Greater Cincinnati high school football: biggest headlines from Week 7
The high school football regular season is two-thirds of the way over. Teams across Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky are putting win streaks together and moving up the rankings at just the right time as the postseason nears.
Several big conference clashes are on the horizon in Week 8, especially in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference and the Southern Buckeye Conference.
Here are the biggest storylines from Week 7 of the Greater Cincinnati high school football season.
Lakota West keeps rolling
After a 0-2 start, Lakota West continues to be one of the hottest teams in Cincinnati after beating Oak Hills, 59-7.
Lakota West is 5-2 and 5-1 in the Greater Miami Conference, tied with Hamilton for second place behind Princeton (7-0, 6-0).
The offense continued to be effective. Quarterback Sam Wiles threw for two touchdowns and rushed for one. Brennan Remy scored two touchdowns and the Firebirds rushed for 263 yards.
The defense continued to be dominant, limiting the Highlanders to 131 yards and one fourth-quarter touchdown. West has allowed 28 points in its five wins.
West plays at district rival Lakota East this Friday.
Loveland making new history
Loveland celebrated the 10th anniversary of its 2013 state champion football team Sept. 22. The Tigers have had some hard times since that magical year, but are back to winning ways.
Staying in the ECC, Loveland has won four straight after beating Turpin 49-23. The Tigers are 4-2 in the ECC and in fourth place.
Loveland has not had a winning season since 2015. Drew Plitt, a quarterback who spent a short time with the Bengals in the preseason, was a senior that season after leading the Tigers to the 2013 title.
Loveland has averaged 38 points per game in the win streak, which figures to rise to five as the Tigers face winless Little Miami this week. Loveland then plays Winton Woods Oct. 13.
Battle for first place in the ECC is set
Milford continued its historic start to the season with a 41-7 win over Walnut Hills. Milford is 7-0 and 6-0 in the ECC. Meanwhile, Winton Woods rallied to edge Kings, 13-12. Winton Woods is 6-1, 5-1 and tied for second in the ECC with Anderson.
Milford’s explosive offense that averages 42 points per game will next clash with Winton Woods’ fierce defense that allows only seven points per game.
Moeller wins GCL-South with improved defense
Moeller’s defense in its three Greater Catholic League-South games was much improved over the team’s performance in its four non-league games.
As a result, the Crusaders are league champions for the second straight year after routing Elder in The Pit, 38-7.
Moeller limited Elder to 221 total yards and shut down the Panthers after they scored early in the second quarter. Moeller held QB Ryan Brass to 137 yards passing and 13 rushing after he had a career game in Elder’s 32-31 win over St. Xavier.
Moeller allowed 12 points per game in its three GCL games after allowing 40 per contest in its three losses.
On offense, Moeller racked up 400 yards as Jordan Marshall rushed for 113 yards and three scores and broke Moeller’s career rushing record.
'We have our sights set much higher': Moeller beats Elder for GCL-South title
Williamsburg keeps streaks alive
Williamsburg rallied to beat Blanchester 40-34, staying unbeaten at 7-0.
J.J. Miller threw a touchdown pass to Austin Elkins with 1:36 left for the winning points.
According to Williamsburg stat keeper Tim Maklem, the Wildcats have the longest current streak in Ohio of scoring 30 points in a game: nine. Williamsburg has posted 30 or more in 17 of its last 18 contests.
Williamsburg plays at East Clinton (3-4) Friday.
Western Brown surges to top of SBAAC-American
In another classic game between Western Brown and New Richmond, the Broncos prevailed 55-40 to taka a half-game lead over Clinton-Massie.
Broncos quarterback Brady Sutton entered the OHSAA record books and is now third in school history with 519 passing yards in a single game. Sutton completed 74.4 percent of his passes and threw for three touchdowns.
Receiver Isaiah Smith also made history as he broke his own school record with 339 receiving yards, which included a 76-yard touchdown in the second quarter. That mark puts him at fourth in OHSAA history for most receiving yards in a single game.
New Richmond played well as quarterback Brady Young threw for 247 yards and running back Braylon Patchell ran for 158 yards and three touchdowns, but two Young interceptions hurt the Lions in the long run.
Neither team led by more than seven points until Western Brown scored five of the final seven touchdowns to pull away.
The Broncos face Clinton-Massie (6-0, 1-0 SBAAC-American) for first place in the division in Week 8.
Scott picks up momentum
The Scott Eagles won their second game in three weeks with a 40-34 win over Boone County.
Trey Cook and Justin Goff combined to throw for 135 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Kaymon Coleman ran the ball 13 times for 104 yards and three touchdowns.
But it was Hunter Bradley who had the play of the game, intercepting Rebels quarterback Jamarion Hocker in the end zone and returning it 101 yards for a touchdown.
The Eagles are now 2-4 and will face Cooper on Oct. 6.
Ludlow takes winning streak into district play
Led by running backs Dameyn Anness and Breckin Ralston, and linebacker Carson Evans, the Ludlow Panthers are 3-3 after a 56-14 win over Bellevue.
The Panthers have proven that they can win the district, having scored 40 points or more in each of their three wins. They have also allowed a maximum of 22 points in each of their three losses.
Quarterback Jackson Mays threw for only 126 yards in Week 7, but found Ethan Powell for two of his three passing touchdowns. Anness registered half of Ludlow's carries out of the backfield, but was one of five players to find the end zone on the ground.
The defense only sacked Bellevue quarterback Tristan Woodyard once, but allowed only 119 yards of total offense.
Ludlow faces a 3-3 Trimble County team on Oct. 6 before tests against Bishop Brossart, Holy Cross and Paris.
Holy Cross wins fourth out of five
Speaking of the Indians, they are having their best season since 2016. The Indians defeated Morgan County 14-8 behind a Donovan Ambrocio passing touchdown and a Trevin Figgs rushing score. Ambrocio also snagged one of two Holy Cross interceptions.
The Indians are just 1-2 against Kentucky opponents but have beaten a Class 4A opponent in Grant County. Their biggest remaining tests on the schedule are Weeks 9 and 10. Holy Cross travels to Ludlow before closing out the regular season with a home game against Newport (4-2).
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Greater Cincinnati high school football: Week 7 takeaways
