Tag Archive for: Austintown Fitch

FITCH SENDS BENNETT PACKING

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AUSTINTOWN OH-

Coming off a big win in Week 4 against The Ursuline Fighting Irish, The Austintown Fitch Falcons looked to the halfway point of the season, where they would welcome in another out-of-state team. This time, that team would be both one of New York’s and the city of Buffalo’s finest teams! That team being The Class AA state runners-up from a year ago, The Lewis J. Bennett Tigers. 

For Bennett, they came into this season riding a ton of momentum off their 2021 campaign; however, losing their top 2 rushers from a season ago, The Tigers would have to look to get creative on offense in hopes they can get replacements for over 3000 rushing yards from last year. 

Austintown would win the coin toss, elect to defer and stop Bennett’s offensive drive dead in its tracks. A theme that would be all too familiar for The Tigers come the end of the game. Fitch would strike on two big passes in back-to-back drives from DeShawn Vaughn Jr. to help Fitch take an early 14-0 advantage. Not slowing at all on offense, The Falcons would hit paydirt on their first five drives consecutively. Owning a 36-6 lead going into halftime, Austintown would look to play keep away in the second half, with Fitch receiving the kickoff. 

Executing that plan masterfully, The Falcons burn the first 7 minutes of the third, utilizing the running game clock to its fullest. The Tigers would end up with a pair of touchdowns in the fourth quarter; however, it was too little too late. As Fitch continued to eat away the clock, before coming away with the Week 5 win 42-20. 

The win sets up Austintown (5-0) with their biggest test yet! Heading to Paul Brown Stadium to take on another set of tigers, this time, it happens to be Massillon Washington’s (4-1).

 

Scoring by Quarter 

Q1: Fitch 21 – 0 Bennett

Q2: Fitch 15 – 6 Bennett

Q3: Fitch 0 – 0 Bennett

Q4: Fitch 6 – 14 Bennett

Final: Fitch 42 – 20 Bennett

Stats (Austintown)

Passing- 

DeShawn Vaughn Jr. – 11/15, 172 YDS, 2 TD. 

Rushing-

Jamell James – 17 Carries, 50 YDS, 2 TD.

D.J. Williams – 10 Carries, 77 YDS, 1 TD. 

DeShawn Vaughn Jr. – 5 Carries, 26 YDS, 1 TD. 

Receiving-

Jayden Eley – 4 REC, 68 YDS. 

Cam Smith- 4 REC, 58 YDS, 1 TD.

Dominic Perry – 1 REC, 33 YDS, 1 TD. 

Defense-

Brian Robinson – 4 Tackles, 1.0 Sack, 2 TFL, 1 FR. 

Xavier Dahn – 3 Tackles, 1 FF. 

Jashaughn Barrett – 2 Tackles, 1 FF.

D.J. Williams – 2 Tackles, 1 TFL. 

Kicking-

Josiah Berni – 4/4 XP.

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell

SPARTANS SMASH FITCH

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BOARDMAN OH- The lady Spartans played a great match against Fitch beating them 183 to 233. Junior Sophia Rivera had the low score for the match of a 41 and senior Zoey Fick- Mills came in second place with a 45. Seniors Emily Choleva and Kate Pendleton shot a 48 and 49.

The Spartans take on the Canfield and Poland Thursday at Mill Creek

*Contributed By Lee Christman at boardmanathletics.org

CANFIELD KEEPS WINNING IN THE AAC

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CANFIELD OH- The Cardinals girls soccer team has been the definition of dominant in the AAC over the last decade. That didn’t change on Wednesday night as Canfield improved to 5-1-0 and (2-0-0 in AAC) with a 3-1 win over Austintown Fitch.

Canfield goals were scored by Addy Masters, and Maci Toporcer with 2. Austintown got a goal contributed by Bailey Baker. Canfield assists were made by Maci Toporcer  Canfield goalkeeper Lauren Padgett had 4 saves  Austintown goalie Jordan Corel had 8 saves

FALCONS TAKE FIRST PLACE WHILE KINKADE REACHES 1000 ASSISTS

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AUSTINTOWN OH- There were a lot of story lines heading in to Tuesday’s matchup between Austintown Fitch and Canfield. First, and probably most important was first place in the AAC. Both teams sported an undefeated AAC record coming in. Along with that, Canfield setter Riley Kinkade came in needing just 6 assists to reach 1000 in her career. Then add the fact that Fitch standout Jocelyn Jourdan was celebrating a birthday.  In the end, Kinkade got 1,000 assists, and Fitch got first place with a four set win. (25-16 20-25 25-19 25-19)

Jocelyn Jourdan celebrated her birthday by leading the Falcons with 25 kills, and 14 digs to complete a double double.  Kylie Folkwein also finished with a double double totaling 15 digs, and 11 kills.  Rylie Simons continues to shine as the Falcons setter with 45 assists.

