Tag Archive for: Norwayne

CARDINALS ARE ROAD WARRIORS IN THE PLAYOFFS

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CRESTON, Ohio –

In a battle of two of the top offenses in region 17, it was defense and special teams that proved to be the difference.

Making their second hour plus trip in as many weeks, the 13 seeded Cardinal Mooney Cardinals (6-6) made the long trek to Creston to take on the number 5 seed Norwayne Bobcats (8-4).

Late in the first quarter, Norwayne was set up for a thirty-yard field goal to take an early lead, but a low lined kick would be bated down by a Mooney defender to keep the score knotted at zero. The ensuing drive for Mooney would result in the Cardinals having to settle for their own thirtyyarder, however this operation would prove to be successful, ending in Nick Pregibon kicking it through for the opening lead of the night less than two minutes into the second quarter.

Norwayne would respond with scores on their next two possessions, a twenty-yard field goal and a sixteen-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Elijah Stanley to running back Jake Gill from sixteen yards out with just thirty-three seconds left in the opening half. The Bobcats would take a 10-3 lead into the break.

Starting with the ball to open the second half, Mooney would take a good return to their own forty yard to set up Ashton O’Brien and the Cardinal offense with favorable field position on their opening drive. O’Brien and company needed just over a minute and half to move the ball down the field and knot things up at 10, thanks to anO’Brien to Adyn Paige sixteen-yard touchdownpass on a wheel route in the endzone.

Mooney would score once more in the third quarter to take their first lead since the early moments of the second quarter, this time it was O’Brien’s legs that did the job, as he plunged one in from a yard out after connecting with Alec DelSignore over the middle at the goal line.

Ahead by a score, the Mooney defense continued to stiffen the Bobcats offense. After a huge stand on fourth down to turn Norwayne over, the Cardinal offense went back to work and extended their lead to two scores on an O’Brien to DelSignore four-yard touchdown with just a few ticks over six minutes left in the game.

Down but not out, the Bobcats willed their way back into the ball game. Staring fourth down and manageable with the ball in their own half, Norwayne quarterback Elijah Stanley stood tall in the pocket and delivered a down field strike to Jake Gill from fifty-six-yards out for their second scoring connection of the night, drawing the Bobcats to within a possession.

After an unconventional onside kick attempt that saw the Norwayne kicker line the ball into open space down the field with Mooney all pressed forward towards the line scrimmage, the Cardinals were able to narrowly recover and retain possession. The Cardinals were unable to finish the game out on the ground and were forced to punt the ball back to the Bobcats, who would take over with just under three minutes remaining in their own territory.

Gill would will the ball down the field for Norwayne catching passes and taking handoffs for big chunks, as the Bobcats offense would get all the way down to the Mooney four-yard line with less than a minute to go. After a huge tackle for loss on second down and one, Norwayne would have a false start penalty on third down to back them up five before firing an incomplete pass just shy of Stanley’s intended receiver.

Fourth down and seven, ball resting on Mooney’s ten–yard line the game came down to one final play. Stanley would take the shotgun snap and fire a pass across the middle that would be tipped by senior linebacker Logan Boyd, forcing the pass to fall incomplete but a marker was down. After a lengthy conference, the officials would wave off the flag for pass interference thanks to Boyd’s hand on the football. When the Cardinals needed it most, it was the senior linebacker who stepped up and made a play. One kneel down later, and the Cardinals escaped with the victory, 24-17.

REGIONAL SEMI-FINALS

Winning two playoff games in the same year for the first time since 2013, the Cardinal Mooney Cardinals have set themselves up for a valley dream matchup against the South Range Raiders (12-0). The Raiders were able to take care of business against the Liberty Leopards 35-6 in the opening round, before taking it to the Garfield G-Men 49-10 in the second round.

