Big plays, defense lift Watkins Memorial football to OHSAA playoff win against Northland
PATASKALA — A 38-yard Hail Mary from junior quarterback Patrick Carney to senior Jace Henry at the end of the first half Friday proved to be the momentum swing the Watkins Memorial football team needed to pull away from visiting Northland.
The No. 4 Warriors took a 17-6 lead at halftime and rolled to a 38-6 victory at Ascena Field in a Division II, Region 7 first-round game.
“Football is a game of momentum,” Watkins coach Darren Waters said. “To have the momentum swing our way there at the end of the half was very helpful for us. We talked at the half about if we are going to play in the playoffs, we needed to play playoff-caliber football. We had things we had to clean up in terms of penalties and execution, and I thought we came out and played a better second half.”
Watkins (9-2) hosts No. 5 Big Walnut (9-2) at 7 p.m. next Friday. The Golden Eagles erupted in the second half of a 35-22 victory against Uniontown Green.
In a rematch of a 22-0 Warrior victory in Week 6, Friday's game had a similar feel during the first 24 minutes with a lot of hard-hitting defense, offensive miscues and penalties.
After a Carney pass was ruled backwards and bobbled away, Northland’s Marquez Clifford recovered in the first quarter. Vikings sophomore quarterback Terryn Thomas scored four plays later to give the Vikings (5-5) the lead.
Watkins scored 38 unanswered points, forcing six turnovers along the way, but it was the Hail Mary that seemed to give Watkins the shot in the arm that they needed.
“Big players make big plays,” Henry said. “I love this game, and I want to keep playing, so I went and got that ball.”
Henry had a big night. In addition to the touchdown reception, he was the leading tackler with seven stops, and had two interceptions.
Long ran 25 times for 122 yards with a score. Carney added 67 yards and a touchdown on the ground, and was 8-for-20 through the air for 72 yards, including a 17-yard TD pass to senior Brody Lee.
The defense, which has been a strength for the Warriors this season, held the Vikings to 130 yards. Senior defensive end Isaac Solomon spent a lot of time in the Northland backfield with four tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks.
Juniors Colton Rhoades and John-Luke Weller also registered sacks. In addition to Henry’s two picks, junior Victor Oliver returned an interception for a score to give Watkins a 10-6 lead, and seniors Sam Johnson and Andre Baldwin also each had an interception.
“They are a very consistent group,” Waters said. “They play at a high level. They understood what they were supposed to do in coverage tonight, where their eyes needed to be, and they executed and took advantage of some opportunities to get some turnovers.”
This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Big plays, defense lift Watkins Memorial football to OHSAA playoff win
