CLIPPERS SURVIVE WARRIOR RALLY, FRANKEN MAKES HISTORY
COLUMBIANA, OH- Columbiana raced out to a 17-0 lead midway through the second quarter before Brookfield took control and closed to within one point, only to come up short here at Firestone Park as the Clippers came away with a 24-23 victory. Clipper kicker Colin Schick opened the scoring with a 24-yard field goal in the first quarter. Then, senior signal-caller Jakob Cross continued his dual-threat assault scoring on a 70-yard run and firing a strike to Hunter Zentner from 20 yards out to give the Clippers a 17-point cushion in this key non-league matchup. But Brookfield would turn the tide before the half and trailed 17-7 going to the locker room.
Brookfield would hit several big plays in the second half turning short passes into long gains while quarterback Haden Gibson knifed his way through the defense on the ground. However, after cutting the lead to 17-15 in the fourth quarter with momentum clearly on their side, the
Warriors elected to do something most teams have avoided in 2019. They gave dangerous Clipper return man Joey Bable a chance to make a play, and he did just that taking the ensuing kickoff 90-yards for a touchdown to push it back to a two-score lead. Crowned homecoming
king at halftime, Bable rescued the Clippers with his scintillating run down the sideline. After cutting the lead down to one, the Warriors were on the move again late in the fourth quarter. But with less than three minutes remaining Chase Franken’s interception on the Clipper
fifteen staved off a potential go-ahead score. Coach Bob Spaite then rolled the dice calling a deep pass out of a power formation for a crucial first down.
Down to one timeout, Coach Randy Clark instructed his Brookfield defense to allow a Clipper touchdown which would give the Warriors a chance to get the ball back and potentially tie it at the end of regulation. He did not count on the savvy senior Franken sensing the situation and giving himself up inside the Warrior ten, which allowed the Clippers to take a knee and survive.
Columbiana (4-3) hosts Wellsville in a key Eastern Ohio Athletic Conference game next week. Both teams will need a victory in that one to keep their playoff hopes alive. Join us on YSNLive.com for the action.
Game note: Clippers standout Chase Franken became Columbiana’s leader in career receiving yards to go along with his career receiving TD record.
*Story contributed by YSN’s Voice of Columbiana, Mark Franken.