*Contributed By YSN’s Jamie Thomson

NO MAGIC NEEDED FOR TIGERS THIS TIME AROUND

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NEW MIDDLETOWN, Ohio –

It had been five straight shutouts and twenty-three consecutive quarters since the Springfield Tigers (11-1) had allowed a single point, a testament to just how impressive they’ve been but also raising doubts of not being tested since the second week of the season.

Their opponent, the Norwayne Bobcats, were no strangers to the grass playing surface of New Middletown, as the very field they stood upon was exactly where they ended their season just one day shy of a year ago.

After losing the toss and Springfield electing to differ to the second half, the Bobcats would start with the football, and they started quickly. Mixing the run and pass, Norwayne quarterback, Elijah Stanley, marched the Bobcats of Creston straight down the field and into the endzone, taking advantage of the Springfield secondary much like former Norwayne signal caller, Nate Biskay, did in their matchup up last season.

With momentum firmly in their grasp, the Bobcats not only started hot on offense, but their defense was clicking as well. After two positive plays for Springfield on first down, a third and three Beau Brungard keeper to the right side would be snuffed out for a loss of two, forcing the Tigers to go three and out.

Despite their early struggles, the Tigers’ impact player from last season’s regional final (and truly since he took over as starter his sophomore season), Beau Brungard, was bound to make his mark on the ballgame. A first quarter touchdown from three yards out by Beau would move the score to where it would end the first quarter at six a piece.

Looking to rekindle their opening drive fire, Norwayne would pick up a few first downs on the ensuing drive, one a fourth down conversion with eleven yards to go in their own territory, before the Bobcats would put the ball on the ground to be recovered by who other than Brungard himself.

Taking over directly at midfield after the Brungardrecover and return, the Tigers were back into the endzone just a few plays later, this time on a back shoulder Brungard touchdown pass to Jake Joyce from twenty plus yards out.

The Tigers continued to roll throughout the first half and well into the second. Another outstanding performance by Brungard only addsto his already illustrious career in New Middletown. Beau would hit pay dirt from eighty-four, eighteen, and fifty-four yards out on the night, leaving no doubt this time around against the Bobcats, 41-13.

BIG PERFORMERS

SPRINGFIELD:

Beau Brungard: 5-11, 79 passing yards, 1 passing TD, 20 carries, 248 rushing yards, 4 rushing TDs

Jake Joyce: 4 catches, 60 yards, 1 TD

UP NEXT

Springfield: After dropping their opener against the rivaling South Range Raiders, the Tigers have now rallied off eleven straight victories. Looking to get back to their third straight regional final, Springfield will take on the Columbia Raiders (11-1) this Saturday at 7:00 pm, at a neutral site still to be determined.

Norwayne: Once again the Bobcats of Creston will end their season in New Middletown. After the long bus ride home, Norwayne will now turn their attention to hoops season, and hope to get revenge once again on the Tigers on the hardwood.

*Contributed By YSN’s Jamie Thomson

CAFFEY SHATTERS RECORDS AS HUBBARD STARTS SEASON STRONG

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HUBBARD, Ohio –
Coming into his senior campaign, TC Caffey is viewed as not only one of the top rushers in the Mahoning Valley, but one of the best running backs in the history of Hubbard Football.
Kicking off the season with an otherworldly performance, TC’s 33 carries for 456 yards and 5 TDs with a long run of 93 gives the senior captain the school rushing record for single game rushing yards, along with the longest touchdown in Hubbard history.
An obvious testament to how hard of a worker Caffey is, he would be the first one to tell you that none of it was possible without his offensive line. The Eagles offensive front consistently made holes big enough for their standout back to drive a semi-truck through.
Hubbard’s new look Wing-T offense is one that came with some doubts, but any critics were quickly hushed (myself included) in the Eagles 48-28 routing of the Division 6 Region 21 runner ups from last season, the Norwayne Bobcats.
Although they had no answer to stop the Eagles’ run game, Norwayne and Elijah Stanley managed to put together a good showing on the offensive side of the ball. Stanley threw for 201 yards and 2 TDs, while managing to muster 77 yards on the ground and another TD with his legs.
BIG PERFORMERS
HUBBARD:
TC Caffey: 33 carries, 456 yards (single game school record), 5 TDs, long rush of 93 yards (single game school record)
Yianni Hazimihalis: 4 carries, 83 yards, 1 TD
NORWAYNE:
Elijah Stanley: 201 passing yards, 77 rushing yards, 3 total TDs
UP NEXT
Hubbard: For the second week in a row, the Hubbard Eagles (1-0) will host a powerhouse program in a division lower than them. The Cardinal Mooney Cardinals (0-1) will head into Hubbard Memorial Stadium with an all-time record of 12-0 against the Eagles. Catch the action at 7:00 pm next Friday night on YSNLive.com.
Norwayne: After being walloped by TC Caffey and Co., the Norwayne Bobcats (0-1) will hit the road again in week 2 to take on the Canton Central Catholic Crusaders (1-0).

