Blanchard River Buzz

The dirt on Millstream

By Larry Alter
I, like another 4,000 or so hearty souls, watched race after race Sunday night and into early Monday morning as Millstream Speedway concluded its short, but certainly gratifying and highly successful 2008 racing season.
Yeah, it was a long night … 22 races in 4 divisions … but it was another night of action-packed, side-by-side racing by a gang of hard-charging drivers, young and old.
Then when 70-year-old Art Ball drove to victory in the stock/truck feature, at around 12:30 a.m., I felt there was no better ending for a facility which sat empty for 8 years. It’s why these guys strap themselves inside these things they call racing machines and provide us amateurs with all kinds of thrills and spills.
Yeah, I was there on assignment. Would I have been there otherwise? Probably. That’s how much I’ve come to like dirt track racing … its promoters, its officials, its drivers, its fans. I go back a few years to the pre-Baltes era and I can’t wait until 2009 when I believe Millstream will really come alive once again, not with weekly shows, but with special events such as was the case with Sunday night’s four-division program.
I’ve heard a lot of cat calls and read some negative things about Millstream owners Greg and Mary Beth Roe. But these people are genuine, they like the sport, they like people and most importantly they like what they have in the local ½-mile oval … a mecca for  this area’s best dirt track racing. It’s a gold mine and they know it. So do some other promoters who want a piece of the action, especially Fremont Speedway personnel who reached out when others wouldn’t and helped produce the last two Millstream programs.
There were nearly 7,000 people at that first race in eight years back at the end of July, a crowd of around 3,500 for a non-sanctioned sprint show two weeks ago and then another 4,000 at the facility Sunday night to witness two divisions of sprints, the ALMS championship and the combined stocks and trucks division where the ageless Art Ball performed so magnificently. Doesn’t that speaks volumes as to what people want to see and how much they like attending Millstream events.
It will be interesting over the winter months to see what kind of events will be scheduled for the 2009 Millstream season. I know there are meetings planned in the near future to begin formulating those plans. I’m almost certain the schedule will include a lot of what we saw Sunday night along possibly the World of Outlaws and another Ohio sprint series or perhaps a stock car/truck national of some kind.
The Roes will also continue to make improves to facilities at Millstream … a pit-side ticket booth or building, additional pit-side seating, especially after fans were lined 2-3 deep along the pit-side fence Sunday; running water; remodeled concession area;  additional vending area; lighting and sound modifications; more restroom facilities; and more seating for spectators by extending the north hillside further into turn four. In fact, that’s a given according to Roe. It’s so high on his list, it might be the biggest late-fall, early-winter project.
Oh, by the way people ate hardy Sunday night, too. There were 110 Domino pizzas ordered throughout the night and 1,000 hot dogs sold by one vendor.

We've got updates

Updates.  We’ve got ‘em.
Football stats for the Greater Buckeye Conference, North Central Conference and Blanchard Valley Conference and have been updated through Week 6 on the Buzz stats and standings page. We’ve also added a file with Patrick Henry’s stats through Week 6.
Also, league standings for area prep volleyball and soccer leagues have been updated heading into today’s action.
Below are also the brackets for the sectional tennis tournaments at Ohio Northern, Lima, Shelby and Port Clinton that will be contested beginning Thursday.
Check back here at The Buzz Sunday for complete brackets from the Northwest District for volleyball and soccer.
NW DISTRICT SECTIONAL TENNIS BRACKETS
Division I
At Ohio Northern
Download ONUsingles.xls
Download ONUDoubles.xls
Division II
At Lima
Download limasingles.pdf
Download limadoubles.pdf
At Shelby
Download shelbysingles.pdf
Download shelbydoubles.pdf
At Port Clinton
Download PCsingles.pdf
Download PCdoubles.pdf

GIRLS GOLF: Findlay advances
TOLEDO — Findlay High School’s Stephanie St.-Jean fired a 77 as the Trojans advanced to next week’s district tournament with a third place finish at the Division I sectional girls golf tournament at Detwiler Golf Course Tuesday.
The top five teams and five individuals not on a qualifying team qualified for next week’s district tournament at Heatherdowns Country Club.
Ashland won the tournament with a 341-347 margin over Toledo St. Ursula. Findlay was next at 382.
St.-Jean finished third individually with a 77. Lauren Mains shot a 93 and Brittany Brown, Anna Kurjan and Hannah Gray each added a 106 to complete the scoring for the Trojans.
Ashland’s Rachel Thompson and Bowling Green’s Caroline Powers both finished with a 76.
Complete Results
Download detwiler_district_girls_golf.xls

VB fails to advance
ARLINGTON — Van Buren’s Holly Kendrick fired an 89 and Breann Zerby had a 93, but the Black Knights fell short of advancing in the Division II girls district golf tournament held at Arlington’s Sycamore Springs Golf Course Tuesday.,
Kayla Roberts added a 104 and Stephanie Sawyer a 109 to Van Buren’s 391 total. Edison (369), Huron (371) and Lima Shawnee (379) were the top three teams earning spots to next week’s regional. Van Buren tied for seventh in the 15-team field.

DIVISION II GIRLS DISTRICT GOLF
AT SYCAMORE SPRINGS GOLF COURSE
TEAM STANDINGS — 1, MILAN EDISON (Bailey Bixler 82, Allison Soviak 89, Megan Reber 102, Tori Riddle 96) 364. 2, HURON (Megan Buckingham 99, Lauren Vole 92, Ashley Franks 85, Shannon Allen 95) 371. 3, LIMA SHAWNEE (Kate Hoops 80, Sheridan Balyeat 90, Amanda Sanko 102, Abigail Rauch 107) 379. 4, DELPHOS ST. JOHN’S 380. 5, EASTWOOD 381. 6, ST. HENRY 390. 7, (tie) LIMA CENTRAL CATHOLIC & VAN BUREN (Breann Zerby 93, Holly Kendrick 89, Kayla Roberts 104, Stephanie Sawyer 109) 391. 9, SANDUSKY PERKINS 396. 10, NORWALK ST. PAUL 408. 11, WAYNE TRACE 409. 12, (tie) MAUMEE, ROSSFORD & SHELBY 429, 15, CARDINAL STRITCH 444.
INDIVIDUAL QUALIFIERS
Yang Li, Maumee Valley Country Day, 75; Alyssa Shimmel, Eastwood 75; Ellen Huffman, Lima Central Catholic 77.

BGSU vs. UF basketball, why not?

By Brian Lester
So I’m checking out the exhibition schedules of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference basketball teams and I discover that Ashland will be making a trip to Bowling Green for a Nov. 8 game.
What surprises me is that Ashland is the team making a two-hour trip to play the Falcons when BG could schedule the University of Findlay for an exhibition game. The matchup would make more sense. The Oilers are just 20 minutes down the road from the BG campus and the Falcons would have a more of a challenge on their hands rather than playing the Eagles, who often struggle just to be mediocre.
The last time UF and BG played was 2003 during the regular season. I covered the game and remember how the Falcons struggled in a 64-50 win over the Oilers. The Falcons turned the ball over 27 times and then head coach Dan Dakich was visibly frustrated with the way his team performed.
The two teams haven’t played since. Perhaps in the future they will meet again because for one, the games would be good, and hey, with gas prices the way they are, the travel would be short for the Oilers and their fans.
I must mention that I find it funny that both Ohio State and Michigan State aren’t playing UF and Grand Valley, respectively, this year after both teams lost a year ago in exhibition play. The Oilers will play Xavier this season and GVSU is going all the way to Salt Lake City to play Utah.
On a side note, I always laugh when I read what the fans on sites like JJ Huddle say about D-I teams playing D-II squads. They argue things like Ohio State wasn’t trying last season when it lost to the Oilers or that the D-II teams treat these exhibition games as if they are the Super Bowl of their season.
Sorry, but the shock and awe factor of D-II teams squaring off against D-I teams is gone. AAU Ball and summer camps have changed the landscape of college hoops and there is really no longer a huge gap between D-I and D-II talent. Oilers like Josh Bostic, Morgan Lewis and Marcus Parker are certainly talented enough to be D-I players regardless of what anyone thinks.
The bottom line is D-II teams come to play and win in exhibition games, and regardless of what delusional OSU fans want to believe about last year’s loss to the Oilers, the Buckeyes were trying to win that game.
I also laugh when fans make the arguement that a D-II team like Findlay wouldn’t be able to contend in the Mid-American Conference night in and night out. Well, you know what. The Oilers aren’t in the MAC, but if they were, they would recruit MAC type talent and head coach Ron Niekamp would put his team in a position to be successful in the MAC.
But the argument is dumb. The Oilers play in the GLIAC and their ultimate goal is winning a D-II national title.
Enough said.

Let the backups get their shot

By Dave Hanneman
I was talking to Findlay High football coach Mark Ritzler after Friday’s 45-0 win over Marion Harding. It was an impressive win by the Trojans, but there was one aspect of the victory I could see bothered Ritzler.
What worried him was the last touchdown Findlay scored and the perception that the Trojans might have been running up the score.
Ritzler apologized to Marion Harding coach Heath Hinton after the game. It was a class move by Ritzler, but I’ve known him a lot of years and it’s something you’d expect from the man.
“I told their coach I was embarrassed,” Ritzler told me. “I definitely would never try to rub it in to a league foe.
“Obviously, I didn’t expect him to score on that play. We were going to take a knee on the next play, but it was a great effort on his part.
“You know, you have seniors who might not play a lot, but you want to get them a chance. They’ve earned a chance to be on the field and you can’t just ask them to go out there and take a knee.”
Findlay had the game well in hand with just over a minute left when Kevin Armstrong, a senior running back, got in the game. It was third-and-2 from the Marion 27 and Armstrong went right, powered his way through a couple of tackles and raced to the end zone.
It was not only Armstrong’s first and only carry of the game, it was his first and only carry of the season.
It was a good run. And there was no inkling of running up the score. Findlay’s starters, and most of the second-stringers, had been on the bench most of the fourth quarter.
I was sitting right behind the center part of the Marion Harding crowd and I didn’t hear any rumbling about running it up. I think people sometimes are too quick to judge a one-sided score as one team’s attempt to embarrass another. Did you see the New Carlisle Tecumseh/Riverside Stebbins score from Friday night. Tecumseh scored 41 points in the first quarter, led 61-0 at the half, and won 82-8.
Tecumseh is 6-0 and obviously one heckuva team. I read a little something about the game though, and I never got an indication it was a an attempt by one team to show up the other. Nine different players scored for Tecumseh. Only one played scored more than once.
Face it, there are going to a lot of lopsided games in the course of a season.
And I know the politically correct thing to do in a blow-out is send in the second and third-stringers and tell them to take a knee to run out the clock.
I kind of like the idea of letting those guys run a few series, though. They went through two-a-days just like the starters. I say let them enjoy the lime light of the Friday night lights. They’ve earned it.

What's up with Vanlue?

