Sports
Nelsonville-York Buckeyes Continue To Search For An Answer
By: Ethan Sands
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The Nelsonville York Buckeyes were simply outclassed on Friday as the Martins Ferry Purple Riders ran away with a 38-0 victory.
The Buckeyes knew that the bullseye would be on their backs this season, but nobody could have predicted this. Two back-to-back deficits of over 20 points is unheard of in Nelsonville.
They now have fallen to 0-2 on the year.
Martins Ferry came into Buckeyes country on a mission as they scored in under four minutes of play. Though it was just a field goal, this simulated how aggressive the offense would be as they scored two touchdowns on the ground from Logan Diloretta and Logan Smith, not to mention the two in the air from Mason Goddard and Caleb Olson. There seemed to be nothing lacking on the offensive end for the Purple Riders.
Nelsonville on the other hand, totaled only 130 yards of offense. Not only was their offensive productivity dismal, but they also had an interception and a fumble. The interception led to an immediate touchdown as it was taken back from the Buckeye 20 yard line to the house. The fumble set up an easy touchdown from inside the 40, as well.
In comparison, Martins Ferry quarterback Jake Probst threw for nine completions on 16 attempts with a total of 179 yards, by himself. Probst did lose 11 yards on a carry, but it didn’t matter as the other seven running backs added over 150 yards combined to help keep the Purple Riders offense marching down the field.
The defensive side for Nelsonville-York got bullied at the offensive line and the last line of defense wasn’t able to stop the aerial assault which was highlighted by a bubble screen pass to Goddard who ran for 81 yards.
The ground and pound was eminent in the game as though the Purple Riders ran for short gains, they were on important series and downs that decided whether or not they would score on that drive. These are key stops that the Buckeyes just couldn’t make when it counted.
Frustration was visible in the eyes of the Nelsonville players as their squad is used to putting up 30 pieces on their side of the scoreboard, but that just hasn’t been the case so far in their 2018-2019 season.
The Martins Ferry Purple Riders extends their win streak to two games to kick off their season, and look to continue this streak at home, next week against Union Local.
The Nelsonville-York Buckeyes drop to 0-2 and try to move on from this loss when they travel to Minford next week. This is the first time they’ve traveled on the road this year, maybe this change of scenery will be just what the Buckeyes need.