[ad_1]
Photo of Joe Lovell Bellaire’s Colt Sechrest dives over Shadyside’s Ben Wach in an exciting Friday night game.
SHADYSIDE – There’s something about late-game situations at Fleming Field that brings out the best of the Bellaire Big Reds.
Two seasons ago, the Big Reds devised a late practice to knock out Shadyside, 12-6.
They enjoyed a case of déjà vu on Friday evening in front of a large crowd.
Trailing 12-7 in what was a 48-minute heavyweight fight, the Big Reds put together an impressive 11-play, 64-yard workout that ate all but 89 seconds of the 5:17 final. that was capped when junior quarterback Jake Heatherington punched his classmate Jakob Dowling on a 29-yard run for the game-winner, giving the Big Reds a cherished 13-12 victory.
“This (win) is a testament to our kids’ ability to get that (bad) taste of last week’s loss to St. Clairsville and play a game like this against a quality program and team like Shadyside.” , said Bellaire. said head coach Mark Spigarelli. “Both teams played really well and it was probably one of the best games I have ever played. Kudos to our guys because they worked their butt this week.
It looked like the Big Reds (7-1) would come back just after taking their first lead of the game with 6:35 left in the third quarter on a 10-yard flurry from senior Colt Sehcrest. Stable spot kicker Lucas Littell was true on the PAT.
Shadyside, who hadn’t had much offensive success in the second half, had his best drive of the game to open the fourth quarter.
The Tigers (6-1) amassed 65 yards in 13 games. During the march, they made a concerted effort to go see the workhorse Wyatt Reiman. As he seems to do most of the time, he delivered a 5-yard run with just 5:19 to go.
Now leading by five points, head coach Mark Holenka opted for a 2-point conversion, but the pass passed the intended receiver’s header, leaving the score 12-7.
“It’s not always that game, but it’s often a few little games that add up,” said Shadyside head coach Mark Holenka. “You have to win the majority of battles. We have lost key battles. On the two-point game, we did not perform exactly the game we had been practicing. Little things make big things in the end.
In the aforementioned winning practice, the Big Reds converted a fourth and eight with a 9-yard pass from Heatherington to senior Jaiden Kesterson. And just before the touchdown pass, Heatherington found Dowling for a first down on a third and five play.
“They performed plays and we didn’t,” said Holenka. “Give Bellaire credit because they came back well after a loss last week and now we’ll see if we can do the same.”
Shadyside had one final possession, but Bellaire junior Brayden Roth thwarted any hopes of a Tigers’ return when he passed a pass from Ben Wach in fourth, allowing the Big Reds to miss time.
“I have a lot of respect for Shadyside and their coaches,” said Spigarelli. “Wach is a good athlete and he’s going to be a good quarterback, but we played deep four and we only wanted to give them underlying routes because I knew they only had two timeouts left. “
While the Tigers went full blast with their workhorse at Reiman to the tune of 20 carries for 108 yards and a touchdown, the Big Reds went their way too. Senior star Colt Sechrest has a season-high 18 times for 63 yards and has scored. In addition to his offensive production, he was a threat defensively.
“I learned my lesson about giving Colt more ball, especially in big games,” admitted Spigarelli. “I apologize for my team and my community. We decided to ride it, especially in the second half. It was a great second half for both teams, and I’m just happy we were able to win. “
Heatherington finished 10 of 21 for 164 yards and a touchdown with a pick. Dowling was his favorite receiver with five receptions for 75 yards and one scoring.
The Tigers scored the game’s first touchdown on a 15-yard run from Ben Wach, who pushed his way through and passed a few Big Reds defensemen en route to the end zone. The PAT, however, was broad.
“It’s another one of those games that seems like a small one at the time,” Holenka said of PAT. “The kicker wasn’t quite ready and the ball was broken. These are the things we need to clean up.
Both teams are back in action on Friday. Shadyside is closing their home regular season schedule when visiting Bridgeport, while the Big Reds remain on the road at Union Local.
[ad_2]
Source link