By Jamie Baker
What’s up at the small school that’s big on learning?
Seriously, though, that’s best slogan for a small school district like Vanlue that I could imagine.
At any rate, they have a big contentious meeting on the state of the football program and they decide to keep the lights on at Hinkle Field on Friday nights for the foreseeable future.
Then, volleyball coach Bev Koch resigns after the Wildcats’ loss to St. Wendelin last Saturday.
Evidently there were enough kids defecting from the program that Vanlue has to put its junior varsity volleyball program on ice a few weeks ago. Not a good sign.
Much of the upheaval surrounding the program has been aired in a public forum…specifically JJ Huddle. Here’s a link to the thread on the topic of Vanlue’s volleyball program. It is an interesting read to say the least.
They’ve had a lot of coaching turnover in various sports and the athletic director’s position has been like a revolving door recently. Let’s just say things aren’t going well. But it’s kind of understandable, small school, not much of a winning tradition or attitude and district residents who have pride in their school and community and want to hang on to the traditions of years gone by.
I got to know former AD and coach Ted Dennis when I first started my sports writing career. He was a great guy and when I was at the R-T in Fostoria we considered him Mr. Vanlue.
I just wonder what Ted would have thought about what’s going on at Vanlue right now. Or even what long time coach and administrator Herman Ercil Hinkle, who was at Vanlue in the 1940s and 50s, would have thought and done to help smooth things out.
Hope the Wildcats can either get it together and get everyone on the same page or move forward with consolidation.
Your thoughts are always welcome.

Oilers vs. Timberwolves

By BRIAN LESTER

I am not at the game in person today but wanted to give everyone a quick update on the University of Findlay's game against Northwood.

The Oilers have awakened from their offensive slumber and have 21 points at halftime as they lead the Timberwolves 21-14. It's their first lead at halftime since week 2 when they played Tiffin.

Melvin Jackson and Jordan Richeson broke loose for big touchdown runs of 38 and 25 yards, respectively, and Anthony Lanzara capped UF's final scoring drive of the half by hitting Jonathan Bell for a 28-yard scoring strike.

UF has 147 yards of offense in the first half and Northwood has 134. The Timberwolves had been struggling to get their option offense going against UF's defense until the final minute of the half when they took advantage of great field position --- set up by a personal foul call that forced the Oilers to kick off from the 10-yard line --- and scored on an 8-yard run by Dimitri Banks.

It seems that offensive line is playing better and the defense has done its job for the most job, forcing six fumbles and recovering two. It will be interesting to see how the second half plays out, but one thing is for certain, the Oilers need this win badly as the brutal part of their schedule begins next week with a trip to Hillsdale.

Feel free to share your thoughts and I'll post more later.

Well, it's official. The Oilers endure another nightmare against Northwood. This time, it's a 31-24 setback to the Timberwolves, who have now won six consecutive games against UF, three of the last four meetings by 7 points or less.

It seems that this UF team takes one step forward and then another step back. The Oilers tied the game at 24-24 with 1:48 left in the fourth on a 31-yard field goal by Cameron Stevens. But UF shot itself in the foot when its kickoff coverage failed and allowed Northwood to start its drive at the UF 23-yard line. Five plays later, Torris Childs ran 2 yards for a TD as the Timberwolves sealed UF's fate.

There was signs of promise despite the loss. The Oilers continue to force turnovers, recovering three fumbles on the day but they turned the ball over twice and had 6 penalties for 50 yards. The offense was productive at times but managed only 3 points in the second half.

The schedule does not get any easier for the Oilers. Every team remaining is going to be tough, starting with next Saturday's tilt against Hillsdale at Muddy Waters Stadium. The Oilers just have to keep their heads up and keep moving forward. Jon Wauford will get this team where it needs to be but it's just going to take time.

The important thing right now is to continue to look for consistency and erase the mistakes that have hurt this UF teams in games it has a chance to win.

Feel free to share your thoughts and check The Courier later for a story on today's game.

The jobs AD's do that you don't see

By Jamie Baker
So I went out to Red Hawk Run last weekend to pick up the Northern Ohio League golf tournament results.
It was quite the long day for Fostoria coach Chuck Mason and probably an even longer day for Fostoria athletic director Tim Murray.
Fostoria was responsible for not one but a pair of golf tournaments that day as the annual Fostoria Booster Invitational was held Saturday at Loudon Meadows in Fostoria while the NOL tournament was going on at the same time at Red Hawk.
I’m sure it was a long Friday night for Murray with Fostoria’s football team playing a home game with Galion. And Saturday couldn’t have been much easier. Next week the Redmen host the Fostoria Booster Cross Country Invitational,..another long day for an AD.
He was at the course writing down the scores but he was also picking up empty pizza boxes and wiping down tables in the clubhouse at Red Hawk.
An athletic director’s work is never done, I guess.
The lesson is that an athletic director’s job doesn’t end t making sure the school’s schedules are filled and there are referees for every game. There are so many more things that area athletic directors do that most people just don’t realize.
A tip of the cap to Fostoria’s Tim Murray and all of the other terrific area athletic directors out there. The Courier sports staff certainly appreciates all you do for us, the kids and your schools.

FOOTBALL UPDATES: WEEK VI

Week 6 of the high school football season is about to kick off and we’ll have the latest scores and stories from games around the region tonight right here at The Blanchard River Buzz beginning around 9:30 or 10 p.m.
HIT REFRESH FOR THE LATEST UPDATES!

Prep Football
Friday’s Results
Blanchard Valley Conference
Arlington 44, Arcadia 0
Cory-Rawson 35, Hardin Northern 32
Liberty-Benton 55, Leipsic 0
McComb 47, Vanlue 7
Pandora-Gilboa 12, Van Buren 0
Greater Buckeye Conference
Findlay 45, Marion Harding 0
Fremont Ross 42, Lima Senior 17
Napoleon 30, Sandusky Senior 11
Midland Athletic League
Carey 49, North Baltimore 0
Hopewell-Loudon 28, Seneca East 7
Mohawk 43, St. Wendelin 14
North Central Conference
Bucyrus 41, Ontario 29
Colonel Crawford 13, Lucas 6
Riverdale 14, Crestline 12
Wynford 47, Buckeye Central 0
Northern Ohio League
Bellevue 62, Norwalk Senior 7
Fostoria Senior 35, Shelby 6
Galion Senior 21, Willard 7
Tiffin Columbian 44, Upper Sandusky 0
Northwest Conference
Ada 55, Paulding 15
Bluffton 24, Allen East 6
Delphos Jefferson 49, Convoy Crestview 0
Lima Cent. Cath. 14, Spencerville 10
Northwest Ohio Athletic League
Archbold 48, Montpelier 14
Liberty Center 47, Swanton 7
Patrick Henry 53, Delta 13
Wauseon 42, Bryan 14
Suburban Lakes League
Eastwood 49, Woodmore 0
Genoa 49, Lakota 6
Gibsonburg 24, Elmwood 20
Lake 32, Otsego 16
Western Buckeye League
Defiance 28, Lima Shawnee 18
Kenton 34, Celina 12
Lima Bath 30, Elida 13
St. Marys Memorial 21, Ottawa-Glandorf 20
Wapakoneta 21, Van Wert 7
Firelands Conference
Ashland Crestview 41, Monroeville 14
New London 34, Plymouth 13
Western Reserve 23, South Central 22
Green Meadows Conference
Edgerton 14, Holgate 6
Fairview 50, Antwerp 21
Hicksville 40, Ayersville 15
Tinora 42, Wayne Trace 3
Midwest Athletic Conference
Anna 14, St. Henry 10
Coldwater 51, Parkway 6
Marion Local 42, Delphos St. John’s 0
Minster 14, Versailles 13
New Bremen 27, Fort Recovery 26
Northern Lakes League
Anthony Wayne 48, Rossford 0
Maumee 38, Bowling Green 27
Perrysburg 44, Sylvania Northview 20
Sylvania Southview 60, Springfield 0
Northwest Central Conference
Fairbanks 21, Upper Scioto Valley 20
Lima Perry 61, Marion Catholic 0
Riverside 48, Ridgemont 6
Waynesfield 55, Yellow Springs 23
Ohio Cardinal Conference
Ashland Senior 20, West Holmes 13
Lexington 41, Clear Fork 21
Orrville 51, Mansfield Senior 18
Wooster Senior 40, Mansfield Madison 13
Sandusky Bay Conference
Castalia Margaretta 42, Oak Harbor 7
Clyde 26, Huron 7
Milan Edison 27, Port Clinton 21
Sandusky Perkins 48, Sandusky St. Mary’s 7
Toledo City League
Tol. Cent. Catholic 21, Toledo Start 0
Toledo Rogers 35, Toledo Scott 6
Toledo St. Francis 14, Toledo Bowsher 10
Toledo Waite 41, Toledo Woodward 20
Toledo Whitmer 48, Toledo Libbey 6
Toledo Area Athletic Conference
Edon 34, Danbury 7
Northwood 45, Hilltop 19
Toledo Christian 42, Cardinal Stritch 13
Other NW Ohio Games
Evergreen 36, Ottawa Hills 26

Stay with us and have some patience tonight folks...We're down a man tonight in the Courier offices here on Sandusky Street so I'll post the updates as quickly as possible.
JB

FOSTORIA 35
SHELBY 6
SHELBY — What was expected to be a big showdown in the Northern Ohio League Friday night didn’t quite live up to expectations.
Fostoria Senior quarterback Micah Hyde scored 4 touchdowns and passed for another as the Redmen crushed Shelby 35-6 in a showdown between Northern Ohio League unbeatens Friday night at W.W. Skiles Field.
Fostoria, the No.4 team in the latest Associated Press Division IV poll, is in sole possession of first place in the NOL at 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the league. Shelby slipped to 4-2 and 2-1.
Hyde, the  opened the scoring with a 3-yard touchdown run in the opening frame.
The Whippets tied the game on their ensuing possession when Zach Strine connected with Josh Ingle for a 26-yard touchdown on a 4th-and-10 play.
It was all Redmen the rest of the way.
Hyde scampered into the endzone from 15 yards out for his second score. Jimmy Rickman picked off a Strine aerial and flipped the ball back to Hyde, who went the final 27 yards for his third score of the night.
Derrick Pullom hauled in a 53-yard scoring pass from Hyde on the final play of the half to give the Redmen a 29-6 halftime lead.
Hyde, who was 13-of-16 passing for 212 yards while adding 95 yards rushing, netted a 6-yard touchddown run on a clock-eating drive on Fostoria’s first possession of the second half.
The Redmen, the No.1 team in the latest Division IV Region 14 computer rankings, have another big game on the slate next weekend as Tiffin Columbian (4-2, 2-1) visit Memorial Stadium Friday night.

