(Home) (Photos)
The Shoremen saw
their dream season come to an end Friday night, falling to a talented Ashland squad
by a final score of 21-14. The
combination of four turnovers and Ashland’s
all-state quarterback Taylor Housewright was more than the boys in Maroon &
Gold could overcome. The Arrows’ also
have a very quick defense made just enough plays to take away the continuity of
Avon Lake’s offense.
The game began on
a high note for A.L. as the Shoremen kicked off and stopped the return at Ashland’s 27. On the first play from scrimmage, Housewright
threw long down the left side where Matt Mudry went up high for the
interception at the Shoremen 48. Three
runs netted 15 yards and a first down at the Arrows’ 37. Two plays later, on 3rd & 5, Ashland
recovered a Shoremen fumble to stop what was a promising drive. The Shoremen helped out the Arrows with a
couple of personal foul penalties and Housewright hit a variety of receivers on
slants and bubble screens to move the ball to the one. The QB kept it himself for the TD and a 7-0
lead. Scott Shaffer returned the kickoff
to the 32 and the offense went back to work.
It took four plays to grind out a first down, then
Nick Firment tried to throw a deep ball down the right sideline that was
intercepted by Tyler McFarlin at the 24.
A couple of passes moved the ball to the Shoremen 38. From there Housewright threw a perfect bomb
to Shane Kipp for the touchdown the Shoremen trailed 14-0. Starting from their 28, the Shoremen ran the
ball five straight times to move to a first down at Ashland’s 34 as the quarter ended.
Taking up where
they left off, the Shoremen ran the ball another five times. A Haddad run on 4th & 3 came
up inches short of the first down, and the Arrows started from their
seven. Zach Murray sacked Housewright at
the two on 3rd & 8, forcing a punt. Steve Mares made a gutsy catch around the 32 yard
line and returned the ball to the 17.
Three plays later, Avon
Lake again faced a fourth
down, but this time Haddad easily converted for a first down at the five. Tell carried to the one, and Haddad crashed
into the end zone from there. Joe
Prendergast hit the PAT to cut the deficit to 14-7. The next Ashland drive started at their 28. Two passes fell incomplete, but on third down
Housewright hit McFarlin on a slant and he dodged his way down to the 35 for a
47 yard gain. Another pass to McFarlin moved
the ball to the seven, and Housewright carried for six yards to the one. But the Shoremen defense stuffed two more
runs by the QB, and his fourth down pass was incomplete. Starting at the one
with under a minute to play, the Shoremen used four runs to reach midfield as
the half ended.
Avon Lake received the third quarter kickoff and started from
their 34. On 3rd & 13,
Firment hit Ryan Scherer for a first down at the 44. On the next play Haddad broke though the
middle of the line and raced 37 yards to the 19. But two Tell sweep attempts resulted in a
loss of two, and Firment’s third down pass was intercepted in the end zone to
end the threat. An exchange of punts put
Ashland on
their own 27, where Housewright threw up a wounded duck that Ryan Scherer
picked off at midfield. A pass to Peyton
Armbrecht gained a first down at the 32, but three plays later it was 4th
and 6 at the 27. Firment’s toss was
intercepted at the six, and it looked like the Arrows were pinned in a
hole. But Housewright ran up the middle,
cut back to his right, and carried all the way out the Arrow 33. Then on 3rd & 6 from his own
37, Housewright again converted, this time for 15 yards to Anthony
Fairhurst. The third period ended with
the ball at the Shoremen 48.
Starting the
fourth quarter, Housewright threw to a well covered Fairhurst down the right
side. The Arrow wideout made a superb
diving catch as the ball barely cleared the defender’s hand. Two incompletions led to 3rd &
10. Zach Murray got good pressure on
Housewright, but the big QB pulled away and completed a pass to the one. A QB sneak on the next play was good for the
TD, and the score was 21-7 with 11 minutes to play. After a touchback on the kickoff, Ashland was called for
chopping Haddad's knees as he was blocking for Tell. Tell ran to a first down at the 36, then on 3rd
& 12 Haddad carried for 19 yards to Ashland’s
45. A pass to Scherer was good for 16 to
the 29. From there Tell and Haddad
alternated carries to reach the one in five plays, and Firment snuck in to cut
the lead to seven with
five and a half minutes left. Great
coverage limited the kick return to the 22, and two Housewright runs left Ashland facing 3rd
& 8. But again Housewright found
McFarlin for the first down. Three more
Arrow first downs ran out the clock and an emotional Shoremen squad bid
farewell to the 2007 season.
Notes:
·
Haddad carried 24
times for 175 yards on the night. Mike
finished the season with 1606 yards rushing and 25 TD’s.
·
Jeff Tells 93
yards on 26 carries give him a total of 1316 for the season.
·
…and a personal
note to the seniors from this old A.L. guy:
You guys were the first class I covered as freshmen when this site
started up in 2004. It has been a joy to
watch you grow over the past four seasons.
Thanks to each and every one of you for all the hard work, playing
through pain, and everything else you’ve been through. I’ll sure miss seeing you on Friday nights.
(Home) (Photos)
|
Avon Lake
|
0
|
7
|
0
|
7
|
14
|
|
Midview
|
14
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
21
|
|
|
|
A
|
|
A.L.
|
|
First downs
|
|
16
|
|
18
|
|
Rush Yds
|
|
101
|
|
266
|
|
Pass Yds
|
|
240
|
|
40
|
|
Passes att-comp-int
|
|
26-16-2
|
|
4-12-3
|
|
Fumbles-lost
|
|
0-0
|
|
3-1
|
|
Penalties
|
|
4-40
|
|
4-20
|
A – Housewright 1 run (Berkshire kick)
A – Kipp 39 pass from Housewright (Berkshire kick)
AL – Haddad 1 run (Prendergast kick)
A – Housewright 1 run (Berkshire kick)
AL – Firment
1 run (Prendergast kick)