SALEM

Another decisive second quarter lifted Brownstown Central’s football team to victory, this time during a 48-13 win at Salem on Friday night.

Last week, the Braves (4-0, 4-0 Mid-Southern Conference) used a 28-point second period to take command against Eastern (Pekin). On Friday night, two well-thrown touchdown passes by quarterback Hayden Kinsler in the final 2:17 of the first half capped a 21-point quarter that proved to be the difference.

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Kinsler’s first throw, a 74-yard TD to Caleb Bollinger that traveled 40 yards in the air and took the top off of the Salem defense, gave Brownstown a 21-7 lead.

After BC’s defense forced Salem’s offense to go three-and-out, Kinsler ended a 41-yard, 43-second drive with a 16-yard TD pass that BC receiver Seth Borden wrestled from the hands of Salem cornerback Seth Call.

“In the second quarter, we started playing,” BC head coach Reed May said. “We made some adjustments and offensively got into a rhythm. Our passing helps to open things up. Opponents can’t stack the line.”

After a halting first quarter that was marred by an offensive turnover, Brownstown used the second-quarter scoring burst to carry a 28-7 lead into halftime.

“I’ve been trying to stress with this team that we have to practice better,” May said. “We had missed assignments in practice, and we saw the same missed assignments in tonight’s game. Your effort in practice carries over into the game.”

Brownstown carried its second-quarter momentum into the second half, scoring three more times on touchdowns by Matthew Bell (his second of the night), Braeden Walker and Derek Thompson.

Walker’s TD was the second half’s highlight. After catching a Kinsler pass along the left sideline, the junior threw off two Salem defenders while travelling 61 yards for the score.

For the game, besides running for a touchdown, Kinsler finished with 212 yards on 8-for-11 throwing. It was the junior’s second 200-plus passing game of the season and helped the Braves enjoy a balanced offensive attack, with the running attack generating 244 yards.

Defensively, Brownstown was led by Jalen Tiemeyer, who finished with a game-high 10 tackles, including one for loss. Lucas Hines followed with five tackles, two of which came on Salem kick returns.

Braden Neal also highlighted BC’s special teams when he intercepted Salem punter Colin McCartney’s pass on a fake punt in the first quarter.

“Defensively, Salem is a tough team to prepare for and defend because their offense is so varied, but I thought overall our kids played well,” May said.

Friday’s victory was Brownstown’s 16th consecutive against Salem. The Braves last lost to the Lions (1-3, 1-3 MSC) in 2005.

Brownstown now heads into its toughest two-week stretch of the season, with games against North Harrison and Seymour.

“North Harrison has beaten us two of the last three years, and Seymour is Seymour,” May said. “These two games are important to us getting better.”