Central Ohio high school football scores, recaps for Week 4
Hilliard Darby 7, Hilliard Davidson 3
Darby’s Parker Schwandt couldn’t believe the football was sitting there right in front of him.
“It just rolled right into me,” he said after his teammates knocked the ball loose from Wildcats running back Andrew Painter. “I picked it up, and then I 'blacked out' after that. I don’t know what happened. I just ran as fast as I could.”
The cornerback took off up the sideline and went 95 yards for the winning touchdown with 2 minutes, 47 seconds left Sept. 9 at Darby in the 16th meeting between the programs.
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Davidson, which dropped to 2-2, looked ready to secure the win when it reached the Panthers’ 5 yard-line and had it first-and-goal.
“At that point, to be honest with you, I thought they were going in to score,” said Darby coach John Santagata, whose team improved to 2-2.
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The Wildcats’ drive was set up by Jayden Phillips, who intercepted Darby quarterback Caleb Gladden at the Panthers’ 25-yard line with about 4 minutes left.
Davidson took a 3-0 lead with 8:37 left in the fourth quarter when Andrew Lewis connected on a 47-yard field goal.
Both teams finished with three turnovers, but Davidson’s mistakes came when it had a short field.
“I said before the game that fundamentals are going to win the game, and fundamentals are going to lose the game,” Davidson coach Jeremey Scally said. “Turning the ball over is a fundamental. With our effort, we deserved to win, but we just didn’t win.”
With both teams relying on the running game and stingy defenses, they combined for just 109 offensive yards and four first downs in a scoreless first half.
—Scott Gerfen
HILLIARD DAVIDSON: 0-0-0-3–3
HILLIARD DARBY: 0-0-0-7–7
HDAV—Lewis 47 FG
HDAR—Schwandt 95 fumble return (Crockett kick)
Pickerington Central 14, Pickerington North 7
Already accustomed to being in the spotlight as one of the state's top sprinters in track and field last spring, Central senior Troy Lane didn’t flinch when called upon at home against North.
The Panthers had reached the Tigers’ 15-yard line with 25 seconds left when North quarterback Landon O’Connell scrambled for yardage but had the ball stripped by Lane, with Zavion Mattox picking up the loose ball to seal Central's victory.
Lane also ran for a touchdown on his only carry.
“(O’Connell) came out and I knew I couldn’t just tackle him because it would give them another shot to win the game,” said Lane, who won the 100 and 200 meters at the Division I state meet last June. “I went for the ball and it paid off.”
While North dropped to 3-1, Central improved to 2-2 after losing tight games on the road to Cincinnati Elder and Huber Heights Wayne the previous two weeks.
The Tigers — as they have done many times while improving to 15-4 all-time against North — controlled the line of scrimmage and made it difficult for the Panthers offensively.
North was limited to 158 yards of offense, including 53 yards on the ground on 34 attempts as O’Connell was sacked four times.
“The physicality (was the difference),” Tigers senior linebacker R.J. Keuchler said. “They’ve never seen a team as physical as us out there. It’s a rivalry game and there was a lot of talk around the game on and off the field, so it’s big to get that win and prove ourselves because we were 1-2.”
The Tigers took a 7-0 lead when quarterback Braden Mantooth hit Kasey Middendorf for a 28-yard touchdown midway through the opening quarter. Middendorf separated his right shoulder on the play and did not return.
On the first play of the Panthers’ ensuing drive, O’Connell found Chris Louis Jr. over the middle and he broke a tackle and sprinted for a 75-yard touchdown to tie it at 7.
Lane saw his first action on offense all season and made it count, running for a 68-yard touchdown on the second play of the second period.
Central missed a short field goal just before halftime, which kept it a one-score game during a scoreless second half.
“We gave up our first offensive touchdown in four games, but (we showed) perseverance,” coach Jay Sharrett said.
After Dawaun Green rushed for 228 yards in North’s 18-13 victory over Upper Arlington in Week 3, he was limited to 71 yards on 22 carries.
Central rotated in a trio of players at quarterback, with Terrance Alexander rushing for 57 yards while often lining up in the wildcat and Rocco Williams also seeing action along with Mantooth.
“We didn’t finish drives in the second half in the red zone and we had too many penalties,” North coach Nate Hillerich said. “We didn’t play a good football game. That’s two of the top teams in central Ohio, maybe Ohio, and these games come down to the wire. We may end up seeing these guys again.”
