'Worst-case scenario' for Ridgewood as Garaway moves on

SUGARCREEK – It was an impressive first half, even by Garaway’s lofty standards.

Rival Ridgewood was hellbent on a grind-it-out game to give itself a chance against the unbeaten Pirates, but Logan Yoder directed a pair of early scoring drives and their defense dominated in all facets to build a 21-point lead.

The second half was a much different story, as two time-consuming General drives ate up much of two quarters. But the damage was done, as host Garaway rolled into the Division V, Region 17 semifinals with a 21-6 win on its home field.

Garaway (12-0) advanced to play No. 3 seed Perry (10-2), which had a 35-0 win against Fairless in their quarterfinal matchup. The game is set for for 7 p.m. on Nov. 11 at a site to be determined on Sunday by the Ohio High School Athletic Association.

Ridgewood had more penalty yards (45) than it did total yards (21) in the first half, as the Pirates looked every bit the heavily favored team that the records indicated. Yoder and slippery running back Ethan Miller combined for 16 carries for 99 yards in that span, while Yoder also tossed a pair of touchdown passes.

The former was to Miller, a running back by trade, on the game’s first possession. Lined up in the near slot in a trips formation, he gained a free release off the line against a Ridgewood secondary that bit up on a fake screen. Miller easily ran past them, and Yoder lofted a strike to him just short of the end zone.

“I knew I just had to throw it up there,” Yoder said.

It capped an eight-play, 85-yard drive that saw Yoder scramble for 11 yards on third-and-11 to keep it alive. Two plays later, after Alexander Roden caught a 14-yard pass over the middle, Yoder took a designed run through the teeth of the General defense for 30 yards.

The tone of the first half had officially been set.

“We knew we were going to come out passing and try to tire them down,” said Yoder who, like the first regular season meeting two weeks ago, kept several plays alive with his quick feet and elusiveness in the pocket. “That first drive, that was probably one of the longest opening drives that we’ve had in a while. We knew we had to tire them down. If we were tired, then they were definitely tired.”

It was the start of an ominous beginning for Ridgewood, which didn’t mask its aspirations of keeping the game close and not face a big early deficit. The Generals had a chance to hit a big play on their opening possession when Kauelen Smith broke free streaking down the sideline, but Josiah Cahill’s throw on the run was just out of his reach. That came after a holding penalty on second down.

It led to a punt, and Garaway responded with another impressive scoring drive – eight plays, 72 yards – as Yoder had completions of 7, 10, 3 and 22 yards working from the spread. The big play was a hard run from Miller up the middle, as he ran through a tackle near the line of scrimmage on second-and-10 and raced 20 yards.

Two plays later, Yoder found Roden on another crosser over the middle with a defender on his heels. But Roden broke the tackle attempt and ran untouched into the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown. The extra point made it 14-0 with 2:34 still showing on the first quarter clock.

Miller's hard-charging style is a product of his work ethic and pedigree, teammate Ty Winters said. His father was a standout football player at Dayton. He finished with 8 carries for 69 yards.

"No. 9, he's the moose," said Winter, a leader in the defensive backfield. "The work he puts in during the offseason is incredible and he's just a leader for all of the guys on the team. It's just overall hard work."

Winters provided Ridgewood's deathblow.

Ridgewood netted 17 yards on a Kaleb Shrock reception and 10-yard run from Cahill, as Ridgewood finally appeared ready to show some life late in the first. That notion was put to rest when Winters stepped in front of a Cahill pass toward Schrock in the flat and raced 35 yards into the end zone. It pushed the Pirate lead to 21-0 with 1:20 left in the quarter.

It was Winters' sixth interception.

"I saw all three of (the receivers) go out," Winters explained. "I watch film, so I knew the play. I just followed man and the ball was there. It was really a momentum changer, for sure."

Garaway coach Jason Wallick was happy to the game follow script out of the gate.

"We played well," Wallick said. "Our guys were pumped up and ready to go for another high school football game. It's the way we've prepared all year and that's the way we will prepare next week."

Garaway never scored another point after its early assault, as sacks by Ridgewood's Jonas Paugh and Logan Sesser, and a pair of holding penalties on the Pirates thwarted its final two drives before halftime.

That trend continued in the second half, as the Pirates had a long touchdown called back due to holding late in the third quarter, one of four holding calls they took in the game. They never saw Ridgewood territory until late in the fourth quarter, when Yoder escaped heavy pressure and hit Jenson Garber for a 25-yard catch on third down.

Prior to that, Ridgewood used a flurry of inside runs from 210-pound Smith, Cahill and sophomore Aidan Sparger in an 18-play drive that ate up 10 minutes off the clock to start the second half. It came up empty on the scoreboard, as a bad shotgun snap led to a 10-yard loss from the Pirate 10-yard line.

Ridgewood finally converted a score on its next possession, driving 60 yards in 10 plays as Cahill hit Grant Lahmers for completions 13 and 15 yards to set up Cahill's 1-yard option keeper. The extra point failed, and just 7:26 remained with Garaway still leading 21-6.

Another Garaway punt gave Ridgewood the ball back with 6:20 left, and runs of 10 yards from Smith and eight from Cahill pushed the ball to the Garaway 48. But a big third-down tackle from nose tackle Wyatt Hershberger led to a turnover on downs.

And that was all she wrote.

"Obviously, it wasn't the start we wanted," Ridgewood coach John Slusser. "It was probably a worse-case scenario, getting down big early, and it would have been really easy for us to fold the tent up and we didn't. We actually gave ourselves a chance in the second half to get back in it and put some heat on them."

Smith ran 20 times for 50 yards and Cahill 12 for 45, while hitting 8 of 15 passes for 45 yards. Lahmers and Mason Colvin had a pair of catches. Smith, also a starting linebacker, ends his career with appearances in 11 playoff games as a rare four-year varsity player.

He, Cahill and two-way starters Quincy Hains and Jonas Paugh were part of a senior class that was a part of

"I came in as a freshman and had a lot of great seniors who took me under their wing," Smith said. "They taught me the game, as well as my coaches. We have a lot of freshmen and sophomores that have very bright futures. They'll make sure the Ridgewood program is staying here."

Wallick downplayed the rivalry factor in the meeting, referring to the Generals as "another nameless, faceless opponent." It wasn't a matter of disrespect to the Inter-Valley Conference's most competitive rivalry, it's simply the way they have approached every game.

The players have followed that creed, but it wasn't easy on Friday.

"Really, it's the second time playing them (this year) and it's hard, because you know what is on the line, and these fans out here, they want to see a good game," Winters said. "I feel like that's what they gave them."

Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR; Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: 'Worst-case scenario' for Ridgewood football as Garaway advances