Fostoria Senior 6 23 6 0 — 35
Shelby 0 6 0 0 — 6
First Quarter
FOS — Hyde 3 run (run failed)
Second Quarter
SHEL — Ingle 26 pass from Strine (kick failed)
FOS — Hyde 15 run (Williams pass from Hyde)
FOS — Hyde 27 interception return (Hyde kick)
FOS — Pullom 53 pass from Hyde (Hyde run)
Third Quarter
FOS — Hyde 6 run (pass failed)

LIBERTY-BENTON 55
LEIPSIC 0
Liberty-Benton’s Aaron Craft had another near-perfect performance at quarterback as the Eagles continued to roll through the Blanchard Valley Conference by beating Leipsic 55-0 Friday night.
Craft was 17-of-19 passing for 273 yards and 2 touchdown passes. He also added a pair of touchdown runs as the Eagles, the No.5 team in the latest Associated Press Division V poll, moved to 6-0 and won their 23rd straight BVC game.
Craft ran for scores of 37 and 4 yards. He also fired a 50-yard scoring strike to Ryan Cook and added a 7-yard touchdown pass to Brett Pasche as the Eagles rolled up a 28-0 halftime lead.
Cook finished with a pair of scores as he also caught a 7-yard pass from Brennan Lieb.
Jacob Miller and Brandon Pickett added scoring runs covering 11 and 19 yards respectively. Zac Cramer capped the scoring for Liberty-Benton with a 9-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Craft also added 86 yards rushing on 7 carries while Pickett chipped in 68 yards on 15 totes as the Eagles finished with 505 yards of total offense (198 yards rushing and 307 passing). Cook led the receiving corps with 92 yards on 4 catches while Lieb added 88 yards on 5 receptions.
Leipsic did do something few teams have done this season and that’s finish on the postive side of the ledger running the football.
The Vikings (3-3 overall, 3-2 BVC) picked up 70 yards rushong on 27 carries as Jake Mangas led the way with 24 yards on 10 tries.
Quarterback Liam Nadler was just 4-of-14 passing for 44 yards.

Leipsic 0 0 0 0 — 0
Liberty-Benton 14 14 21 6 — 55
First Quarter
L-B — Craft 37 run (Hyde kick)
L-B — Cook 7 pass from Lieb (Hyde kick)
Second Quarter
L-B — Cook 50 pass from Craft (Hyde kick)
L-B — Craft 4 run (Hyde kick)
Third Quarter
L-B — Miller 11 run (Hyde kick)
L-B — Pickett 19 run (Hyde kick)
L-B — Pasche 7 pass from Craft (Hyde kick)
Fourth Quarter
L-B — Cramer 9 run (kick failed)

RIVERDALE 14
CRESTLINE 12
MOUNT BLANCHARD — David Rose had a big night on the ground as he rushed for 101 yards and Riverdale hung to defeat Crestline 14-12 Friday in a North Central Conference battle.
The Falcons’ defense stepped up, holding Crestline to only 32 yards rushing on 25 carries.
Riverdale’s rushing attack  churned out 188 yards.
Rose started the scoring with a 3-yard plunge with 1:35 left in the first quarter. Crestline answered quickly as Hunter Finnegan threw a 69-yard scoring pass to Max Hartings.
Chris Hepperly galloped in from 12 yards away with 1:09 left in the first half to give the Falcons a 14-6 halftime lead.
Crestline threatened late as Finnegan launched another dart to Mike Rhodes for a 68-yard score. But the Bulldogs missed the 2-point conversion.
Brady Weber was 14 for 32 passing for 135 yards and added 81 yards rushing. Landon Kessler grabbed 6 passes for 69 yards for Riverdale.

Crestline 6 0 0 6 — 12
Riverdale 7 7 0 0 — 14
First Quarter
Riv — Rose 3 run (Rahn kick)
Cre — Hartings 69 pass from Finnegan (kick failed)
Second Quarter
Riv — Hepperly 12 run (Rahn kick)
Fourth Quarter
Cre — Rhodes 68 pass from Finnegan (2-point failed)

GIBSONBURG 24
ELMWOOD 20
GIBSONBURG — Gibsonbburg’s Jordan Bender scored on a 3-yard run with 2:53 left in the game to lift the Golden Bears past Elmwood 24-20 in a Suburban Lakes League game Friday night.
With the win, Gibsonburg improved to 3-3 overall and 2-1 in the SLL while the Royals slipped to 3-3 and 1-2.
It was a night of mixed results for Elmwood quarterback Reid Rothenbuhler.
He connected on 18-of-28 passes for 254 yards and 3 touchdowns for the Royals while also tossing 4 interceptions.
He connected with Thor Bottesch for an 11-yard scoring strike in the first quarter and with Adam Tyler for a 23-yard touchdown toss in the second frame.
His third touchdown pass came on an 8-yard strike to Tyler Chamberlain.
Tony Egbert scored on a 1-yard run and threw touchdown passes covering 22 and 14 yards to Andy Gerbich.
Elmwood finished with 309 yards of offense, including 55 yards rushing. Rothenbuhler led the way with 82 yards on 17 carries. Chamberlain had a big night receiving with 8 catches for 125 yards.
Avery Potridge did everything but score for the Golden Bears. He led all ball carries with 153 yards on 33 carries.

Elmwood 7 7 6 0 — 20
Gibsonburg 6 6 6 6 — 24
First Quarter
GIB — Egbert 1 run (run failed)
ELM — Bottesch 11 pass from Rothenbuhler (Tyson kick)
Second Quarter
ELM — Tyson 23 pass from Rothenbuhler (Tyson kick)
GIB — Gerbich 22 pass from Egbert (pass failed)
Third Quarter
ELM — Chamberlain 8 pass from Rothenbuhler (kick failed)
GIB — Gerbich 14 pass from Egbert (run failed)
Fourth Quarter
GIB — Binder 3 run (pass failed)

ADA 55
PAULDING 15
ADA — Mitchell Faine recorded 15 carries for 109 yards and 3 touchdowns to help Ada to a 55-15 victory over Paulding Friday in a Northwest Conference football game.
Ada came out strong in the first half starting off with Faine scoring twice once on a 5-yard run and on a 1-yard TD run. Paulding’s Garrett Stoller pulled down a 7-yard pass from Haden Snoll for a touchdown. The Bulldogs then took over. Faine hooked up with Matt McBride on a 61-yard TD pass, Faine then found Colby Dysert on a 65-yard bomb for a score. Nick Agin kicked a 33-yard field goal and Faine scored his third TD of the night on a 19-yard run. The Panthers found the end zone late in the second quarter on a 14-yard TD pass to Justin Riley from Snoll.
Ada’s Agin booted a 45-yard field goal to add 3 to the board. In the fourth quarter Faine connected with Dysert on a 26-yard TD pass. Alex Weber dashed to the end zone on a 22-yard TD run and then Ada sacked Paulding in the endzone for a safety.
Ada recorded a total of 255 passing yards and 261 rushing yards. Paulding had 170 passing yards and 64 rushing yards.

Paulding 0 13 0 2 — 15
Ada 14 24 3 14 — 55
First Quarter
ADA — Faine 5 run (Agin kick)
ADA — Faine 1 run (Agin kick)
Second Quarter
PAU — Stoller 7 pass from Snoll (Schlatter kick)
ADA — McBride 61 pass from Faine (Agin kick)
ADA — Dysert 65 pass from Faine (Agin kick)
ADA — Agin 33 field goal
ADA — Faine 19 run (Agin kick)
PAU — Riley 14 pass from Snoll (pass failed)
Third Quarter
ADA — Agin 45 field goal
Fourth Quarter
ADA — Dysert 26 pass from Faine (Baker pass from Faine)
ADA — Weber 22 run (pass failed)
ADA — Safety

HOPEWELL-LOUDON 28
SENECA EAST 7
BASCOM — It was a happy homecoming at Hopewell-Loudon Friday night.
The top-ranked Chieftains put together a workman-like effort to whip Seneca East 28-7.
Hopewell-Loudon, the No.1 team in the Division VI Associated Press poll, improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the MAL. The Chieftains will head to Carey’s Wentling Field next Friday night in a showdown with the unbeaten and state-ranked Blue Devils.
Andrew Brickner and Tyler Brown both had big days for the Chieftains.
Brown was 23-of-30 passing for 249 yards throwing touchdown passes of 13 and 16 yards to Brickner.
Brickner also added a 21-yard run for a touchdown and finished the contest with 9 catches for 108 yards.
Aaron Kapelka led Hopewell-Loudon’s 104-yard rushing effort with 53 yards on 17 carries and a 10-yard touchdown run.
Seneca East’s Kenny Weaver capped the scoring with a 5-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Cody Kidwell was 10-of-24 passing for 174 yards but was intercepted 3 times. Weaver netted 58 yards rushing on 5 carries for the Tigers (2-4, 1-2).

Seneca East 0 0 0 7 — 7
Hopewell-Loudon 7 14 0 7 — 28
First Quarter
H-L — Kapelka 10 run (Yost kick)
Second Quarter
H-L — Brickner 13 pass from Brown (Yost kick)
H-L — Brickner 16 pass from Brown (Yost kick)
Third Quarter
H-L — Brickner 21 run (Yost kick)
Fourth Quarter
SE — Weaver 5 run (kick good)

PH 53
DELTA 13
HAMLER — Justin Buenger ran all over Delta Friday night and Patrick Henry blasted the Panthers 53-13 in a Northwest Ohio Athletic League game.
Patrick Henry scored on its first seven possessions to take a 47-7 lead into halftime. The Patriots accumulated 275 yards by the end of the first quarter and 410 yards at the end of the first half.
Buenger rush for 229 yards on only 9 carries. He had rushing touchdowns of 62, 8 and 3 yards.
Luke George was 7-of-8 passing for 133 yards and threw three touchdown passes.
Mitch Leonard caught two of the passes covering 21 and 62 yards. Clay Mass secured the other from 4 yards away.
Nick Powers added a 4-yard TD run and Lucas Rosebrook scampered in from 13 yards away for the Patriots’ final score.
Patrick Henry held the Panthers to only 36 rushing yards.

Delta 0 7 6 0 — 13
Patrick Henry 27 20 0 6 — 53
First Quarter
PH — Buenger 62 run (Creager kick)
PH — Leonard 21 pass from George (Creager kick)
PH — Buenger 8 run (Creager kick)

PH — Leonard 62 run pass from George (kick failed)
Second Quarter
PH — Buenger 3 run (Creager kick)
PH — Mass 4 pass from George (Creager kick)
PH — Powers 4 run (kick failed)
Del — Beverly 10 pass from Alig (Smith kick)
Third Quarter
Del — Smith 10 pass from Alig (kick failed)
Fourth Quarter
PH — Rosebrook 13 run (kick failed)

BLUFFTON 24
ALLEN EAST 6
HARROD — Bluffton executed with tremendous balance on offense and corralled Allen East 24-6 Friday night in a Northwest Conference matchup.
Tyler Neal was 15-of-28 passing for 172 yards.
Tyler Rayl chewed up 114 rushing yards on 15 carries with a touchdown as well.
Neal snuck in from a yard out for Bluffton’s first score.
Morgan Renner booted a 23-yard field goal later in the first quarter.
The Mustangs answered in the second quarter as Levi Hoy scampered in from 41 yards away.
Chad Dulle (6-yard run) and Rayl (42-yard run) added Piratetouchdowns in the second half to put the game out of reach.
Zach DeVier snagged 2 interceptions on the night defensively for the Pirates.
Levi Hoy ran 9 times for 61 yards and a touchdown to lead Allen East (2-4, 2-3).
The win puts Bluffton at (3-3, 2-2) on the year.

