SPORTS

Big plays the difference as Bucyrus tops Crestline

Dan Messerschmidt
dmessers@nncogannett.com

CRESTLINE — Both teams moved the ball well. Big plays were the difference for Bucyrus.

The Redmen used two pass plays of over 80 yards each to build a 19-9 halftime lead, then held on for a 25-17 non-league win over Crestline at Hutson Stadium.

Bucyrus (1-1), in stark contrast to last week’s shutout against Galion, piled up 585 yards of total offense, but struggled to get the ball into the end zone at times.

“A win’s a win,” Bucyrus coach Aaron Eckert said. “That’s what we came here to do tonight.”

Crestline (0-2) struck first. On the Bulldogs’ second possession, the drive stalled at the Bucyrus 22. However, J.R. Wolfe converted a 37-yard field goal for a 3-0 Crestline lead.

“We’re starting to get better,” Crestline coach Kevin Sipes said. “We’ll get there.”

Indeed, the Bulldogs racked up 364 yards of their own and were a few plays away from at least going to overtime.

The Redmen got a 4-yard run from Gram Dick on the first play of the second quarter to take a 7-3 lead, one that they would not relinquish. But Crestline was never far away.

Gavin Lewis connected with freshman Harley Robinson on an 81-yard scoring strike later in the second quarter for a 13-3 Bucyrus lead.

On the next possession, Kade Slagle took a screen pass from Lewis 83 yards to the one. Dick caught a 1-yard pass for the score and a 19-3 Redmen lead.

“In the first half, we did what we do in practice,” Eckert said. “In the second half, we stopped paying attention to the details. We fell off a little.”

The Bulldogs squeezed in a touchdown with 23 second left in the half on a 5-yard pass from Wolfe to Chandler Gaskill, to cut the deficit to 19-9 at intermission.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Sipes said. “Eighty-five percent of the time, we played well. Fifteen percent of the time, was wrong. They hurt us with big plays.”

Bucyrus made it 25-9 on a 2-yard run by Lewis in the third quarter, but the Redmen had to hang on from there, with several scoring opportunities going awry.

A 12-yard scoring pass from Wolfe to Caleb Moore with 3:09 left, along with a 2-point conversion, cut the Bucyrus lead to 25-17. But the Redmen recovered the ensuing onside kick and were able to run out the clock.

Lewis hit nine of 21 passes for 238 yards, with an interception, spreading the ball around to six receivers. The junior also rushed for 115 yards on 23 carries. He threw for two scores and ran for one.

Wolfe was 12 of 33 for 179 yards with an interception. He ran for 76 yards on 16 carries. His favorite target was Gaskill, who caught eight balls for 79 yards.

“We have to be able to score from the one-foot line,” Eckert said. “We’ve got some work to do. But Crestline is getting better. Their coaching staff is doing a good job.”

“Our front line was 180 degrees from last week,” Sipes said. “It was amazing what our offense was able to do.”

Twitter: @TF_Schmidt

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