Jackson takes down New Philadelphia despite slow start on offense
By: Grant Kiefer
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JACKSON, Ohio (WOUB) — The Jackson Ironmen (9-2, 5-0 FAC) rallied to win five straight games down the stretch to win the FAC for the fourth-straight season, en route to hosting yet another first round playoff game. Their reward? Facing New Philadelphia (7-4, 3-2 Ohio Central), who was also coming into this one on a five-game win streak, capped off by a massive week 10 win over rival Dover. The Quakers couldn’t carry that momentum, though, as the Ironmen ended their season with a final score of 21-14.
After two slow first drives from both squads, Jackson struck first by capping off a methodical drive with a Nolan Johnson five-yard touchdown run, putting the Ironmen up 7-0 at the end of the first quarter.
New Philadelphia would respond, though, as the Quakers took advantage of phenomenal starting field position by moving the ball through the air. They evened the game up on fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line with a Keaton Fausel diving touchdown early in the second quarter.
Jackson couldn’t quite muster any offense in the second quarter, but New Philadelphia found an offensive spark on its final possession of the first half. However, the Jackson defense would come in clutch, forcing a goal line stand to keep the score even at 7-7 heading into halftime.
Finally, after roughly 18 minutes of game time without a score, Jackson would take the lead back late in the third quarter. A Ryan Seimetz catch down the sideline set up Jackson perfectly with goal-to-go, and who else but Johnson to punch it in again for the Ironmen? Jackson up, 14-7.
Jackson would try and put the nail in the coffin early in the fourth quarter, as Bodhi Wolford found Gaven Jones wide open over the middle to give the Ironmen their first two-score lead of the game, up 21-7.
The Quakers needed a quick response with their season hanging in the balance, and they began to chip away. The good part about their drive was it was capped off with a touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-14. The bad part was it took far too long and gave Jackson the ball back with under three minutes to play. After a couple of first downs, the Ironmen ran the clock out for yet another playoff win.
Jackson will be back in action next week in the regional quarterfinals versus top-seeded Bishop Watterson in Region 11.