Bluffton 10 0 7 7 — 24
Allen East 0 6 0 0 — 6
First Quarter
Blu —  Neal 1 run (Renner kick)
Blu — Renner 23 field goal
Second Quarter
AE — Hoy 41 run (kick failed)
Third Quarter
Blu — Dulle 6 run (Renner kick)
Fourth Quarter
Blu — Rayl 42 run (Renner kick)

CAREY 49
N. BALTIMORE 0
NORTH BALTIMORE — Matt Messmer carried the ball 5 times for 109 yards and a touchdown to help undefeated Carey crush North Baltimore 49-0 Friday evening in a Midland Athletic League matchup.
Carey (6-0, 3-0 MAL) Ranked 6th in the Division IV A.P. poll and is first in the MAL on defense and second on offense.
Carey started off the night with a 12-yard TD run from Trevor Phoenix. Phoenix then returned a punt to add six more to the board. Derrick Stock muscled his way into the endzone on a 1-yard TD carry. Stock then cruised in for a 38-yard TD run. Matt Messmer took off and scored on a 66-yard score and Stock scored again on a 2-yard run. Brandon Orians added a 1-yard TD score.
Stock carried the ball 10 times for 99-yards and 3 TD’s for the Blue Devils and Phoenix had 2 carries for 56-yards and 2 touchdowns. Carey carried the ball a total of 39 times for 369 yards.
The Tigers (2-4, 0-2 MAL) had 38 carries for 82 yards.

Carey 21 21 0 7 — 49
North Baltimore 0 0 0 0 — 0
First Quarter
CAR — Phoenix 12 run (Strahm kick)
CAR — Phoenix punt return (Strahm kick)
CAR — Stock 1 run (Strahm kick)
Second Quarter
CAR — Stock 38 run (Strahm kick)
CAR — Messmer 66 run (Strahm kick)
CAR — 2 run (Strahm kick)
Fourth Quarter
CAR — Orians 1 run (Strahm kick)

ARLINGTON 44
ARCADIA 0
ARCADIA — Arlington racked up a 30-0 halftime lead as the Red Devils rebounded from last week’s tough loss to McComb by blanking Arcadia 44-0 in a Blanchard Valley Conference game at Keiffer Field Friday night.
Arlington’s Matt Morehart opened the scoring with a 25-yard  run in the first quarter.
The floodgates then opened in the second frame.
Quarterback Zane Leonard opened the frame by scoring on a quarterback keeper. Cam Brown sandwiched touchdown runs of 25 and 34 yards around a safety before intermission.
Morehart added a 5-yard scoring sprint in the third quarter and Justin Beagle capped things off for the Red Devils (4-2, 3-2 BVC) with a 7-yard touchdown run.
Arlington racked up 352 yards rushing as Morehart led the way with 101 yards on 19 carries.
Arcadia picked up 29 yards on 26 rushing plays. The Redskins (0-6, 0-5) were also just 1-of-17 passing for 11 yards.

Arlington 6 24 7 7 — 44
Arcadia 0 0 0 0 — 0
First Quarter
ARL — Morehart 25 run (kick failed)
Second Quarter
ARL — Leonard 4 run (Cory Glick run)
ARL — Brown 25 run (Fennell kick)
ARL — Safety
ARL — Brown 34 run (Fennell kick)
Third Quarter
ARL — Morehart 5 run (Fennell kick)
Fourth Quarter
ARL — Beagle 7 run (Fennell kick)

TIFFIN COLUMBIAN 44
UPPER SANDUSKY 0
TIFFIN — Tiffin Columbian rolled to a 27-0 halftime lead en route to whipping Upper Sandusky 44-0 in a Northern Ohio League game Friday night at Frost-Kalnow Stadium.
With the win, Tiffin Columbian improved to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the NOL. Upper Sandusky slipped to 1-5 and 0-3.
Derek Kneeskern did a little bit of eveything for the Tornadoes.
He caught a 26-yard pass from quarterback Ethan Kagy in the first quarter and returned a punt 44 yards for a score in the third frame. Kneeskern also booted a 42-yard field goal and 5 extra points.
The Tornadoes travel to Fostoria (6-0 overall, 3-0 NOL) next Friday night.

Upper Sandusky 0 0 0 0 — 0
Tiffin Columbian 20 7 17 0 — 44
First Quarter
TC — Kagy 40 run (Kneeskern kick)
TC — Kneeskern 26 pass from Kagy (Kneeskern kick)
TC — Chavez 15 run (kick failed)
Second Quarter
TC — Hernandez 37 fumble recovery (Kneeskern kick)
Third Quarter
TC — FG 42 Kneeskern
TC — Schafer 10 pass from Hossler (Kneeskern kick)
TC — Kneeskern 44 punt return (Kneeskern kick)

P-G 12
VAN BUREN 0
By MARK HEIMAN
STAFF WRITER
PANDORA — Pandora-Gilboa and Van Buren like to spread the field when they have the ball.
No great surprise there in the pass-happy Blanchard Valley Conference.
But Friday at Pandora-Gilboa the two teams got a bit defensive as the Rockets held on for a 12-0 homecoming win over Van Buren.
The game featured just 361 yards of total offense, even though the teams came in averaging a combined 542 yards.
“Even though we are a spread offensive team, we put pride on our defense,” said P-G coach Carey Arthur, whose team is tied with Liberty-Benton in the BVC standings at 5-0 (6-0 overall).
“We weren’t sure what they were going to do. We didn’t know if (Van Buren quarterback Josh) Gilliland was going to play or not.”
It also helped P-G as the Rockets were able to get an early lead.
After receiving the opening kickoff, P-G lined up with five receivers and nobody in the backfield with quarterback Sam Maag. Nate Lee, Pandora-Gilboa’s normal back, who has 450 yards this year, is out with a shoulder injury.
Maag hit his first 4 passes and 5 of the 6 he threw on the drive as the Rockets marched downfield. Maag capped the drive by bulling in from the one.
“After that first series we realized we would not be able to sit in zone without giving up 50 points,” said Van Buren coach Jeremy Nutter, whose team is 4-2 and 3-2 in the BVC. “So we started to bring pressure.
“I’m proud of the defensive effort. That is an explosive team. To hold them to 12 points is a testament to the defense. We have come a country mile on defense.”
The Rockets caught a break when they held Van Buren on its first possession and the snap to punter Nick Huber rolled past him for a 30-yard loss. That gave P-G the ball at Van Buren’s 23. After a first down, DJ Geiger was dropped for a 4-yard loss and Maag was sacked by Clay Eaton for a 13-yard loss.
Maag tossed an 11-yard pass to Josh Lee, who had 8 catches for 85 yards, but Maag’s fourth down pass in the end zone went through Lee’s hands.
The teams traded possessions before Van Buren started to march. Gilliland twice hooked up with Michael Ryder on passes of 45 and 22 yards. The 22-yarder was on fourth down and gave the Black Knights the ball at P-G’s 5.
Kevin Ragless, who ran 20 times for 84 yards, picked up 2 yards on 2 carries. Josh Lee came off the end and dropped Gilliland for an 11-yard loss and on fourth down with 1:22 left in the half, Kyle Hall picked off Gilliland at the 3.
“We did not want them to have momentum at the half,” Arthur said. “Kyle also had a big pick in the Columbus Grove game. That was another big one tonight.”
It was huge, according to Nutter.
“We did well up front moving the ball, but we couldn’t get it in from the five like we should have,” Nutter said.
Van Buren couldn’t get untracked until late in the game when the Knights drove to P-G’s 30. The drive stalled when VB backup quarterback Brandon Lucas was intercepted by Ross Diller, who was named homecoming king in pre-game festivities.
Another bad punt snap led to P-G’s final touchdown. The second  time Huber was able to get a pass off to Alex Roszman, but the play lost 13 yards giving P-G the ball at the Van Buren 12.
On second down, Maag pump faked to Lee on a post and hit him in the back corner of the end zone from 10 yards out.
With Nate Lee out, the Rockets managed just 26 yards rushing on 26 carries. Geiger, a sophomore, led P-G with 19 yards on 9 carries.
“With Nate Lee out we weren’t sure what we were going to do with the one back. Throughout the week, we did tailback by committee. During the game we had three people run it,” Arthur said.
“To use zone blocking and zone running techniques it takes a little chemistry between the line and the backs and we aren’t there yet.”
Maag finished the night 16-of-27 passing for 169 yards. Gilliland, who is playing with a torn ACL, was 11-of-22 passing for 137 yards for Van Buren.
“He’s a special individual. He doesn’t quit and plays through pain like no player I’ve seen before,” Nutter said. “Even with one leg he’s a better athlete than a lot of people with two legs.”

Van Buren 0 0 0 0 — 0
Pandora-Gilboa 6 0 6 0 — 12
First Quarter
P-G — Maag 1 run (pass failed)
Third Quarter
P-G — Lee 10 pass from Maag (pass failed)
Van Buren P-Gilboa
First Downs 12 13
Rushes-yards 30-44 26-26
Passing Yards 128 169
Comp-Att-Int 14-27-2 16-27-0
Punts-Avg. 2-37 2-37.5
Fumbles-Lost 3-2 0-0
Penalties-Yards 3-40 3-30
individual statistics
rushing — Van Buren, Ragless 20-84, L. Eaton 2-4, Gilliland 6-(-7), Team 2-(-37). Pandora-Gilboa, Spallinger 3-6, Maag 9-1, Geiger 9-19, Morrison 4-4, Team 1-(-4).
passing — Van Buren, Gilliland 11-22-1, 137 yards; Huber 1-1-0, (-13); Lucas 2-4-1, 4. Pandora-GIlboa Maag 16-27-0, 169.
receiving — Van Buren, M. Ryder 7-96, Erwin 5-29, Roszman 1-(-13), Worthy 1-16. Pandora-Gilboa Morrison 2-14, Spallinger 3-32, Hall 3-38, Lee 8-85.
Heiman: 419-427-8405,
markheiman@thecourier.com

MCCOMB 47
VANLUE 7

MCCOMB — McComb racked up 435 yards Friday night and the Panthers tamed Vanlue 47-7 in a Blanchard Valley Conference game.
Andrew Dee had another impressive outing as he passed for 208 yards and 3 touchdowns completing 17 of 21 passes.
Matt Dishong also had a stellar evening as he rushed for 205 yards and 3 touchdowns on 30 carries.
Chase Kloeppel had a sold night for Vanlue passing for 185 yards and a touchdown on 20-of-37 passing.
Austin Cook (8 catches 68 yards) and Taylor Chiow (7 catches 63 yards) were his main targets.
Cory Fry led off the scoring with touchdown catches of 9 and 5 yards.
Dishong added rushing touchdowns of 18 and 6 yards in the second quarter to put McComb up 27-0 at the half.
Dee fired another pass to Fry for an 11-yard touchdown to begin the third quarter.
Dishong bowled in from a yard out and Mason Roth plunged in from 3 yards away to complete the Panthers scoring.
Vanlue scored on an 8-yard  Kloeppel scoring strike to Jonathon Kloepfer.

