Aces fold in last-minute drive, West Jefferson escapes with 27-20 victory
By: Jake Collins
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WEST JEFFERSON, Ohio (WOUB) – Amanda-Clearcreek (0-1) throws an interception on the first play in the final drive to seal West Jefferson’s (1-0) 27-20 victory in week one of the 2025 high school football season. The matchup featured two explosive offenses that shone in a back-and-forth game, with defenses making key plays when it mattered most.
Alternatively, tonight’s hot-weather matchup tested the attrition of both squads as they battled cramps, resulting in unwanted adversity that caused stars on both sides to miss drives throughout the game; a factor that affected Amanda-Clearcreek more than it did against West Jefferson.
Both teams failed to pass midfield in their opening drive, but it was West Jefferson QB Austin Buescher who connected with WR Braxton Vance on an 18-yard touchdown to open the score sheet before the end of the first quarter.
The connection would reappear just minutes later after a Roughrider takeaway by DB Jackson Beatty. Vance evaded multiple tackles near the line of scrimmage and reached the end zone for the 27-yard touchdown reception, giving West Jefferson the 14-0 lead.
Amanda-Clearcreek quickly answered with a three-play drive, capped off by RB Bodie Martin’s 52-yard run to score the first points for the Aces; however, K Hayden Dunn missed the extra point to keep it at 14-6.
Amanda-Clearcreek forced a quick three-and-out in West Jefferson’s ensuing drive, and three-level threat Nick Holland broke through arm tackles and returned the punt 55 yards to close the Roughriders’ lead to a single point at 14-13. With this score, it seemed like Amanda-Clearcreek took control of the game’s momentum.
With great poise, Buescher led the Roughriders down the field in a methodical ten-play, 80-yard drive and found Beatty in the back of the endzone with 36 seconds remaining before halftime to extend West Jefferson’s lead, 20-13.
The Aces opened the second half with their own lengthy drive that totaled 12 plays. Entering the red zone with physicality and grit; however, a 15-yard penalty pushed Amanda-Clearcreek into tough territory with a third-and-goal from the 17-yard line. The Aces revealed an outside sweep to Tommy Stai, resulting in a 17-yard run from the senior running back. With Stai’s score, the game was tied, 20-20.
West Jeff drove down the field again into the red zone, but Amanda’s defense pushed the Roughriders back into a lengthy field goal, which the Roughriders pushed wide right to keep it tied going into the fourth.
West Jefferson forced another quick three-and-out, eventually leading to Buescher throwing his fourth passing touchdown of the night on a 12-yard completion, his second passing touchdown to Beatty. The quarterback and wide receiver connected eight times for 100 yards and two touchdowns.
The teams traded punts before West Jefferson failed on a fourth-down conversion with one minute left in Amanda-Clearcreek’s territory. With the crowd starting to roar from both grandstands, it was West Jefferson’s front seven applying pressure, causing a deflected throw that landed in LB Landen Koehler’s hands, solidifying the victory for the Roughriders in this Week 1 clash.
Despite tonight’s loss, Amanda-Clearcreek head coach Chet Saum was pleased with the resiliency from his squad, who overcame adversity: “That’s what we built the program on–we aren’t going to quit, we are going to fight back. We closed the lead twice, tied it at 20. We did good things and kept fighting, but we have mental mistakes to correct.”
Coach Saum also added that their defensive adjustments made at halftime limited the Roughrider’s offense to fewer explosive plays to retain the close game: “We just tried to limit the big plays defensively, which they had two or three explosive plays in that first half, we did that pretty well, but with a quarterback that talented, he can dice you from about anywhere,” Saum said.
Buescher ended the night 32 completions on 41 attempts with 342 passing yards, 38 rushing yards and four passing touchdowns to help the Roughriders, a performance that will give the senior quarterback a lot of confidence as West Jefferson will host Newark Catholic (0-1) in their week two matchup.
For Amanda-Clearcreek, the Aces will be on the road to Licking Valley (1-0) in what will be another tough matchup against the Division 3 playoff contender.