Canton South football team survives test against Sandy Valley, improves to 3-0
MAGNOLIA — Matt Dennison is happy his football team is still unbeaten.
Make no mistake, though. The Canton South head coach doesn't want his players to feel as though they're in a comfort zone at 3-0. In Dennison's mind, the Wildcats were far from perfect Friday night. Even in victory, there are mistakes to correct and lessons to learn.
South's 35-27 win over Sandy Valley in a battle of unbeatens was a matter of survival. In a stern test, the Wildcats rallied from a third-quarter deficit and held off the Cardinals late in the game.
"We came out and played sloppy," Dennison said. "I give credit to Sandy Valley. They played really hard, probably a little harder than us tonight.
"We found a way to pull things together, get better and find a way to win. I'm proud of our kids for that. We have to fix some things about the way we started the game, but we fought through it and got better."
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After the Wildcats fell behind, South's defense found a way to slow Sandy Valley quarterback Nick Petro and his offense when it mattered most. Petro was unstoppable most of the night. He threw for 264 yards and a touchdown and ran for 237 yards and two TDs.
"He's a great player and he found the seams," Dennison said. "He found the holes in the defense and exploited them."
Petro's 53-yard TD pass to Jason Morris early in the second half gave Sandy Valley a 21-14 lead. A 52-yard Petro run set it up.
The Cardinals hit Wildcats territory three more times, but could score just once.
"We made some stops when we had to," Dennison said. "We just have to be more consistent. We just have to be more disciplined. We started to in the second half.
"We have to tackle better. We have to play in space better. That's what we should be good at. We'll correct it and we'll get better at it."
The Wildcats also have an explosive quarterback and talented playmakers. Their presence was felt in the second half.
After South tied the game at 21-21, Poochie Snyder and his receivers went to work. He threw a 27-yard TD pass to Tavon Castle to give the Wildcats the lead. His 47-yard TD pass to Tre Wilson extended the advantage.
"We did what we had to," Snyder said. "The receivers played great and blocked well, too, for the running backs. They made plays when they had to. Tre Wilson had a great touchdown catch, and Tavon Castle had some big-time catches all night. They were just great plays."
Snyder threw for 248 yards. He also ran for a team-leading 106 yards.
The PAC-7 season awaits the Wildcats, who were one of five teams to share last year's title. Beating three tough non-conference teams has prepared them for it. St. Clairsville and Sandy Valley are 2-1, while Dover beat Indian Valley for its first win Friday. The Tornadoes' other loss came against Green.
"This definitely gets us ready going into league play," Dennison said. "We played three very good teams. Sandy Valley is going to win a lot of games. St. Clairsville and Dover are going to win some games.
"We have to take care of our business. If we take care of our business, keep getting better and keep working, we'll be fine."
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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Poochie Snyder helps Canton South football rally past Sandy Valley