Vanlue 0 0 0 7 — 7
McComb 13 14 14 6 — 47
First Quarter
McC — Fry 9 pass from Dee (Gibbs kick)
McC — Fry 5 pass from Dee (kick failed)
Second Quarter
McC — Dishong 18 run (Gibbs kick)
McC — Dishong 6 run (Gibbs kick)
Third Quarter
McC — Fry 11 pass from Dee (Gibbs kick)
McC — Dishong 1 run (Gibbs kick)
Fourth Quarter
McC — Roth 3 run (kick failed)
Van — Kloepfer 8 pass from Kloeppel (Simon kick)

CORY-RAWSON 35
HARDIN NORTHERN 32
DOLA — Ben Niese recorded 19 carries for 153 yards and 5 touchdowns and scored 3 times in the fourth quarter to help Cory-Rawson come from behind and rally and defeat Hardin Northern 35-32 in Blanchard Valley Conference play Friday.
The last time Hardin Northern lost 5 games in a season dates back to 1988.
Hardin Northern’s (1-5, 1-4 BVC) Chad Motter scored twice in the first half once on a 19-yard run and on a 1-yard TD run. Clint Brunow ran in a 4-yard TD. Cory-Rawson’s Niese ran in a 1-yard TD and the Hornets added 2 with a safety.
In the third quarter Niese slipped in on a 1-yard TD run for the Hornets. The Polar Bears bounced back with a 1-yard touchdown run from Motter to make the score 26-16 Hardin Northern after 3 quarters of play.
Cory-Rawson (2-4, 2-3 BVC) rallied in the fourth quarter as Niese went unconscience finding the endzone three consecutive times in a row. Niese scored on a 5-yard run and 1-yard TD run. With 1:32 left in the game Niese broke loose and cruised down field on a 40-yard TD run to put the Hornets in the lead 35-26. Hardin Northern’s  Reid Parsons connected with Joe Walter on a 19-yard TD pass with 5 seconds left in the game.
Motter recorded 25 carries for 170 yards and 3 TD’s and pulled down 3 passes for 33 yards. Parsons completed 6 of 12 passes for 99 yards and 1 TD pass.
Cory-Rawson’s Luke Bowser carried the ball 18 times for 105 yards.

Cory-Rawson 7 2 7 19 — 35
Hardin Northern 6 13 7 6 — 32
First Quarter
HN — Motter 19 run (run failed)
C-R — Niese 1 run (Cramer kick)
Second Quarter
HN — Brunow 4 run (run failed)
C-R — Safety
HN — Motter 1 run (Wilson kick)
Third Quarter
C-R — Niese 1 run (Cramer kick)
HN — Motter 1 run (Wilson kick)
Fourth Quarter
C-R — Niese 5 run (run failed)
C-R — Niese 1 run (Cramer kick)
C-R — Niese 40 run (kick blocked)
HN — Walter 19 pass from Parsons (kick failed)

MOHAWK 43
ST. WENDELIN 14
FOSTORIA — Keith Zeigler carried the ball 20 times for 191 yards and 4 touchdowns as Mohawk shut down St. Wendelin 43-14 Friday in a Midland Athletic League football matchup.
St. Wendelin’s (3-3, 0-3 MAL) Dan Faber found the end zone in the first quarter on a 18-yard TD run. Mohawk’s Zeigler scored on a 13-yard run in the second quarter but St. Wendelin answered back with a 2-yard TD run from Rob Herrig for a 14-8 St. Wendelin halftime lead.
Mohawk (3-3, 2-1 MAL) then outscored St. Wendelin 35-0 in the second half. Aaron Konkle started off with a 15-yard run. Then Zeigler scored 3 straight times on runs of 15, 40 and 47 yards. Jake Kline returned an interception for a 21-yard TD.
St. Wendelin’s Faber carried the ball 17 times for 86 yards and J.J. Hrabak recorded 10 carries for 72 yards.

Mohawk 0 8 21 14 — 43
Fostoria St. Wendelin 6 8 0 0 — 14
First Quarter
FSW — Faber 18 run (kick failed)
Second Quarter
MOH — Zeigler 13 run (Keller pass from Konkle)
FSW — Herrig 2 run (Kitzler pass from Herrig)
Third Quarter
MOH — Konkle 15 run (Huffman kick)
MOH — Zeigler 15 run (Huffman kick)
MOH — Zeigler 40 run (Huffman kick)
Fourth Quarter
MOH — Zeigler 47 run (Huffman kick)
MOH — Kline 21 interception return (Huffman kick)

ST. MARYS MEMORIAL 21
OTTAWA-GLANDORF 20
ST. MARYS — Ken Schriner gambled a bit on the road Friday.
And the veteran Ottawa-Glandorf coach came up just short.
His Titans scored with 2:08 left against unbeaten St. Marys Memorial and Schriner and his squad went for the two-point conversion.
But Taylor Kuhlman’s two-point conversion pass didn’t connect as the Titans suffered a 21-20 Western Buckeye League loss.
With the win, St. Marys moves into first place alone at 6-0 overall and 5-0 in the league. Defiance beat Lima Shawnee 28-19 Friday to knock the Indians from first place.
The Titans (3-3, 3-2) touchdown with 2:08 remaining came on Kuhlman’s 10-yard pass to Brent Kuhlman. Kuhlman had earlier tossed a 12-yard pass to Jacob Moening and run in from a yard out.
St. Marys’ Jake Taylor scored on a one-yard run and threw a 75-yard pass to Aaron Homan. The Roughriders also scored on Josh Zimmerman’s 4-yard run.
St. Marys dominated the offensive stats with 212 rushing yards, which was led by Jeremy Fry’s 87 yards. Taylor connected on 10 of 15 passes for 190 yards.
Taylor Kuhlman was 6-of-14 passing for 92 yards and ran for 83 yards on 17 carries.

Ottawa-Glandorf 0 0 7 13 — 20
St. Marys 0 0 7 14 — 21
Third Quarter
O-G — T. Kuhlman 2 run (Croy kick)
SM — Zimmerman 4 run (Adkins kick)
Fourth Quarter
SM — Taylor 1 run (Adkins kick)
O-G — Moening 12 pass from Kuhlman (Croy kick
SM — Homan 75 pass from Taylor (Adkins kick)
O-G — B. Kuhlman 10 pass from T. Kuhlman (pass failed)
 

FINDLAY 45, MARION HARDING 0
By DAVE HANNEMAN
STAFF WRITER
MARION — This debate didn’t last nearly as long as the one on TV Friday night.
Findlay drove 79 yards in 14 plays with the opening kickoff, went up 10-0 on a near-record field goal by Skylar Roberts and built a 24-0 halftime lead in rolling to a 45-0 win over the Presidents of Marion Harding in the Greater Buckeye Conference opener for both schools Friday.
“This was our first GBC game after going against some pretty good (non-league) competition and we wanted to get the momentum back,” FHS coach Mark Ritzler said after the Trojans, who started the season 1-1, ended a three-game skid.
Findlay blew the game open in the third quarter following two standout defensive plays from senior linebacker Joey Poewell.
Early in the period, Powell blocked a punt that Findlay recovered at the Marion Harding 8-yard line. Three straight blasts by Wade Arredondo put the ball in the end zone and Findlay up 31-0.
Powell intercepted a pass later in period and returned it to the Presidents’ 15. A 2-yard TD pass from sophomore quarterback Matt Spragg to Mandela Sheaffer with 17 seconds left in the quarter made it 38-0.
Backups and reserves finished it up.
“It came down to making plays,” Powell said. “We watched film and saw where they didn’t always cover gaps. It was just a matter of twisting and shooting through.”
Findlay also got a 49-yard field goal from Roberts — a yard shy of the school record he shares with Josh Huston —  in the first quarter. The Trojans also took advantage of poor clock management by the Presidents to cover 65 yards in just 27 seconds for a momentum-stealing TD in the final seconds of the half.
But the two drives that underscored Findlay’s effort came at the beginning of the game and the start of the second quarter.
Findlay’s opening drive began with a 24-yard pass from Spragg to Zach Crawford. But the Trojans covered 45 of the remaining 55 yards on the ground, with the offensive line getting a strong surge and Arredondo, Nate Kupferberg and Michael Alexander taking care of the rest.
Spragg hit Ran Wolfe with a 7-yard pass on a key fourth-and-6 play from the 39, and Kupferberg powered the final 2 yards for the score.
“With our quarterback (senior starter Eric Gilbert) banged up we knew we had to run the ball,” Ritzler said. “We put pressure on the o-line and the running backs. We said we’re going to have to run the ball and we did.”
Early in the second quarter, Findlay marched 80 yards in 17 plays. Kupferberg got two tough yards on a gutty fourth-and-1 call from the Trojans’ 40 and Spragg, who was 12 of 21 passing for 143 yards and two TDs, capped the drive with an 8-yard strike to Crawford for the score.
The Trojans were as stingy on defense as they were efficient on offense. Marion Harding didn’t cross midfield until the second play of the first quarter and managed just 67 total yards on 25 offensive plays the entire first half.
“Findlay showed how good they were by tonight’s performance,” said Marion Harding Coach Heath Hinton.
“We couldn’t get anything going offensively or defensively. We had a play here and a play there but for the most part they were handling us on both sides of the ball.
“The guys that won it for them were the guys up front.”
Marion’s best drive came late in the first half when the Presidents, using their time outs to stop the clock, drove from their own 20 to the Findlay 35. When a fourth-down pass fell incomplete, however, Findlay took over with 44 seconds to play with.
Those 44 seconds proved to be more than enough.
Spragg found Crawford for 15 yards, Wolfe for 35 and Arredondo for 13 to get the ball to the 2-yard line. Alexander punched it from there.
“That touchdown right before the half was big,” Ritzler said. “I think that put it away.
Findlay had 220 yards rushing and 363 yards total offense. Arredondo led the way with 71 yards rushing.
“We played aggressive, we played hard and we flew to the ball,” said Kupferberg. “This is like the start of a new season. You don’t get tired when you’re having fun.”
Back-up senior running back Kevin Armstrong had 27 yards on just one carry. That came on a break-away touchdown run late in the game.”

Findlay 10 14 14 7 — 45
Marion Harding 0 0 0 0 — 0
First Quarter
FIN — Kupferberg 2 run (Roberts kick)
FIN — Roberts 49 FG
Second Quarter
FIN — Crawford 8 pass from Spragg (Roberts kick)
FIN — Alexander 2 run (Roberts kick)
Third Quarter
FIN — Arredondo 2 run (Roberts kick)
FIN — Sheaffer 2 pass from Spragg (Roberts kick)
Fourth Quarter
FIN — Armstrong 27 run (Roberts kick)
FIN  MH
First Downs 20 8
Rushes-yards 45-220 39-132
Passing Yards 143 35
Comp-Att-Int 12-21-0 4-11-1
Punts-Avg. 1-46 4-35.5
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 1-0
Penalties-Yards 4-40 3-20
individual statistics
rushing — Findlay, Sprasgg 3-21, Arredondo 21-71, Kupferberg 8-29, Alexander 6-31, Oates 4-14, Hohman 2-27. Marion Harding, Rumple 9-57. Lindsay 10-18, Russell 3-20, Ryle 2-(-3), Haas 3-4, Willaims 7-23, Ayers 5-13.
passing — Spragg 12-21-0, 143 yards. Rumple 4-11-1, 35 yards.
receiving — Findlay, Arredondo 1-13, Wolfe 2-42, Sheaffer 2-2, Crawford 7-86. Marion Harding, Jaggers 1-10, White 1-9, Price 1-3, Gilmore 1-12.
Hanneman: 419-427-8408,
davehanneman@thecourier.com

Courier Week VI Prep Football Notes

Here are you Courier prep football notes for Week VI. Check back tonight for updates and the latest scores and stories from around the area.