*Contributed By Jamie Thomson

TIGERS TAKEN OUT BY NORWAYNE

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TWINSBURG OH–

A snap, a double reverse, and an on the money strike last November propelled the Springfield Tigers football team over Norwayne in the closing seconds of their regional final matchup.

Fast forward just a little over 4 months and these two schools were back at it again, just in a different sport. The highest seeded teams out of the Northeast 1 and Northeast 3 districts traveled to Twinsburg for the chance at a Regional championship.

Norwayne (23-4) came into the night as winners in 11 of their last 12 matchups. The Bobcats secured their rematch with Springfield winning in overtime against Waynedale to secure their second straight district title. For the Springfield Tigers (18-5), it was a 10-point victory over Pymatuning Valley, securing their first district title since 2019 that led them into the night.

Taking over 2 and a half minutes to finally get on the board, the scoring started slow for both teams. The first quarter saw the lead change 6 different times before Springfield would take a firm hold ofthe quarter. After junior guard, Adam Wharry,stepped in front of a driving Norwayne player to take a charge, the Tigers would go on an 8-1 run to end the quarter.

Despite their poor end to the first, Norwayne came out inspired to start the second. A 6-0 run to begin the quarter had the Bobcats within 1. Following a steal and an easy layup for Springfield’s Wharry to end Norwayne’s run, the two teams would exchange a pair of three pointersas well as a couple of free throws to knot the game up at 23 all heading into the locker room.

The third quarter saw the most production offensively from both teams, combining for 35total points. Like two heavyweights in the middle of the ring, Springfield and Norwayne would exchange leads 8 times in the final 4 minutes of the third. The two teams hit a total of 7 three pointers for the quarter.

With a 3-point lead heading into the final quarter of play, all the Bobcats needed to do was hold on, but Springfield wouldn’t go away easily. Although they would tie the game at 44 with just 4 minutes and 15 seconds remaining, the Tigers would never take the lead back in the final quarter. A mix of going cold from beyond the arc and Norwayne’s size showing up in the post would bring the Tigers season to an end, losing 55-49.

LEADING SCORERS:

Springfield

Clay Medvec – 17 points

Beau Brungard – 12 points

Adam Wharry – 12 points

Norwayne

Joey Raudebaugh – 14 points

Jacob Rupp – 11 points

Ameer Cunningham – 10 points

UP NEXT:

The road doesn’t get any easier from here on out for the Bobcats. Norwayne must now face Lutheran East (13-3). Ranked 15th in the state and 2nd in Division 3, the Lutheran East Falcons boast wins over St. Ignatius and Solon, with close loses to the #1 and #2 ranked teams in the state, St. Vincent-St. Mary and St. Edward. The Falcons are led by the 5th ranked player in the Ohio Class of 2021, Jalin Billingsley, a Georgetown commit.