—Jarrod Ulrey
NORTH: 7-0-0-0–7
CENTRAL: 7-7-0-0–14
PC—Middendorf 28 pass from Mantooth (Goulet kick)
PN—Louis 75 pass from O’Connell (Ermlich kick)
PC—Lane 68 run (Goulet kick)
Marysville 43, Hilliard Bradley 29
Led by the tandem of Colton Powers and Griffin Johnson, Marysville knocked Bradley from the unbeaten ranks.
The Monarchs improved to 3-1, while the Jaguars dropped to 3-1.
“That was a (big) win for this team,” Marysville coach Brent Johnson said. “The way we came out of the gate four weeks ago, they’ve stuck to it. They’ve started believing in themselves a little bit and gained some confidence. That was a good football team we beat.”
Trailing 10-0 and 16-14 in the first half, the Monarchs took a 21-16 lead and then pulled away late.
Powers ran for 172 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries, and Johnson added 144 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. Marysville rushed for 381 yards on 53 attempts.
“We were pretty balanced,” coach Johnson said. “Nascere Smith came in and started for us (at slotback). He ran the ball really well and really balanced us out offensively. We did a good job of controlling the clock throughout the second half.”
Powers scored on runs of 72 yards and 14 yards to help erase the early 10-0 deficit.
After Smith’s 7-yard touchdown run gave Marysville a 21-16 halftime lead, the Jaguars took their final lead at 22-21 on Bradyn Fleharty’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Denis Shishlo early in the third quarter.
The Monarchs took the lead for good at 29-22 on Johnson’s 5-yard touchdown run and Powers’ two-point conversion run with 9:24 left in the third quarter.
Fleharty completed 24 of 37 passes for 267 yards and four touchdowns. Shishlo had three touchdown catches and Michael Hunkus added one, and Donovan McCall had two catches for 66 yards.
Since opening with a 35-0 loss to New Albany on Aug. 19, Marysville has won three consecutive games.
“This team has been under that umbrella of last year,” said coach Johnson, who pointed to a pair of fourth-down defensive stops in the second half as another key in the victory. “We’ve told them this is your team and they went and got one that they needed to get.”
Marysville finished 12-1 a year ago, falling 27-0 to Springfield in the Division I, Region 2 final.
The Jaguars were looking for their first 4-0 start since 2017 when they went on to finish 11-1, losing 42-31 to Pickerington Central in a Division I, Region 3 semifinal.
—Frank DiRenna
HILLIARD BRADLEY: 10-6-6-7--29
MARYSVILLE: 7-14-8-14--43
HB—Walter 21 FG
HB—Hunkus 8 pass from Fleharty (Walter kick)
M—Powers 72 run (Heller kick)
M—Powers 14 run (Heller kick)
HB—Shishlo 6 pass from Fleharty (kick failed)
M—Smith 7 run (Heller kick)
HB—Shishlo 13 pass from Fleharty (pass failed)
M—Johnson 5 run (Powers run)
M—Johnson 10 run (Heller kick)
HB—Shishlo 9 pass from Fleharty (Walter kick)
M—Powers 11 run (Heller kick)
Grove City 41, Central Crossing 0
The visiting Dawgs overwhelmed the Comets from the start, as a swarming defense made three of its four interceptions in the first half and a quick-strike offense put up 34 points by halftime of a crosstown showdown between teams that were both 2-1 entering the matchup.
Chris Burns led the defense with two interceptions, Nate Kent added an 18-yard interception return for a touchdown and Zach Adamets picked off Central Crossing quarterback Hendricks Mundy as Grove City limited the Comets to 92 yards.
“We knew we had to shut their running game down and make them try to throw the ball,” Grove City coach Greg Waits said. “We had a great week all week and that’s why we felt so good. We practiced very well. Our defense has played well every week, and this was one of those nights we came up with some big plays.”
Dawgs quarterback Matthew Papas was 19-for-28 passing for 251 yards and two touchdowns, including a 50-yard strike to J.J. King early in the second quarter that made it 14-0.
That drive — like Grove City’s first of the game, which consumed 12 plays and 81 plays in less than three minutes and ended with an 8-yard touchdown run for Christian Isaacs — showcased the Dawgs’ quick-strike ability.
