Announcement
ROCKY RIVER — Eager for the challenge of traveling to take on undefeated Lutheran West on Friday, Buckeye’s football team checked every box in the first half en route to a 35-14 non-league victory.
Defense? Buckeye (3-1) held the Longhorns (3-1) to 2 yards offense in the first quarter and just two first downs in the first half. Check. Offense? The Bucks averaged nearly 7 yards per play in the half, punching the ball into the end zone on the ground four times, including three by senior back Dom Monaco. Check. Special teams? Buckeye had six drives in the first half and its average starting position was its own 49. Check
“You’re a good team if you’re 3-0 and scoring points like they have,” Monaco said. “We just had to get after them.” Buckeye’s defense dominated the first half. Lutheran West ran 18 plays, but three of them went for a loss, the rushing attack totaled 16 yards on seven carries and almost all of the Longhorns’ offense came on two passing plays — an 80-yard TD pass when senior Shawn Naim outjumped a defender in the middle of the field for a 50-50 ball and a 27-yard seam route to Nolan Ragland where another contested pass in the middle fell to Lutheran West.
“We came out and shut them down right away,” said senior defensive end Logan Schultz, who had one of the team’s seven tackles for loss. “It was a great start. We wanted to stop them from running the ball first, but we got some good pressure.”
On the other side of the ball, the Bucks’ hogs up front plowed big holes for Monaco (14 carries, 67 yards), quarterback Jacob Doerge (25 carries, 88 yards, TD) and Armando Nigh (7 carries, 60 yards).
Senior Brock Brumfield cashed in first, though, taking a sweep left on the second series of the game and easily racing for a 32-yard TD and a 7-0 lead. Monaco capped the next two drives with scores, first on a 3-yard run and then on a 2-yarder up the middle.
After the Bucks’ next series reached first-and-goal at the 10 before stalling, Buckeye took its next series and went 59 yards in eight plays, with Monaco taking a pitch left and running down the sideline for a 16-yard score and a 28-7 lead. “The scheme was a lot of it, but people were making plays when they had the chance,” Monaco said. “The line was making some great holes, and when (Doerge) and (Nigh) are popping plays, it frees up everyone — Anthony Watkins, (Brumfield), everybody."
Special teams set Buckeye up all night long, highlighted by a 32-yard punt return from Brumfield and a 50-yard kickoff return by Nigh to start the second half.
“We take a lot of pride in our special teams,” coach Greg Dennison said. “What happened in the first half was it gave us great field position. That’s a credit to our special teams.” And a credit to a Buckeye team that was prepared for a big game. “Our kids know when it’s a big game, and they came to play tonight,” Dennison said.
