David Ortiz recorded his first win as LaPorte’s coach in memorable fashion.

The Slicers defeated Penn 21-14 in overtime Aug. 27, one week after losing 37-21 to New Prairie in the season opener.

LaPorte beat Penn in the regular season for the first time since a 34-6 victory in 1961, ending a six-game losing streak. The Slicers have lost seven of their past eight sectional games against the Kingsmen, including three straight. The one win in that stretch came in 2006, when LaPorte reached semistate.

Ortiz — a former star at Portage and longtime assistant, most recently on the Slicers’ defensive staff — appreciated the moment.

“It was an awesome way to get my first win,” he said. “I’ll take it any way I could get it, for sure. But to do it against Penn and their tradition and history, and coming off a subpar week — wins and losses come and go, but the way we lost wasn’t fitting quite right.

“We talked about taking care of ourselves, bouncing back and continuing to fight, and we got a ‘W’ out of it.”

Senior running back Collin Bergquist scored the go-ahead touchdown on fourth down in OT, and LaPorte’s defense held on fourth down. The Slicers had tied the score at 14-14 on senior running back Jayden Parkes’ 29-yard TD run with 4 minutes, 39 seconds left in the fourth quarter, capping a five-play, 80-yard drive.

Bergquist, a fourth-year starter, ran for 149 yards and two TDs on 29 carries.

“He was definitely our workhorse,” Ortiz said. “He’s a tough, hard-nosed kid. He has a motor on him. He keeps his feet going.”

LaPorte lost starting quarterback RJ Anglin to a season-ending torn ACL in the waning minutes of regulation. The junior suffered a similar injury during basketball season before recovering in less than four months.

“It’s very unfortunate,” Ortiz said. “What he can do when he’s healthy is scary.”

No. 1 wide receiver Antonio Christensen took over at quarterback.

“He’s athletic,” Ortiz said. “He can do multiple things. We have confidence he can step right in and have success.”

LaPorte will play Valparaiso on Friday to start the Duneland Athletic Conference season. The Vikings have won six straight games in the series, including in the sectional each of the past two seasons.

The Slicers last won in 2016, 39-38.

“They’re tough,” Ortiz said. “We played really well the second time last year in the sectional game, and we ran out of gas or they kicked it up a notch and they got us in the end. We believe and know we can play with them, which means we believe we can play with anybody.

“They understand their system and the grind, and it’s our job to match that. We have the talent, but we can’t take plays off and make mental mistakes. We have to be sharp and on point from the first snap to the last snap. We can beat anyone with the right execution and (by) playing hard.”

Laudable Lake Central: The Indians haven’t allowed a point while winning their first two games under coach Rick Good. Lake Central topped Morton 42-0 last week after debuting with a 28-0 win against Munster.

“A lot of our early success is due to our offensive and defensive lines,” Good said. “We’ve put in a new system on both sides of the ball, and the kids have really gotten comfortable with each other and the way the staff would like things to look. Having film on ourselves and opponents has really helped accelerate the kids’ knowledge the last few weeks.”

Good highlighted senior Aaron Mikolajczyk as epitomizing the mentality on defense.

“He’s a natural linebacker and (he) has played defensive line for us because of some depth issues and has done it at a high level with no complaints,” Good said. “The defensive players have been very unselfish and have played good team defense so far.”

Sophomore running backs Xavier

Williams and Amarion Brooks have flourished and complemented each other. Williams ran for 181 yards and three TDs against Morton when senior quarterback Luke Neidy was out after suffering an injury in the opener.

Lake Central, which has eclipsed its win total from last season, begins DAC play against Portage on Friday. Lake Central has gone 1-6 against Portage in the past seven games of the series, including two sectional matchups, something Good said he hoped to use as “added motivation.”

“It’s been a nice couple of weeks so far, and we’re looking forward to DAC play,” Good said. “Playing well to start DAC play is important for setting the tone for the rest of the season.

“There’s no breaks the rest of the way for us. Every week we match up against a well-coached and talented group. … Making sure we start out fast and gain some confidence on Friday will be important.”

Around the field: River Forest coach Demetri Blanco notched his first win as the Ingots defeated Boone Grove 42-0. … Griffith topped South Central 48-18 in a game that was scheduled following cancellations due to COVID-19 protocols. Griffith’s original opponent, Lake Station, and South Central’s original opponent, Culver, both had to call off games. … Highland is scheduled to play at Knox on Friday after West Side had to cancel its game against the Trojans due to COVID-19 protocols. … South Central also called off its game at Boone Grove because of COVID-19 protocols.