Still, the Comets hung close until Kent and Burns intercepted Mundy on consecutive passes late in the second quarter.
“That pick I got, I just had a feeling he was throwing it my way. I just knew,” Kent said. “We believe in each other. At any point on the field, we feel like we can make a huge play.”
Papas threw a 39-yard touchdown to Luke Mullins three plays after Burns’ interception and Isaacs added a 10-yard scoring run for a 34-0 halftime lead.
Grove City defeated Central Crossing for the third time in four seasons and is 3-1 for the first time since 2006.
The Comets were without regular starting quarterback Luke White, a sophomore who also plays linebacker. He is injured and not expected to return for a couple of weeks, according to his father, coach Trevor White.
“We struggled all night offensively, but hats off to them,” coach White said. “They were more physical up front than us. It started there, and we weren’t able to make plays when we needed to.”
—Dave Purpura
GROVE CITY: 7-27-7-0–41
CENTRAL CROSSING: 0-0-0-0–0
GC—Isaacs 10 run (Kline kick)
GC—King 50 pass from Papas (Kline kick)
GC—Kent 18 INT return (Kline kick)
GC—Mullins 39 pass from Papas (Kline kick)
GC—Isaacs 10 run (kick blocked)
GC—Papas 13 run (Kline kick)
Big Walnut 34, Delaware Hayes 14
In a matchup of previously undefeated teams, Big Walnut’s victory over Delaware took on extra meaning for Cam Gladden as he got to see his dad, Sy, honored before the game as a part of Military Appreciation Night.
Gladden got to lead the team out before the game and then did his part on the field to help the Golden Eagles open their OCC-Capital Division schedule with a win. He made two field goals, all four of his extra points and added four receptions for 31 yards.
“He’s in the Army National Guard (with) 26 years of active duty,” Gladden said. “I couldn’t imagine any better venue than this for this game. I was getting goosebumps running out, carrying the Army flag. I grew up in a military family all my life. It was just an honor.
“Me and Grant Coulson, my holder, and Tom Ross, my snapper, the guys on the line — we work on executing the job every day and it shows out here on the field.”
Leading the way on offense was junior running back Nate Severs, who carried 39 times for 262 yards and four touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter as the Eagles improved to 4-0.
“(This) wouldn’t have happened without my offensive line and the leadership of our quarterback (Jake Nier),” Severs said. “What they do leads to what I do on the field. We toughened up (in the fourth quarter) and just (were more physical) than them.”
Delaware’s Jake Lowman threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Austin Koslow down the left sideline on a fourth-and-6 to pull the Pacers within 20-14 late in the third quarter. Lowman finished 13-for-28 for 154 yards with two touchdowns.
“You don’t want to get into a situation where you have a running clock every game,” Big Walnut coach Rob Page said. “You want the guys to play four quarters and for it to be tough. (Delaware) played extremely well. Their defensive coordinator (Justin Malivuk) did a nice job of adjusting.”
The Pacers had chances throughout. Nikeese McCollum intercepted Nier in the end zone and returned it 46 yards with a personal foul tacked on to give Delaware possession in Big Walnut territory early in the second quarter.
But the Eagles’ defense held, with Ethan Clawson sacking Lowman on fourth down. Clawson finished with two sacks and Lane Conley added one.
For the Delaware defense, Logan Frye had 10 tackles and Erik Wells added eight.
“No one likes to lose and that’s obviously leaving a bitter taste in our mouth (for) the first time this year,” said Pacers coach Ryan Montgomery, whose team fell to 3-1. “I told the guys out on the field (after the game), ‘Everything is still in front of us this year.’ I thought our guys played hard and we didn’t allow that big play. We made them snap it again.”
—Michael Rich
DELAWARE HAYES: 0-7-7-0--14
BIG WALNUT: 7-10-3-14--34
BW—Severs 3 run (Gladden kick)
BW—Severs 13 run (Gladden kick)
DH—Gannon 22 pass from Lowman (Goble kick)
BW—Gladden 25 FG
BW—Gladden 29 FG
DH—Koslow 35 pass from Lowman (Goble kick)
BW—Severs 3 run (Gladden kick)
BW—Severs 1 run (Gladden kick)
This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Columbus high school football scores, recaps in Week 4
