Sports
Tri-Valley Throttles New Philly, Treks On
By: Sam Mullan
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The No. 4 Tri-Valley Scotties pulled away from the No. 5 New Philadelphia Quakers in the second half en route to a 47-21 victory on the back of Daniel “Bubby” Scott at Jack Anderson Stadium Friday, Nov. 8.
Both teams had to overcome very sloppy play with a combined 7 turnovers, and New Philadelphia added a turnover on downs in the first half. Punt returning reared its ugly head for the Scotties as they muffed a punt early in the second half, giving New Philadelphia a chance to get back into the game. However, Tri-Valley’s defense was able to respond all game long, limiting the Quakers’ star tailback Jamal Johnson to just 7 yards on the ground, after compiling over 7,000 in his career.
Instead of Johnson standing out, “Bubby” Scott stepped up, racking up 208 yards on the ground and four touchdowns. The Scotties relied on the running game all night long, and that turned out to be one of the big differences between the two teams. Tri-Valley finished the game with 374 yards on the ground, compared to just 23 for New Philadelphia.
While Johnson wasn’t a threat in the running game, Quaker quarterback Caleb Beans looked for Johnson out of the slot, connecting with him for 60 yards receiving. Beans threw the ball 41 times in the game as the Quakers got away from running the ball early.
New Philadelphia had a few tricks up its sleeve, but they was not effective; the Quakers had a wide receiver pass picked off and a flea flicker called back.
Simply put, the Scotties’ defense looked poised to get the team to the next round.
With their win, Tri-Valley will have to play No. 1 Athens next Friday, after Athens won their shootout with Logan Elm 74-55. The Scotties will be challenged to stop this high-powered Bulldog offense, but they have size, something that Athens has not been challenged with all season long. The matchup will be next Friday, Nov. 15 at 7:30. The game will be at a neutral site.