Capital High's Jalani Phillips entered Friday night with 174 rushing yards through four games, but more than doubled that with a dazzling performance at Bronco Stadium as he led the Eagles to a 22-16 victory against reigning 5A state champion Meridian.

Phillips, who carried the ball just eight times, rushed for 187 yards and scored all three touchdowns for Capital (5-0, 2-0 5A SIC Division 2), which played with a banged up quarterback and without star receiver Geraldo Hiwat.

"Jalani's got a burst, and when he gets going, he's tough to catch," said fifth-year Capital coach Todd Simis, whose team improved to 5-0 for the first time on his watch. "It's fun to see him run away from people. He got to that second level (Friday night) and just made guys chase him to the end zone."

The senior running back put Capital ahead 7-0 about 5 minutes into the first quarter when he took a handoff from quarterback Jeremy Powers at the Capital 32 and beat Meridian's defense down the left sideline for a 68-yard TD run.

Meridian (1-4, 0-2 5A SIC Division 2) answered on the ensuing drive with a 6-yard TD reception by Ked Starr, then took a 9-7 first-quarter lead on a 41-yard field goal by Jared Bodine.

But Phillips burned the Warriors again to open the second quarter, this time with a 72-yard scamper.

Meridian didn't back down and took a 16-14 lead into halftime after running back Blaze Montgomery scored on a 1-yard TD run with 1:44 remaining in the second quarter.

It was the first time this season that Capital trailed at halftime.

"We just went into the locker room like it was 0-0, like we always do," said Capital safety Cory Bell, who intercepted Meridian quarterback Kevin Hallock at the end of each half. "We had confidence we could stop them and we knew our offense would eventually make the big play. We just wanted to get the ball back in their hands."

Capital's defense came alive in the second half with three interceptions to help keep Meridian off the scoreboard in the final 24 minutes.

Meridian's defense tightened in the second half, but Phillips broke through with a 33-yard TD run midway through the fourth quarter to put the Eagles ahead for good.

"Meridian is a good team, and they're going to find a way to stop you," Phillips said. "We just kept pushing and pushing until it opened up."

Fellow Capital running back Charlie McMartin finished with 64 yards on 17 carries.

Starr led Meridian's offense with six receptions for 95 yards, and Montgomery finished with 78 rushing yards on 17 carries.

"I knew getting past Meridian was going to be tough," said Simis, whose team lost to the Warriors in the 2007 state championship game. "They're the state champs and they have a lot of pride. Nothing comes easy against Meridian."

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