-conference contest.

“Our team is built to score points, but people are starting to realize how good our defense is,” said Jets’ coach Leo Gorzinski. “It’s hard to match up with our speed. In all fairness to Newberry, they have some injuries and they’re new to the eight-man game. They’re only going to get better.”

The Jets (7-0) took an 8-0 lead on freshman Luke Gorzinski’s 22-yard pass to senior Noah Gorzinski midway through the first quarter.

Noah Gorzinski then made it 16-0 on a 68-yard punt return with five minutes, 10 seconds left in the opening frame.

Luke Gorzinski raised the count to 24-0 on a five-yard run around right end just five seconds into the second stanza, then scored on a 47-yard dash around right end for a 32-0 cushion at 8:25.

Senior Cole Timblin added a score on a five-yard run through the left side for a 40-0 advantage at 7:17.

The Jets then made it 48-0 on Luke Gorzinski’s eight-yard pass to junior Luke Kleiman midway through the third and Noah’s seven-yard aerial to junior Gavin Casperson ended the scoring early in the fourth.

“We knew they were going to be tough,” Newberry coach Joe Austin said moments after offering words of encouragement to his team. “They were as good as advertised. We weren’t able to sustain any drives. We felt we would be able to throw the ball a little more, but we couldn’t protect our quarterback (sophomore Connor Rintamaki).”

North Central finished with 312 yards in total offense. The Jets rushed for 196. Luke Gorzinski carried six times for 90. He and Noah Gorzinski completed 10-of-16 passes for 116. Ian Gorzinski intercepted two passes and Leo Gorzinski, Jr. swiped one.

Rintamaki was 2-of-11 passing for 13 yards and three interceptions. Senior Lance Bowler led Newberry (4-3) in rushing with 19 yards on 10 carries. The Indians gained 60 on the ground.

Jets host Carney-Nadeau for homecoming Friday.