Arlington RED DEVILS at Arcadia REDSKINS
DATELINE: Arcadia
CONFERENCE: Blanchard Valley Conference
RECORDS: Arlington 3-2 overall, 2-2 BVC; Arcadia 0-5, 0-4
LAST WEEK: McComb 30, Arlington 28; Liberty-Benton 69, Arcadia 7
NOTES: Game is at Keiffer Field Friday night ... Arcadia is ranked last in the BVC in defense as it is allowing 35.8 points and 370.0 yards per game .. The Redskins are ninth on offense with 8.8 points and 160.0 yards per contest ... Arcadia hasn't intercepted a pass this season ... Don't expect much passing in this one, Arcadia's Landon Fleegle is 36-107 passing for 384 yards with 9 interceptions. Arlington quarterback Zane Leonard is 16-47 passing for 238 yards with 4 interceptions and 3 scores . He also has 226 yards rushing ... Arlington's Matt Morehart is second in the BVC in rushing for 529 yards on 67 carries with 5 touchdowns. Corey Glick has 378 yards on 75 carries with 4 scores ... Jake Aurand has rushed for 217 yards to lead Arcadia ... Jeff Huffman leads the Redskins with 14 catches for 211 yards … Morehart leads the BVC with 5 interceptions this season on defense … Arlington leads the all-time series 61-18-4 and has won the last 5 meetings.

Cory-Rawson HORNETS at Hardin Northern POLAR BEARS
DATELINE: Dola
CONFERENCE: Blanchard Valley Conference
RECORDS: Cory-Rawson 1-4, 1-3; Hardin Northern 1-4, 1-3
LAST WEEK: Cory-Rawson 53, Vanlue 14; Van Buren 21, Hardin Northern 14
NOTES: Cory-Rawson snapped an 8-game losing streak with last week's win ... Hardin Northern is allowing 26.0 points per game on defense and had fumbled the ball away a league-high 7 times ... Hardin Northern's Chad Motter leads the BVC in rushing with 581 yards on 116 carries with 5 touchdowns. Teammate Walter has 205 yards rushing ... Hardin Northern quarterback Reid Parsons is 14-24 passing for 195 yards with 5 touchdowns and 4 interceptions ... Cory-Rawson quarterback Luke Bowser missed last week’s game due to injuries. Jeremiah Alspach filled in hitting 11-22 passes for 144 yards with 3 touchdowns and an interception. Bowser leads the Hornets in rushing with 237 yards and is 54-100 passing for 593 yards with 7 interceptions and 3 touchdowns ... Cory-Rawson’s John Anderson and John Erford are among the league’s receiving leaders. Erford has 18 catches for 310 yards with 3 touchdowns while Anderson has 20 catches for 251 yards and 2 scores … Hardin Northern leads the BVC series between the two schools 22-21 and has won the last 15 meetings.

Leipsic VIKINGS at Liberty-Benton EAGLES
DATELINE: None
CONFERENCE: Blanchard Valley Conference
RECORDS: Leipsic 3-2, 3-1; Liberty-Benton 5-0, 4-0
LAST WEEK: Pandora-Gilboa 24, Leipsic 21; Liberty-Benton 69, Arcadia 7
NOTES: Liberty-Benton has been prolific on both sides of the ball this season. The Eagles are ranked first in the BVC on offense at 438.8 yards and 49.2 points per game and No.1 on defense allowing just 69.0 yards and 5.2 points per game … There is some negativity surrounding L-B’s defense though as the Eagles have allowed just minus-27 yards on the ground through their first five games … Leipsic’s defense leads the BVC with 10 interceptions this season … Liberty-Benton quarterback Aaron Craft has been near-perfect completing 66-79 passes for 985 yards with 0 interceptions and 16 touchdowns … Ryan Cook leads the Eagles with 15 catches for 385 yards, a 25.7 yard per catch average. Brett Pasche has 13 catches for 197 yards and Schoonover has 15 catches for 158 yards … Craft also leads the Eagles in rushing with 336 yards on 31 carries for a 10.8 per carry average. Brandon Pickett has added 326 yards on the ground … Leipsic had a modest 3-game win streak snapped last weekend by Pandora-Gilboa … Leipsic quarterback Liam Nadler is 54-106 passing for 681 yards with 7 interceptions and 6 touchdowns … Jake Schroeder leads the Vikings on the ground with 420 yards rushing on 71 carries and 5 touchdowns. Jason Butler has added 203 yards rushing  and 15 catches for 255 yards … Mike Benton leads Leipsic’s receivers with 16 catches for 258 yards and 3 scores … Jay Maag has 3 interceptions to lead the Vikings on defense … Liberty-Benton has a 22-game BVC winning streak dating back to the last game of the 2005 season … Leipsic leads the BVC series 23-19 but the Eagles have won the last five meetings … Liberty-Benton is ranked fifth in the latest Associated Press Division V poll.

Van Buren BLACK KNIGHTS at Pandora-Gilboa ROCKETS
DATELINE: Pandora
CONFERENCE: Blanchard Valley Conference
RECORDS: Van Buren 4-1, 3-1; Pandora-Gilboa 5-0, 4-0
LAST WEEK: Van Buren 21, Hardin Northern 14; Pandora-Gilboa 24, Leipsic 21
NOTES: Battle for second place in the league race at Pandora-Gilboa Friday night … Pandora-Gilboa’s defense has been solid. It ranks second in the BVC allowing 11.0 points and 238.0 yards per game … Van Buren’s defense is second in the BVC with 9 interceptions … Pandora-Gilboa’s Josh Lee leads the BVC in scoring with 48 points. He is also the Rockets’ top receiver with 22 catches for 332 yards and 5 touchdowns … Pandora-Gilboa quarterback Sam Maag is having a solid season. He is 49-90 passing for 687 yards with 10 touchdowns and 2 interceptions … Nate Lee has 450 yards rushing on 68 carries with 2 touchdowns for Pandora-Gilboa … Van Buren quarterback Josh Gilliland has returned from a knee injury suffered during Week 2. He is 30-49 passing for 372 yards with 5 touchdowns and an interception. He has also added 195 yards rushing … Kevin Ragless is having a terrific season for the Black Knights he has rushed for 514 yards on 104 carries and has added 4 interceptions on defense … Michael Ryder has 19 catches for 223 yards and a pair of scores for Van Buren ... Pandora-Gilboa’s Troy Stephenson has returned a punt and two interceptions for touchdowns this season … Pandora-Gilboa has won four of the last five games against the Black Knights and leads the BVC series 27-13-1 …

Vanlue WILDCATS at McComb PANTHERS
DATELINE: McComb
CONFERENCE: Blanchard Valley Conference
RECORDS: Vanlue 0-5, 0-4; McComb 3-2, 2-2
LAST WEEK: Cory-Rawson 53, Vanlue 14; McComb 30, Arlington 28
NOTES: It will be a match up between one of the best offenses in the BVC and a struggling defensive unit when the Panthers and Wildcats meet Friday night at Doc Miller Field … McComb enters the game averaging 31.2 points and 353.2 yards per game while Vanlue is yielding 351.0 yards and 45.6 points per contest … Sophomore Andrew Dee stepped in for injured starting quarterback Kevan Westenbarger and played well. He is 19-30 passing for 223 yards with 3 touchdowns and a pick. For the season, Westenbarger is 71-115 passing for 950 yards with 9 touchdowns and 7 interceptions … Matt Dishong leads McComb’s rushing attack with 384 yards on 62 carries … McComb’s Andrew Morse has 37 catches for 340 yards and 5 touchdowns. Fry has added 11 catches for 204 yards …  The Panthers’ Jesse Cramer is second in the BVC in scoring with 46 points and leads BVC receivers with 22 catches for 431 yards and 6 touchdowns … Vanlue quarterback Chase Kloeppel is 48-102 passing for 551 yards with 2 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Taylor Chiow is his primary target with 23 catches for 234 yards … McComb leads the BVC series between the two schools 39-2-2 and has won 30 straight against the Wildcats.

Findlay TROJANS at Marion Harding PRESIDENTS
DATELINE: Marion
CONFERENCE: Greater Buckeye Conference
RECORDS: Findlay 1-4, 0-0; Marion Harding 0-5, 0-0
LAST WEEK: Findlay 1-4, 0-0; Marion Harding 0-5, 0-0
NOTES: Dave Hanneman will be covering the game. Here’s a link to his preview story.

Carey BLUE DEVILS at North Baltimore TIGERS
DATELINE: North Baltimore
CONFERENCE: Midland Athletic League
RECORDS: Carey 5-0, 2-0; North Baltimore 2-3, 0-1
LAST WEEK: Carey 42, Fostoria St. Wendelin 0; Tiffin Calvert 49, North Baltimore 0
NOTES: Carey travels to Memorial Field to take on North Baltimore Friday night … The Tigers have dropped 3 straight games after a 2-0 start … Carey ranks first In the MAL on defense allowing 161.4 yards and 11.0 points per game. They are second on offense at 397.0 yards and 35.6 points per game … The Tigers rank last in the MAL in both categories. On offense they gain 213.6 and while scoring 13.6 points per game. On defense they allow 405.8 yards and 32.4 points per game … Derek Stock and Matt Messmer give the Blue Devils quite a 1-2 punch running the football. Stock has rushed for 671 yards on 112 carries while Messmer has added 446 yards on 47 totes. Trevor Phoenix (254 yards) and Tyler Brodman (205 yards) are other rushing threats … Stock also leads the MAL in scoring with 66 points … Cy Strahm kicks and leads Carey’s receivers with 6 catches for 118 yards … Carey quarterback Tyler Brodman has only thrown the ball 30 times all season and is 15-30 passing for 235 yards with a touchdown and 2 interceptions …  North Baltimore quarterback Clinton Ebright is 37-87 passing for 459 yards with 4 touchdowns and 2 interceptions … Randy Marine is the top rusher for the Tigers with 209 yards on 50 carries. Gage Stewart has added 186 yards on 41 carries … Eli Simon is North Baltimore’s top receiver with 10 catches for 210 yards and a score … Carey hosts Hopewell-Loudon in an MAL showdown next week. .. Carey is ranked sixth in the latest Division VI Associated Press poll.

