INDIANAPOLIS — The game plan was on the mark and the excitement was unquestioned, but the No. 3 Fountain Central Mustangs had few answers for the top-rated Lafayette Central Catholic Knights in Friday’s Indiana Class A state championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Mustangs knew they had a rather large task in front of them if they were going to beat the Knights, and though both teams entered the contest undefeated, Fountain Central was outmanned, outsized, outplayed, and ultimately outscored in their 52-0 loss.

Fountain Central’s primary goal was to get as much pressure as possible on Central Catholic quarterback Chris Mills. But as the cliché goes, the Knights won the battle at the line and kept the Mustangs’ defense from getting anywhere near their 3,000-yard passer.

Mills connected on 12 of 18 passes for 230 yards, including completions of 32, 33, 43 and 59 yards. Three were for touchdowns.

“We couldn’t get the pressure on him,” Fountain Central coach Rick Malone said. “The line is so extremely talented and experienced, and they did a great job of giving the quarterback time. Their receivers made some great catches. That one pass (for 43 yards to Connor Mackey) where they got down inside the five, we had great coverage. That ball couldn’t have been thrown any better.

“We gave them short fields a couple of times with turnovers. We knew we couldn’t turn the ball over. They’re a great ball club, and they earned it.”

The Mustangs’ defense looked good initially, and got a boost on the Knights’ first possession when senior defensive back Ryan Carver picked off a Mills pass and returned it 18 yards to the Fountain Central 39 yard line.

But as quick as the Knights (15-0) were on offense, they were even quicker to the ball on the defensive side, forcing the Mustangs (14-1) to punt after only three plays.

Fountain Central’s best starting field position of the day was on its own 39 yard line, and it failed to move the ball past the Central Catholic 42.

Running back Trent Spear had the Mustangs’ longest play from scrimmage when he connected with Tyler Lawson for a 31-yard pass on the team’s second possession in the third quarter.

Central Catholic’s defense spent much of its time in the Mustangs’ backfield, putting plenty of pressure on quarterback Scott Moore (sacked three times) and preventing any type of running game from being established.

“They just have great athletes,” Moore said. “We came out (playing) well and forced them to punt a couple of times. But then we threw an interception and that kind of killed us. We were still in the game, but they just hit a couple of big plays and that kind of put us out of it.

“Offensively, we just weren’t able to get the ball moving. We kind of got out of our comfort zone in the second quarter and were playing catch-up the whole game. We hadn’t been in that situation all year and we just weren’t able to capitalize.”

Fountain Central had trailed in only two games the entire season prior to Friday’s state championship game, and had success throughout its undefeated regular season relying on speedy receivers and the ability to get around the end, busting big plays down the sidelines. But whether it was a screen, sweep or reverse, the Mustangs had very little luck.

“Their speed was so great that we couldn’t get to the edge,” Malone said. “They took away the sweep and the counters and the stuff that we’ve had a lot of success with this season, and it was because our offensive line wasn’t able to get any surge. It wasn’t lack of effort or doing anything different, they were just so much physically stronger and faster that they were able to make those plays.”

After forcing the Knights to punt on their second possession of the game which lasted only 58 seconds and netted minus one yard, the Mustangs managed only one play resulting in an interception, setting up a two-play drive that gave Central Catholic a 7-0 lead.

And though Fountain Central was well within striking distance, its 7-point deficit quickly grew to 28 by halftime, putting them in unfamiliar territory.

“It was a tough-fought game up front,” senior linebacker Sam Shoaf said. “We shut them down twice, but then they got a few breaks. After they got a few breaks, they started scoring quickly and we just got down. It was hard to fight back out of the hole.”

The 52-0 loss was the most points allowed by a Mustangs team since giving up 56 to Benton Central on Oct. 3 last season, and the first time the team had been shut out since losing 29-0 to Rockville in last year’s first-round sectional game.

Zach Robertson finished the title game with 84 all-purpose yards, Lawson caught four passes for 60 yards, and Spear was Fountain Central’s leading rusher with 15. As a team, the Mustangs had 118 total yards of offense including Moore’s 80 yards passing.

“(The Knights) had short fields in the first half,” Malone said. “I think half of their scores were from possessions (that started) inside the 50. We knew we couldn’t do that. We knew we were going to have to make them eat up clock and eat up time. We couldn’t give up the big play, and we did.

“But our kids played their hearts out and I couldn’t have asked any more from them. They gave everything they had, and I’m extremely proud of them.”