Canfield’s night was headlined by Kinkade’s 1000th career assist in the second set.  She needed 6, she finished with 15.  Maddy Cleevely led the Cardinals with 14 kills on the night.  Abby Muckleroy finished with 8 kills, 3 blocks, and 5 aces. Parker Wlikins led the defense with 16 digs.

Fitch returns to action on Thursday as they host Warren Harding. Canfield ventures outside the AAC on Thursday as they host Mooney.

 

TIGERS SHUTOUT FALCONS IN AAC PLAY

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AUSTINTOWN, OH- The Fitch Falcons girls soccer team hosted the Howland Tigers in an AAC conference match last night. The Tigers defense was able to hold a shutout, and pick up a 2-0 victory on Monday night at Falcon Stadium.

Howland’s goals were scored by Gracie Villwock and Khloe Liakaris. The assists go to Ava Yannucci and Gemma Mariani. The goalkeeper for Howland Taylor Fairchild had two saves for the Tigers in net. Howland is 1-0 in conference play, and 3-2-1 overall. They will return to action tomorrow as they will host Warren G Harding at 7 P.M. Austintown will travel to take on AAC foe Canfield on Wednesday at 7 P.M.

FITCH HOLDS OFF IRISH RALLY

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YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio- In a battle of two of the area’s premier programs, Ursuline and Austintown Fitch took center stage at Stambaugh Stadium. Ursuline came in off a thrilling 40-38 victory over Farrell (PA) last Saturday night, and Fitch came in off an impressive 48-18 victory over Glenoak.

After forcing the Irish to turn the ball over on downs on their first possession, it was all Fitch. The Falcons forced three first-half turnovers, including an 86-yard fumble recovery touchdown by DJ Williams. A rushing touchdown by Williams as well as two touchdowns from DeShawn Vaughn Jr. to Jayden Eley gave Fitch a 28-0 lead heading into halftime.

The second half was time for Ursuline to try to get the ball into the endzone after multiple possessions in the first half that were pushed into Fitch territory but came out with zero points. An 84-yard pick-six from Iowa State commit Cam Smith made it 35-0 and put the running clock into effect after Ursuline’s first drive of the third quarter. That was when Ursuline started to get the offense rolling. The Irish answered quickly with a TD pass from Jack Ericson to DC Ferrell, eliminating the running clock, and even though the Falcons would score another touchdown to put it back into effect on their next possession, Ursuline was finally finding their rhythm. The Irish went into the fourth quarter down 42-14 but would put up 27 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to pull off the incredible comeback. The attempt came up just short though, as Fitch would recover Ursuline onside kick attempt in the final minute to hang on for a 42-34 victory.

The rushing attacks for both teams impressed mightily tonight, as Christian Lynch had another night with more than 200 yards for Ursuline, and the duo of Jamell James and Dj Williams combined for 240 yards on the ground, each tallying a touchdown on the night.

*Contributed By YSN’s Anthony Romo

LIGHTS, CAM, ACTION

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AUSTINTOWN OH- When looking for a high character person, one that can be a voice of reason and someone that is always striving to better themselves. Look no further than Austintown Fitch Falcons senior Cam Smith. 

Playing as a starter under T.J. Parker over the last three seasons, Smith was a hot commodity amongst colleges this past off season. As the defensive back drew interest from over a half dozen universities prior to the start of the 2022 campaign. Ultimately deciding to be a Cyclone and take his talent to Iowa State University. 

Having a unique blend of power and speed, makes Smith a tough ask for any receiver to go up against. Being a huge part of Austintowns 3-0 start, Smith and The Falcons look to continue rolling in the season by being a defensively sound football team. 

From his favorite moments in the sport, to the qualities he looks for in a coach, to the recruiting process. All that and more was discussed as Cam Smith stopped by Running Point to chat with Anthony and Ty. Do not miss out on this Player Profile interview EXCLUSIVELY on YSN!

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell.

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FALCONS CATCH FIRE AGAINST BOARDMAN

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AUSTINTOWN OH- The Austintown Fitch Falcons have sat, perched atop The All-American Conference (AAC) for the past two years. Staking claim to two consecutive conference championships in 2020 and 2021, Fitch goes into the year looking for a three-peat. Going into Thursday evening, The Falcons were 2-0 in conference play, winning both matches having not dropped a set in the conference this year. 