Mohawk WARRIORS at St. Wendelin MOHAWKS
DATELINE: Fostoria
CONFERENCE: Midland Athletic League
RECORDS: Mohawk 2-3, 1-1; St. Wendelin 3-2, 0-2
LAST WEEK: Mohawk 33, Seneca East 27; Carey 42, Fostoria St. Wendelin 0
NOTES: Mohawk’s Aaron Konkle was named the MAL defensive player of the wee after recording 10 tackles, 3 interceptions and a fumble recovery in last week’s win over Seneca East … Mohawk is allowing 31.4 points per game but that average is skewed due to a 55-0 loss to Genoa in Week 1 … It’s homecoming for the Mohawks Friday night at Memorial Stadium … Mohawk quarterback Keith Zeigler is 14-26 passing for 185 yards with an interception he is also second in the MAL in rushing with 590 yards on 93 carries. Zeigler also leads the MAL with 3 interceptions on defense … Mohawk’s Dan Shaferly has 181 yards on 44 carries while Nick Hohman leads the Warriors receivers with 5 catches for 89 yards … St. Wendelin rarely throws the ball either as quarterback Rob Herrig is 12-27 passing for 116 yards and a touchdown … J.J. Hrabak leads St. Wendelin with 490 yards on 53 carries. Teammate Dan Faber has 396 yards on 66 trips and Herrig has added an additional 205 yards rushing … Kevin Eibner has 7 catches for 75 yards to lead St. Wendelin’s receivers. He also leads the MAL with a 40.2 yard punt average … Last game between the Mohawks and Warriors as St. Wendelin’s football team moves to the NWCC beginning next year. Here is a preview of the game from the Review Times.

Seneca East TIGERS at Hopewell-Loudon CHIEFTAINS
DATELINE: Bascom
CONFERENCE: Midland Athletic League
RECORDS: Seneca East 2-3, 1-1; Hopewell-Loudon 5-0, 2-0
LAST WEEK: Mohawk 33, Seneca East 27; Hopewell-Loudon 55, St. Joseph 9
NOTES: Hopewell-Loudon leads the MAL on offense scoring 40.2 points and gaining 423.6 yards per game … The Chieftains are also second on defense at 202.2 yards per game and 11.6 points per contest … Seneca East’s offense is potent and is scoring 31.6 points per game … Hopewell-Loudon’s Tyler Brown is quietly putting together another terrific season. He is 79-115 passing for 1,158 yards with 11 touchdowns and 2 interceptions … Hopewell-Loudon’s Aaron Kapelka is third in the MAL in rushing with 549 yards on 95 carries and second in scoring with 60 points. Teammate Matt Brickner has added 269 yards on 65 carries … Hopewell-Loudon’s Andrew Brickner (24 catches, 410 yards), Miles Chapman (20 catches, 166 yards) and Jay Yost (17 catches, 384 yards) are among the MAL’s leading receivers … Seneca East’s Cody Kidwell is 78-132 passing for 1,008 yards with 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He also leads the team with 443 yards rushing on 46 carries … Seneca East’s Andy Ruffing leads the MAL with 26 catches for 397 yards and 5 touchdowns. Teammate Joe Diehm has 21 catches for 192 yards … Kenny Weaver has added 211 yards rushing for the Tigers … It’s Hopewell-Loudon’s homecoming Friday night at Chieftain Stadium … Hopewell-Loudon is ranked No.1 in the Associated Press Division VI poll …

Crestline BULLDOGS at Riverdale FALCONS
DATELINE: Mount Blanchard
CONFERENCE: North Central Conference
RECORDS: Crestline 3-2 overall, 1-1 NCC; Riverdale 3-2, 1-1
LAST WEEK: Buckeye Central 16, Crestline 7; Riverdale 17, Ontario 6
NOTES: Riverdale returns home to take on Crestline at Baum Field Friday night … The Falcons enter the game averaging 28.2 points per game while Crestline has struggled on offense and is scoring 11.6 points per outing … Riverdale sophomore quarterback Brady Weber is approaching 1,000 yards passing for the season. He is 58-108 passing for 949 yards with 8 touchdowns and 5 interceptions … The Falcons have three players among the NCC receiving leaders. Landon Kessler has 18 catches for 279 yards and 3 touchdowns, Chris Hepperly has 14 catches for 176 yards and Rick Duffman has snagged 13 catches for 210 yards … Levi Brown is second on the NCC in tackles for the Falcons with 66½ … Hepperly and Steven Rahn have both returned kickoffs for touchdowns this season … Crestline quarterback Hunter Finnegan is 55-115 Passing for 808 yards with 7 touchdowns and 7 interceptions … The Bulldogs’ Max Hartings is the NCC’s top receiver with 30 catches for 494 yards and 5 touchdowns … Finnegan also has a pair of interceptions on defense while Hastings Robinette leads the Bulldogs with 59 tackles so far this season … Riverdale spanked Crestline 35-6 last season but the Bulldogs are currently ranked No.7 in the Region 22 computer rankings … The Bulldogs are slow starters and have scored just 6 points  in the first quarter this season.

Fostoria Senior REDMEN at Shelby WHIPPETS
DATELINE: Shelby
CONFERENCE: Northern Ohio League
RECORDS: Fostoria 5-0, 2-0; Shelby 4-1, 2-0
LAST WEEK: Fostoria 45, Galion 22; Shelby 42, Norwalk 14
NOTES: Winner of this game at W.W. Skiles Field takes over sole possession of first place in the NOL standings … Fostoria quarterback Micah Hyde leads the NOL with 588 yards rushing on 98 carries with 10 touchdowns. He is 86-116 passing for 936 yards for 10 touchdowns and 3 interceptions and leads the NOL in scoring with 86 points  … Fostoria has a trio of receivers among the NOL leaders. Jordan Bulkowski has 33 catches for 328 yards, Shaquille Taylor has 17 catches for 234 yards and Derek Pullom has 17 receptions for 222 yards … Anthony Costilla leads the Redmen on defense with 58 tackles. Teammate Jon Ramirez has 50 tackles with 6 sacks and a pair of fumble recoveries … Shelby will coming into the game with a solid running attack. Quarterback Zach Strine has 429 yards on 86 carries while Kyle Bailey has added 397 yards on 72 totes with 6 touchdowns. Strine is also 39-60 passing for 550 yards with 8 touchdowns and 3 interceptions … Briton Lash leads the Whippets receiving corps with 19 catches for 216 yards and 5 touchdowns … Bailey leads the NOL in tackles with 77 and sacks with 10½ while Stephens has added 3 interceptions on defense for Shelby … Fostoria’s offense is averaging 342.8 yards and 34.0 points per game while Shelby’s defense is allowing a league-low 213.0 yards and 17.8 points per contest … Shelby beat the Redmen last season 26-15. … Fostoria is ranked fourth in the latest Associated Press Division IV poll … Here is preview on the game from the Review Times.

Upper Sandusky RAMS at Tiffin Columbian TORNADOES
DATELINE: Tiffin
CONFERENCE: Northern Ohio League
RECORDS: Upper Sandusky 1-4, 0-2; Tiffin Columbian 3-2, 1-1
LAST WEEK: Bellevue 48, Upper Sandusky 7; Tiffin Columbian 38, Willard 7
NOTES: A tough match up this week for the Rams as they travel to Frost Kalnow Stadium … The Rams rank last in the NOL on offense at 158.0 yards and 9.6 points per game and are also last on defense at 366.2 yards while allowing 26.6 points per game … Tiffin Columbian’s Ethan Kagy is second in the NOL in rushing with 437 yards n 77 carries with 6 touchdowns. Running mate Phil Chavez has 365 yards on 70 carries. Kagy is also 45-70 passing for 615 yards with 5 touchdowns and 3 interceptions … Columbian‘s Derek Kneeskern is the NOL’s top receiver with 24 catches for 391 yards. He is also second in the league in scoring with 49 points and is the conference‘s top punter with a 38.8 kick average… Upper Sandusky’s Cole Johnson is 19-55 passing or 336 yards with a touchdown and 4 interceptions. Chad McKee leads the Rams with 9 catches for 173 yards and a pair of scores ... Chase Kenner has 3 interceptions and Wyatt Garber has 64 tackles to lead Upper Sandusky on the defensive side of the football …

Bluffton PIRATES at Allen East MUSTANGS
DATELINE: Harrod
CONFERENCE: Northwest Conference
RECORDS: Bluffton 2-3, 1-2; Allen East 2-3, 2-2
LAST WEEK: Ada 44, Bluffton 7; Allen East 14, Convoy Crestview 10
NOTES: Bluffton struggled in last week’s 44-7 loss to Ada … The Pirates only gained 2 yards in the first half of the game while Ada’s Mitchell Faine connected for 296 yards passing and 3 touchdowns against the Pirates … Bluffton quarterback Tyler Neal went down with an ankle injury in the first half of last week’s game … It will be the first time Bluffton has visited Allen East’s new field near Harrod, Goodwin Stadium … The Pirates tripped up the Mustangs last season 20-13 … Neal is 25-46 passing for 289 yards and a pair of touchdowns … He also leads the Pirates with 86 yards rushing … Tyler Breidenbach is Bluffton’s top receiver with 89 yards on 6 catches …

Paulding PANTHERS at Ada BULLDOGS
DATELINE: Ada
CONFERENCE: Northwest Conference
RECORDS: Paulding 3-2, 1-2; Ada 5-0, 3-0
LAST WEEK: Paulding 41, Delta 21; Ada 44, Bluffton 7
NOTES: It’s Ada’s homecoming game this week at War Memorial Stadium … The Bulldogs are on a tear and are averaging 35.0 points per game while allowing just 9.0 points per contest … Ada and Delphos Jefferson are tied for the NWC lead at 3-0 … The Bulldogs will host the Wildcats in Week 9 … Ada is ranked seventh in the latest Division VI Associated Press poll.

Delta PANTHERS at Patrick Henry PATRIOTS
DATELINE: Hamler
CONFERENCE: Northwest Ohio Athletic League
RECORDS: Delta 1-4, 0-3; Patrick Henry 5-0, 4-0
LAST WEEK: Paulding 41, Delta 21; Patrick Henry 48, Evergreen 14
NOTES: Patrick Henry’s offense has been rolling. The Patriots are averaging 41.6 points per game while allowing just 57 points, 21 of which have come on kickoff returns for touchdowns … Patrick Henry quarterback Luke George is 51-56 passing for 728 yards with 7 touchdowns and no interceptions. His favorite targets are Mitch Leonard with 17 catches for 231 yards and a touchdowns and Brian Kline with 8 catches for 203 yards and 3 scores … George has also rushed for 243 yards … Justin Buenger leads the Patriots on the ground with 537 yards on 47 carries … Delta is allowing 32.8 points per game … Cody Petit leads the defensive unit for PH with 34 tackles …Patrick Henry (4-0) and Archbold (3-0) are the only unbeaten teams left in the NWOAL … The Patriots are ranked second in the latest Associated Press Division V poll.

