Zanesville Defense Tightens The Leash On Heath Bulldogs Offense
By: Sedric Granger
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HEATH, Ohio (WOUB) — After a 21-12 loss to Granville last week, the Heath Bulldogs looked to bounce back at home. Meanwhile the Zanesville Blue Devils aimed to rebound from a 26-13 loss against Fort Frye.
Heath looked to start fast by going deep on the first play, but Brayden Bayless’s pass was intercepted by Zanesville’s Trey Wyatt, putting the Blue Devils in a position to strike first. They did just that, as Jordan Martin scurried his way downfield from 31 yards out. The extra point was good, giving Zanesville a 7-0 lead.
Zanesville’s defense was not done yet as they continued their strong first quarter with yet another interception by Trey Wyatt. The second of three interceptions in the game. This led to a field goal attempt for the Devils that was blocked by the Dogs and recovered by Riley Gould, giving the Bulldogs some much needed juice.
However, the defense remained impermeable for Zanesville, forcing a three-and-out. Once again, Jordan Martin wasted no time finding the end zone again on a 23 yard dash to increase the lead to 14 over Heath. The score at halftime was 21-0 after Zanesville added another rushing touchdown.
Entering into the second half, Keylan Williams made a fantastic one handed catch on a pass thrown by Bayless from 23 yards out to start a comeback campaign for the Dogs. Right when Heath started generating momentum, the Blue Devil’s defense shut the door on any comeback attempt in the fourth quarter when Zanesville’s Kanye Evans picked up a Heath fumble and took it to the end zone to put the game on ice. The Blue Devils cruised to a 48-7 victory.
Zanesville exemplified smash-mouth football as they finished with six rushing touchdowns on the day. Jordan Martin and Michael Norman led the way with two touchdowns each for ZHS. In addition, The Blue Devil’s defense was impermeable all night forcing five turnovers. As for Heath, Keylan Williams had his second touchdown catch in as many weeks.
Next week, Heath (3-2) will take the road to play winless Lakewood while Zanesville (2-2) matches up with Licking Valley.