*Contributed By YSN’s Jamie Thomson

TIGERS ESCAPE TO STATE WITH LAST SECOND SCORE

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NEW MIDDLETOWN, Ohio – Beau Brungard took the snap and handed it off to his man in motion Lukas Yemma. Yemma flipped it to Nick Slike coming back towards the middle. Slike then tossed it back to Brungard, and made a block on a Norwayne defender to give his quarterback just enough time to throw a strike on the move towards his right back into the arms of Lukas Yemma in the front corner of the endzone. Springfield was back on top of Region 21.

To put it simply, this is one of the greatest games in valley history. In a back and forth battle that saw both teams hold double-digit leads at some point in the game, it all came down to just 57yards in 34 seconds.

THE PRELUDE

After Norwayne’s Ameer Cunningham powered one into the endzone from 7 yards out to close the Tigers lead to 38-34 as time expired in the 3rd, Springfield was set to get the ball to start the 4th. In just under 4 minutes, the Tigers expanded their lead back out to two scores following a 21-yardrun into the endzone by Brungard.

While Springfield was in a good spot, the game was far from over. Taking over with 8 minutes and 14 seconds remaining from their own 20, Norwayne went to work. With a heavy dosage of Cunningham on the ground and Bitskay through the air, the Bobcats struck back on a 25-yard touchdown pass with 4:35 remaining.

Executing squib kicks all game long, the Norwayne special team’s unit headed out trailing by 5 and caught the Tigers’ return team on their heels. The Bobcats performed a surprise onside kick to near perfection with a little bit of luck as well. The onside kick attempt took a perfect hop over the hands of the Springfield front wall and into the arms of a Norwayne gunner.

Just a tick over a 4-minute drive, Norwayne had once again willed their way down the field and into the endzone with their workhorse Ameer Cunningham, this time powering it in from 4 yards out, and propelling the Bobcats back into the lead with just 34 seconds remaining. Ahead by only 1, Norwayne went for two and would convert through the air, moving the score to 48-45.

In almost any other matchup, this game would have been considered over. However, it was a perfect storm of Springfield’s strengths and Norwayne’s weaknesses. For Norwayne, they had not forced the Tigers on a kickoff to start a drive from less than their own 40. For Springfield, they had one of the best kickers in the state of Ohio in Clay Medvec, who already hit from 52 yards out earlier in the year.

The kicker (no pun intended) was that Springfield did not even need to use Medvec’s iron leg. Dinking and dunking their way into Bobcat territory, Springfield was well within Medvec’sfield goal range with 11 seconds to go and a timeout in hand.

THE PLAY

Knowing that a tie was within reach, head coach Sean Guerriero was able to go for the win. Lost in all the commotion, Lukas Yemma was able to slip through the Norwayne defense and alone for an easy toss. “We practice it every Friday to make sure we have it down,” Springfield senior Lukas Yemma said about the winning play. “We just put in so much work in so we can win the game no matter what it takes.”

BIGGEST PERFORMER

Junior standout Beau Brungard finished with 168 yards through the air with 1 touchdown, 60 yards receiving with 1 touchdown, and 139 yards rushing with 5 touchdowns, totaling for 367 yards and 7 touchdowns.

UP NEXT

Springfield: Survive and Advance! The Tigers will move on to face the Region 23 champion Fort Frye Cadets (9-0) of Beverly. This matchup will take place at Sulsberger Memorial Stadium in Zanesville. Fort Frye was last in the State playoffs back in 2018.

*Contributed By YSN’s Jamie Thomson

RIDGE’S RUN ENDS

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NORWAYNE OH- Mineral Ridge came into Saturday’s round 2 matchup as one of the hottest teams in the area outscoring opponents 133-16 in the last three games. Norwayne brought the fire hose to quickly cool off the Rams and end their playoff run 55-14.

Mark Bunch finished the night for the Rams going 13 for 24 with 99 yards and 2 touchdowns. Shakir Perkins gained 35 yards on 10 carries. Mineral Ridge could only manage 177 total yards of offense.

The Rams are eliminated from the playoffs and carry a record of 4-4. They are still eligible to schedule regular season games until week 10. Stay tuned for schedule updates.