The Thursday evening matchup? None other than the age-old rival in The Boardman Spartans, who were coming off a straight set victory against The Warren Harding Raiders on Wednesday. With the high energy rolling around, both teams came out with a fire! Exchanging blows in the early going, both teams battled in a back-and-forth affair in the beginning of Set 1, drawing even 13-13 at one point. However, Fitch grabbed a lead and flew away with it, going on a set-clinching run to emerge victorious by ten points!

Leading 1-0 in sets, Austintown looked to bring out the same intensity they used to end the previous set. But similar to Set 1, The Spartans were filled with a ton of fight to start Set 2. THis time around, it was the freshman play of Rylie Simons behind the service line that catapulted The Falcons to a 25-13 Set 2 win. 

With a big lead in sets 2-0, Fitch was looking to close out the victory. Girls like Jocelyn Jourdan were great per usual, slamming down multiple kills per set to help her team throughout the night. For Boardman in Set 3, The Spartans were determined to avoid a big Falcons run, and did they ever! Putting up a great fight with girls like Gia Triveri and Gianna Cicchillo stepping up and battling the entire set. Austintown ultimately emerged the four point victors in Set 3, but not without a great battle with Boardman.

Kylie Folkwein was another Falcon freshman that was very impressive! Stepping up big on both offense and defense with great efficiency was more than enough to earn her Player of the Game! 

Both teams will travel into The Northeast 8 Conference (NE8) in the coming days. Fitch (6-1) set for a battle of the birds, as they take on Hubbard (1-5) on Saturday, September 10th at 1:00 p.m. As for Boardman (3-4) they will hit the road down 224 to Poland (4-3) next Monday, September 12th at 7:00 p.m. in a matchup with The Bulldogs! 

Set Scores

Fitch 25 – 15 Boardman

Fitch 25 – 13 Boardman

Fitch 25 – 21 Boardman

Match: Fitch 3 – 0 Boardman

 

Stats (Austintown)

Kylie Folkwein (Player of the Game) : 11 Kills, 1 Ace, 9 Digs, 10 Receptions, 55.0 Kill%, .400 Hit%. 

Jocelyn Jourdan: 14 Kills, 3 Aces, 1 Block, 9 Digs, 5 Receptions. 

Afton Roby: 5 Kills, 2 Digs.

Jordan Smith: 5 Kills, 2 Aces, 8 Digs, 2 Receptions.

Rylie Simons: 3 Kills, 1 Ace, 7 Digs, 34 Assists.

Jordan Binion: 1 Kill, 1 Block, 1 Reception. 

Lillian Dilts: 1 Ace, 5 Digs, 2 Assists, 6 Receptions.

Avery Rosko: 1 Ace, 1 Dig, 1 Reception.

Julia Jordan: 1 Dig.

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell

FALCONS CUT DOWN GLEN OAK

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In the 12th meeting all-time historically between The GlenOak Golden Eagles and The Austintown Fitch Falcons, it would occur on a humid Friday night in early September. Fitch came in sporting a record of 2-0 while The Golden Eagles were 1-1.

GlenOak struck fast, getting the opening kickoff and taking their first drive down the field and capping it off with a quarterback keeper from Adrion Burt for a touchdown. A missed PAT kept The Golden Eagles lead at 6-0. 

Although they might be Falcons, Fitch got the job done on the ground, to the tune of 41 unanswered points over the span of the next three quarters, giving Austintown a 41-6 lead at one point. Senior running back Jamell James had 103 yards rushing and 3 rushing touchdowns in just the first half! As Jamell set the ton D.J. got the beat, as junior running back D.J. Williams grabbed 115 yards on the ground and a couple of scores as well.

GlenOak grabbed a couple of fourth quarter scores, with Avante Burt getting one on the ground and Cole Anderson tossing a touchdown pass to Xavier Harris. However, the deficit would prove to be too much to overcome, as Fitch secured another score on the ground to keep the running clock rule in effect and burn the time away. 

As The Falcons earned the 48-18 victory over The Golden Eagles to get themselves another victory over a Division 1 opponent. Austintown (3-0) will now have a premier matchup, as they travel to YSU in week four to take on The Ursuline Fighting Irish (2-0). (Ursuline to face Farrell in a week three Saturday matchup.)

The Irish and Falcons are two teams that know how to put on a show, as a single point separated these two teams in an Irish victory a year ago. You can find that matchup and more on YSN!

 

Scoring by Quarter

Q1: AF 14 – 6 GlenOak

Q2: AF 21 – 0 GlenOak

Q3: AF 6 – 0 GlenOak

Q4: AF 7 – 12 GlenOak

Final: AF 48 – 18 GlenOak

Stats (Austintown)

Passing

Deshawn Vaughn Jr. : 6/6, 136 YDS, 22.7 YDS AVG. 