Elmwood ROYALS at Gibsonburg GOLDEN BEARS
DATELINE: Gibsonburg
CONFERENCE: Suburban Lakes League
RECORDS: Elmwood 3-2, 1-1; Gibsonburg 2-3, 1-1
LAST WEEK: Elmwood 28, Lakota 27, OT; Gibsonburg 43, Lake 7
NOTES: Elmwood got back on the winning track with a thrilling 28-27 overtime win over rival Lakota last week … The Royals have won four of their last five games … Elmwood quarterback Reid Rothenbuhler is 85-183 passing for 1,068 yards with 9 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He is also the team’s top rusher with 330 yards on 81 carries with 2 touchdowns … Thor Bottesch leads Elmwood’s receivers with 21 catches for 232 yards and a score. Shannon Stewart has 16 catches for 211 yards and Tyler Chamberlain has 17 receptions for 203 yards and 4 scores … Stewart also has 40 tackles and 3 interceptions on defense … Lewis Stearns leads the Royals on defense with 68 tackles with a pair of sacks …

Ottawa-Glandorf TITANS at St. Marys Memorial
DATELINE: St. Marys
CONFERENCE: Western Buckeye League
RECORDS: Ottawa-Glandorf 3-2, 3-1; St. Marys Memorial 5-0, 4-0
LAST WEEK: Ottawa-Glandorf 42, Elida 0; St. Marys Memorial 46, Wapakoneta 23
NOTES:  St. Marys Memorial beat Ottawa-Glandorf last season 35-21 but the Titans were still able to win the Western Buckeye League title … Ottawa-Glandorf has found its offense as they are averaging 30.7 points per game the last three weeks and have a modest 3-game winning streak … Defensively, Ottawa-Glandorf is allowing just 11.2 points per game and have posted two straight shut outs … St. Marys Memorial has won six of the last 10 meetings between the schools … St. Marys piles up 530 yards of offense in last week;s win over Wapakoneta … Jeremy Frey rushed for 142 yards and a pair of touchdowns for the Roughriders last week … St. Marys Memorial is ranked second in the latest Division III Associated Press poll … St. Marys leads the all-time series 32-8-1.
NOTE: Columbus Grove at Sidney Lehman is Saturday.

Boys Sectional Golf Results!

Boys sectional golf results?
We got ‘em. We’ll be posting the Northwest District Division II and III sectional results here on the Buzz 19th Hole as soon as we get them typed up.

Week VI Prep Picks

By Jamie Baker
Great week last week, 16-1 to be exact. The only game I stumbled on was the Spencerville-Columbus Grove game and I had no clue who to pick in that one. Brings the season mark to 71-13 for the season.
The cloudy ball is a bit cloudy today. The picks are below. Check back in later today for Division II and III sectional golf results and The Courier’s Friday Football Notes tomorrow.

Baker’s Picks
Arlington over Arcadia -- Arlington rebounds in a big way this week.
Hardin Northern over Cory-Rawson -- Toss up game o’ the week. Just have a gut feeling the Bears will pull this one out.
Liberty-Benton over Leipsic -- Anyone in Eagleland concerned that L-B won’t get tested before the playoffs?
Pandora-Gilboa over Van Buren -- Like to see the Black Knights finish above .500 but they have a brutal stretch of games coming up.
McComb over Vanlue -- Doesn’t matter who quarterbacks, the Panthers roll in this one.
Findlay over Marion Harding -- Finally, the Trojans reach the friendly confines of the GBC.
Carey over North Baltimore -- Blue Devils won’t have a let down with archrival Mohawk and H-L looming on the schedule.
Mohawk over St. Wendelin -- Hope the Mohawks don’t get too banged up and can give the Warriors a game.
Hopewell-Loudon over Seneca East -- Prayed to all the good people I know at Seneca East after losing a student in an auto accident last week.
Riverdale over Crestline -- If Riverdale knocks off Crestline they can run the rest of the table in the NCC.
Fostoria Senior over Shelby -- Shelby upended Columbian in Week 4, be wary Redmen.
Tiffin Columbian over Upper Sandusky -- Tornadoes will be on a rampage.
Bluffton over Allen East -- Another tough pick, it’s been a struggle on offense for the Pirates all season.
Ada over Paudling -- Ada by at least 3 touchdowns.
Patrick Henry over Delta -- Delta isn’t the team they were a couple of years ago, PH hasn’t missed a beat.
Elmwood over Gibsonburg -- Elmwood won a thriller last week, they’ll keep it going against the Golden Bears.
St. Marys Memorial over Ottawa-Glandorf -- Winning streak for the Titans comes to an end this week unfortunately.
Sidney Lehman over Columbus Grove -- Just a hunch.

Stoking the Competitive Fire a Bit

By Dave Hanneman

The strangest thing happened at the Greater Buckeye Conference golf tournament Tuesday at Sycamore Springs Golf Course.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, competition broke out!

And the people saw that it was good.

Findlay won the GBC golf championship with a 323 team score. No surprise there. Findlay has won nine league golf championships in the last 10 years as a member of the Great Lakes League and more recently the GBC.

It’s been a foregone conclusion that because of its socio-economic advantages, Findlay is always going to dominate what many would consider the country club/suburbia sports like golf, tennis, soccer, etc. But you can’t tell me Findlay has better athletes than the other GBC schools. More likely it’s the fact the athletes they do get out in those sports have earlier instruction and greater opportunity to specialize and be successful in those activities.

That’s what was so neat about the GBC golf tournament. Yeah, Findlay won the championship — again. But Fremont Ross (326) was just three shots back and Napoleon (330) was right in the thick of things as well. The four scores used by Fremont Ross came from three freshmen and a sophomore; Napoleon graduates just one golfer from its team.

Little was actually said about the closeness of this year’s tournament. But you could just sense an underlying current of competitiveness running through the different teams. It was like they were all thinking, "Okay, you won this year. But we’ve got all these kids coming back, we’re going to wear our Foot Joys out practicing next summer, and we just might be the ones taking that shiny trophy home next year."

You know what that is? That’s competition.

You know what competition does? If your opponents get better, it makes you get better too.

Good competition strengthens a league.

At least as far as golf goes, I think the GBC took a big step forward this year. It wouldn’t hurt for some of the other sports to kick it up a notch, too.

UF has to pick it up on offense

By Brian Lester
Let me just set the record straight here and tell you that I am not blaming just one guy for the University of Findlay’s struggles over the last two games. I have received comments saying that I am pointing a finger at Anthony Lanzara and that is not true.
Yes, Lanzara is the starting quarterback for the Oilers, as the quarterback, he is responsible for moving the offense down the field.
At times, he has shown signs of promise. At other times, he has struggled. Still, I like Lanzara and I believe he can be the type of quarterback that can lead a team.
But there are 10 other guys on the field. The offensive line needs to do its job of protecting its quarterback and giving him time to throw the ball. It needs to open up holes for the running backs because a team can’t be successful without a ground game.
The receivers need to catch passes, too, because there have been several instances where they have dropped catchable balls.
The injury to Dustin Zielaskiewicz doesn’t help matters but Mike Chambers has proven himself as a quality receiver and Jonathan Bell has big-play potential as well.
The bottom line is it takes a team effort for the offense to run smoothly and put points on the board.
Over the last two games, UF has scored just seven points. That needs to change if the Oilers are to get back on track.
The defense has to do its part as well, though. UF’s defensive unit has come up big this year in certain situations, forcing fumbles and picking off passes.
In fact, the Oilers are plus six in turnover margin and everyone knows the teams in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference that are great defensively tend to have the most success.
Look, the rebuilding of the Oilers is going to take time. Fans just have to be patient. UF head coach Jon Wauford is only in his second season and although his team is in the midst of a two-game slide, he will put this program on the right track.
The players believe in what Wauford is teaching him and in the next year or two he will have the Oilers poised to be one of the teams to beat in the GLIAC.
For now, the team just needs to focus on getting back on track and that starts with Saturday afternoon’s road game against Northwood. Beating a winless Timberwolves squad and getting to 3-2 on the season would be a nice way for the Oilers to end the first month of the season.
Around the GLIAC: Michigan Tech will travel to No. 2 Grand Valley State on Saturday and this might be the last time during the regular season that the Lakers are in danger of losing a game. Tech has scored 39 points or more three times and opened its season with a big 26-21 win over 2007 NCAA Division II playoff qualifier Winona State.
The Lakers, though, have scored 31 points or more in all three of their games and their defense hasn’t given up more than 21 in a game this year.
This game has the potential to be a shootout but I doubt it will be. The Lakers’ defense is too good and should have no problem taking care of business against the Huskies and putting themselves well on their way to another undefeated regular season.

Girls Division II sectional golf results; Findlay wins GBC golf

Girls sectional golf results from around the Northwest District are beginning to trickle in. Also, Findlay's boys golf team captured the GBC title today at Sycamore Springs Golf Course with a 3 stroke victory over runner-up Fremont Ross.
We’ll post the results when we get them this evening on The Buzz 19th hole here.
Van Buren’s girls have advanced as a team from the sectional at Country Acres while North Baltimore’s Felicia Konrad qualified as an individual with a score of 112.

Browns need a quick fix

By Jamie Baker
OK Browns fans I’ve stewed on this 0-3 start for a couple of days.
I used to enjoy Sundays. Anymore on Sundays at around 5 p.m. my blood pressure begins to rise and I start looking around the neighborhood because I want to kick a dog.
So how can the Browns fix this derailment of the season before it turns into a runaway freight train to a 2-14 or 3-13 finish?
Here’s a link to Terry Pluto’s blog for the Plain Dealer, who says it’s crisis management time for the Browns.
Obviously the guy to the right doesn’t know how to fix things. He even said as much in his post-game press conference after the Browns were embarrassed by the Baltimore Ravens 28-10 Sunday.
“Right now, we’re not a very good football team,” Crennel said. “We’re going to have to do a lot better or this thing’s really going to get away from us.”
He also added, “Why it turned out the way it did, I’m trying to figure out myself.”
You are the head coach Romeo, if you’re trying to figure out why you lost on Sunday, I don’t think you’re up to the job. His last statement is full of fail.
Crennel showed no confidence in his team kicking fourth quarter field goals down by more than a touchdown late in the last two games. Hell, they’ve had 19 penalties the last two games. Many of the infractions were for false starts, illegal motion or just not lining up right.
When I was in midget football, if we lined up wrong, our coach told us to bend over and he actually kicked us in the behind. Maybe Romeo should do that after every penalty is sure as hell would be better than watching his emotionless face on the sidelines. From all accounts he seems like a nice enough guy, but where’s the fire and the passion.
At any rate, Brady Quinn could be starting next week against Cincinnati. Anyone else got any suggestions on what the Browns can do to get out of this funk.
All I know is my brothers and I are getting together at my mom’s to watch the game together next weekend. If they play against Cincinnati like they did in those first three games, hide the women and children.

UPDATES:
We’ve had plenty of updates to the Buzz the past couple of days and we’ll hopefully have girls sectional golf scores posted on the blog tonight.
— Updated the cross country honor roll from the weekend Here’s a link.
— BVC and NOL football stats have been updated along with complete league standings for all of the conferences in NW Ohio. Volleyball and soccer standings for area leagues have also been updated on the Buzz Stats & Standings page.
— League golf results can be found on the new Buzz 19th hole.