Lancaster topples Newark in the 100th meeting between the two rivals
LANCASTER – Rivalry games are precisely what they are, and you can throw the records, regardless of what they are, out the window.
Even though Lancaster and Newark have struggled this season, it still didn’t take away the anticipation of Friday’s game. As longtime rivals, both teams want to beat each other in the worst way, and this one had a little more special meaning in that it was the 100th meeting between the two schools.
While the Golden Gales could never seem to put together a complete game throughout the season, they had plenty of motivation against the visiting Wildcats. Not only was it a rival game, but a win would enable Lancaster to qualify for the Division I, Region 3 playoffs.
The Gales were finally able to put four solid quarters of football together by playing with a ton of energy from start to finish and played a complete game en route to a 49-14 Ohio Capital Conference-Buckeye Division win over the Wildcats at Fulton Field.
Lancaster finished the regular season with a 2-8 overall record and was able to secure the 16th and final spot in the playoffs. The Wildcats, who started the season by winning two of their first three games, also finished with a 2-8 record.
“Our mindset coming in was we had nothing to lose,” Lancaster senior captain David Roby said. “We came out ready to play, was energized and we showed up tonight. Playing your rival Newark also helped because we don’t like them and they don’t like us.
“I know for me, and I wrote TOBT on the back of my helmet – just tired of being tired of everything we have gone through this year, all the little things that have gone wrong, all the mistakes that have cost us and not playing the way we know how to play. I was just tired of it, I think we all were, and we came out tonight and played with intensity. It was a lot of fun.”
Lancaster coach Bryan Schoonover said the players, especially the seniors, deserve all the credit because of the way the Gales have struggled this season, and to be able to come out and play with so much passion and energy, showed they never gave up through adverse conditions.
“At the end of the day, it all comes down to a matter of will,” Schoonover said. “It has been a rough year, and anyway that our guys could possibly find a way out, they had the opportunity to do so, but they continued to come in and put the work in and do all things necessary to get better and want to get better.
“I’m happy for our seniors because it’s been difficult on them. They wanted to beat Newark, it was the 100th game, and there were some playoff implications on the line. Call it what it is. They hear all the negativity, but this group has not quit, and they have a tremendous amount of heart. They want to compete, and they want to get better, and it’s obvious by the way they have carried themselves, and that showed tonight.”
It certainly did. The Gales finished with a season-high 408 total yards, including a season-high 352 yards rushing. Junior running back Cole Dickerson let the way with 139 yards on 18 carries and two touchdowns, and Roby finished with 73 yards on seven carries and a touchdown.
The Wildcats finished with 262 total yards and were led by junior quarterback Steele Meister, who accounted for 226 total yards and both of Newark’s touchdowns. He completed 15 of 23 passes for 135 yards and a score and rushed for 91 yards on 21 carries and a touchdown. Trey Robinson finished with nine receptions for 53 yards and Malaki had two catches for 63 yards.
The Gales scored the first two times they had the ball as Dickerson scored on a 4-yard run and Alex Miller added a 1-yard run to give Lancaster a 14-0 lead midway through the second quarter.
The Wildcats moved the ball well most of the first half but could not finish off drives. After the two teams traded interceptions late in the first half, Lancaster was able to take advantage of the miscue and scored on a flea flicker as freshman quarterback Brody Burke threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to Miller with 1:18 remaining in the first half to give the Gales a 21-0 halftime lead.
Dickerson pushed the lead to 28-0 early in the third quarter on a 17-yard touchdown run before Meister scored on a 15-yard run with 2:36 left in the third quarter to cut the margin to 28-7.
Lancaster outscored the Wildcats 21-7 in the fourth quarter. Braydin Diyanni scored on a 5-yard run, Roby had a 1-yard scoring run and Caiel Woody close out the scoring with a 46-yard run with 1:28 remaining. Meister threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Xander Martin in the fourth quarter for the Wildcats.
Tom Wilson is a sports reporter for the Lancaster Eagle Gazette. Contact him at 740-689-5150 or via email at twilson@gannett.com for comments or story tips. Follow him on Twitter @twil2323.
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: Lancaster topples Newark in the 100th meeting between the two rivals
