MAHONING VALLEY SPORTS
WILDCATS CLAW THROUGH FIRST PLAYOFF GAME
By Anthony Melone
Struthers, OH- Struthers played host to the Norton Panthers on the opening round of the playoffs. It was the Wildcats who came away with the victory. Wide Receiver Robert Caracelli had 3 touchdowns in the contest for Struthers. Wildcats win 49-28.
Struthers kicked off all scoring with a 14 yard touchdown run by Running Back Devin Braham to take the lead in the 1st quarter. The 2nd quarter saw 5 touchdowns between the 2 teams. The Wildcats increased their lead to 21 with 2 rushing touchdowns by Carcelli and Braham. The Panthers would answer with a pass from Quarterback Buddy Willig to Wide Receiver Isaac Hunter from 56 yards to make the game 21-7. With under 2 minutes to play until halftime, Struthers would find the endzone 2 more times. Wildcat Quarterback Jason Dukes found Carcelli in the endzone from 26 yards out to increase their lead. After picking up a fumble on the impending kickoff, Braham returned to the endzone from 2 yards out to make the score 35-7 going into the locker room.
Norton would score coming out of halftime with a 2 yard touchdown run by Running Back Marcus Brown to make the game 35-14. The Wildcats would cement their victory with another Dukes to Carcelli connection for a touchdown while Quarterback Anthony Pastella would find Tight End CJ Harmon from 27 yards out for a touchdown. The Panthers and Willig would score twice before the end of the game. Willig would finish the game with 3 combined touchdowns. Struthers wins 42-28. They will face Perry in the next round of the playoffs. Catch all the playoff action on YSNLive.com.