MUSKEGON – Beware of homesick football teams.

The defending state champion Mona Shores Sailors spent the first three weeks of their season on the road, with mixed results. They had a good opener against Lowell, lost pretty badly at Detroit King, and had to rally to defeat Grand Rapids Union last week.

When they finally got home on Friday night, the Sailors finally displayed the kind of game they are capable of playing, plowing over a good Zeeland West squad 47-12 in front of a packed house at Sailor Stadium on the popular “Sailor Salute” night.

“The kids loved the new scoreboard, our fans were amazing, obviously the Sailor Salute is a very big deal to us, and the way ouR kids played was just unbelievable, on both sides of the ball,” said Mona Shores Coach Matt Koziak. “We knew Zeeland West was good and was going to be physical. To play how we played tonight, against that team, if we can build off that we’re going to be a tough team to beat.”

Mona Shores quarterback Mark Konecny gets ready to unleash a throw. Photo/Jeremy Clark

It appeared that the Sailor who was happiest to be home was senior quarterback Mark Konecny, who had his best game of the season so far. He ran for three touchdowns, threw for two more, and looked completely comfortable as the replacement for All-State quarterback Brady Rose.

He completed 11 of 15 passes for 166 yards and ran for 54 yards.

“I knew what I had to do and I went out and played my game,” Konecny said. “Stepping on the field, I know I have a job to do and I know I can do that very, very well.”

Koziak was particularly impressed with the way Konecny threw the ball.

“He really stepped up,” the coach said. “Last week it was more run it at them, but this week we knew we were going to throw the ball. Those short bubble passes are not easy. He’s moving full speed and the target is moving full speed. He also ran the ball well when he had to.

Mona Shores’ Demetri Roberson catches a pass in front of two Zeeland West defenders. Photo/Jeremy Clark

“The first couple of games he had huge shoes to fill, but he’s done an incredible job. He’s the best version of him he can be. He deserves everything he gets for how hard he works, and I’m glad he was able to do what he did on the big stage tonight.”

Konecny wasn’t the only Sailor clicking on Friday. A lot of other offensive weapons showed off their talent, as the entire unit came together and put on a show for the big home crowd.

Elijah Johnson ran for 108 yards on seven carries, with a touchdown run of 49 yards. Jaylen Vinton caught five catches for 59 yards, with a TD reception covering 23 yards.

Dahmir Farnum made his contribution to the big play festival with a 32-yard touchdown run. C.J Ivy added a 35-yard touchdown reception featuring some fancy footwork to get past several would-be tacklers.

The offensive line was the key to it all, according to Konecny, allowing the Sailors to pull off big play after big play, until they built a 37-point lead to earn a running clock in the fourth quarter.

“It was a complete game for us and the offensive line,” Konecny said. “They were blocking great for the pass game and the run game and set it up for us all night.

Mona Shores’ Landon Thallman looks for running room along the sideline. Photo/Jeremy Clark

“We are a hard-nosed football team. It doesn’t matter who we go nose-to-nose with, we’re going to play our game and do what Shores has always done.”

Zeeland West’s obvious strategy was to keep the Mona Shores offense off the field by playing a ball control game.

The Dux were successful at first, taking the opening kickoff and driving methodically down the field with their Wing-T running attack. They took nearly nine minutes off the clock before finally punting in Sailor territory.

Then the Sailors went to work, going 74 yards on eight plays to open the scoring. Konecny completed the drive with a four-yard touchdown burst with 40 seconds left in the first quarter.

Zeeland West answered just a few plays later when Skyler Geurink broke loose for a 76-yard touchdown run with 24 seconds left, tying the game 6-6.

But Mona Shores struck back fast and took the lead for good. The Sailors had the ball at the Zeeland West 35 when Konecny hit Ivy with a pass around the 15-yard line, and Ivy spun around several defenders and found the end zone with no time remaining on the clock.

The extra point was good, and Mona Shores led 13-6 after one.

The Sailors scored again after a Dux punt. Konecny had a 16-yard run to get the ball to the West 39, and Johnson broke loose for a 26-yard gain before Konecny scored on an eight-yard run. The PAT put the Sailors up 20-6.

Zeeland West scored its final touchdown with 3:27 left in the second quarter, then Konecny found the end zone again with a two-yard run with 1:19 remaining, and Mona Shores went to halftime with a 27-12 lead.

Zeeland West started the second half with an onside kick that fooled nobody, and the Sailors started their drive at their own 48. Just three plays later Johnson turned in a 49-yard touchdown run, and the rout was on.

Farnum added a 32-yard touchdown run with 9:03 left in the third quarter, making the score 40-12. The Sailors wrapped up their assault with a 23-yard TD pass from Konecny to Jaylen Vinton with 4:06 left in the third quarter.

DJ Caviness led the Mona Shores defense with 10 tackles.