Rushing

Jamell James : 7 CAR, 162 YDS, 23.1 YPC (Yards per Carry), 4 TD.

D.J. Williams : 12 CAR, 115 YDS, 9.6 YPC, 2 TD.

Deshawn Vaughn Jr. : 5 CAR, 42 YDS, 8.4 YPC, 1 TD.

Receiving 

Jayden Eley : 2 REC, 60 YDS, 30 YPR (Yards per Reception).

Dan Evans III : 2 REC, 30 YDS, 15 YPR. 

Dominic Perry : 1 REC, 30 YDS, 30 YPR.

Cam Smith : 1 REC, 16 YDS, 16 YPR. 

Defense 

Brian Robinson : 7 TAK (Tackles), 3 TFL (Tackles for Loss), 1 Sack, 1 Blocked XP.

Donovan Bell-Sullivan : 3 TAK, 2 TFL, 1 Sack. 

Dan Evans III : 5 TAK, 1 TFL. 

Bryant Butler : 4 TAK, 1.5 TFL.

Xavier Dahn : 4 TAK, 0.5 TFL, 1 FR (Fumble Recovery). 

Rocco DiFlorio : 2 TAK, 1 TFL.

Christian Latone : 2 TAK, 1 TFL.

Kicking

Johnny Ruggles : 6/7 XP.

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell

FITCH GRABS ANOTHER CONFERENCE WIN

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AUSTINTOWN OH-

The All-American Conference (AAC) has had its fair share of great volleyball teams, so when conference battles happen, a little extra attention tends to shift to the hardwood. This edition of an AAC showdown occurred between The Austintown Fitch Falcons and The Howland Tigers.

When it comes to conference play, Fitch has been incredibly strong. Going into Thursday evenings matchup with The Tigers, Austintown carried a eight match winning streak against Howland, dating back to October 3rd, 2017. Also carrying a 9 match winning streak against The AAC and a 16-1 conference record in the last three years, Fitch is additionally looking for their third straight AAC championship. 

Both teams brought back their top kill getters from a season ago, as both Howland’s Courtney Clark (290 Kills) and Fitch’s Jocelyn Jourdan (405 Kills) return as senior leaders for their respective teams. Both teams also sported a winning record heading into Thursday, the first time that has occurred since September 10th, 2020. 

Setting the tone early, Fitch grabbed an early lead in Set 1, and the freshmen play of both Rylie Simons and Kylie Folkwein helped close out the opening set victory by a convincing nine points. Creating a ton of excitement for not just the present, but the future of Falcon volleyball. By Set 2, Austintown had momentum, they also had Iso Jo! As Jocelyn Jourdan had her motor running on full speed, swinging with incredible accuracy and closing out the set victory. 

The Falcons, now leading in sets 2-0, were looking to grab the match victory. However, throughout the night, the play of sophomores Sianna Dykes and Sonia Pitts was huge! As Dykes grabbed multiple kills in Set 3 and forced the closest set of the night. As The Tigers look back to get to their winning tradition, as 11-13 a year ago would be the first sub .500 season Howland volleyball would have since 2015, winning 16 games in 2021 and 20 games in 2019. 

Despite a valiant effort, Fitch proved to be too much, clinching the third set in a close 25-19 victory. Extending their win streak in the conference, Fitch (5-1) will continue a conference slate, welcoming in Boardman (2-3) next Thursday, September 8th. 

Howland (4-3) will be on the road again, this time to face The Cardinal Mooney Cardinals (4-2) also on September 8th. 

Set Scores

Fitch 25 – 16 Howland

Fitch 25 – 11 Howland

Fitch 25 – 19 Howland

Stats (Fitch)

Jocelyn Jourdan – 15 Kills, 8 Digs, 1 Assist, 1 Ace. 

Jordan Smith – 2 Kills, 6 Digs, 1 Assist,  2 Aces, 12 Service PTS.

Afton Roby – 10 Kills, 1 Dig, 1 Block. 

Rylie Simons – 2 Kills, 26 Assists, 13 Digs, 2 Aces, 1 Block. 

Kylie Folkwein –  3 Kills, 7 Digs, 1 Assist, 14 Service PTS, 3 Aces. 

Lillie Dilts – 9 Digs, 3 Assists,  1 Ace. 

Jordan Binion – 4 Kills, 1 Dig, 1 Block.

Julia Jordan – 3 Digs. 

Cierra Cable – 3 Digs. 

Avery Rosko – 3 Kills, 

Isabella DiRenzo – 1 Ace.

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell.