Scouting LaPorte: Junior running back Reed Raymond has rushed for 465 yards and averages 7.5 yards per carry and senior DE/linebacker Lucas DelRio, a four-year varsity player, key playmakers for 1-2 Slicers

Tom Keegan
Onwardtrojans.com

LaPorte, tonight’s homecoming opponent for Chesterton, lacks the depth of talent most DAC teams have, but there are two numbers to focus on, one on the Slicers offense, the other on the defense.
Explosive junior running back Reed Raymond wears No. 1, and defensive end/linebacker Lucas Del Rio, No. 9.
Raymond had one of the state’s best opening weeks, rushing for 267 yards and three touchdowns, including one for 91 yards. Raymond averaged 14.3 yards per carry in the Slicers’ 32-14 win over New Prairie.
The Slicers (1-2) didn’t generate much offense in the next two games, losing 34-6 to Lowell and 28-0 to Valparaiso.
Both Lowell and the Vikings put an extra man in the box, loading up against Raymond, daring the Slicers to try to beat them through the air. The Slicers couldn’t make them pay for that, and single coverage was enough to keep receivers from getting open.
Even with all the extra attention paid to him, Raymond continues to be the offense’s most productive player. For the season, he has rushed for 465 yards and averaged 7.5 yards per carry.
The Trojans’ experienced defense of a year ago didn’t give Raymond room to run, limiting him to 15 yards on 11 carries.
The aggressive Del Rio, stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 215 pounds. A DAC rarity in that he is a four-year varsity player, he led the Slicers in sacks as early as his freshman season with two.
Chesterton head coach Mark Peterson has an 8-4 record against the Slicers, who have had six different head coaches during Peterson’s 13 seasons in charge of the Trojans. Austin Epple is 3-20 in his third year at LaPorte and has lost both his games against Chesterton by a 28-7 score.
Other Slicers head coaches Peterson has competed against, from most recent to least with their years as head coach at LaPorte in parentheses: Bob James (2022), David Ortiz (2021), Jeremy Lowery (2019-20), Dave Sharpe (2015-18) and Bob Schellinger (1993-2014).