SPRINGFIELD — After a two-and-a-half hour long game, Springfield’s coaches made their players endure cold temperatures and windy conditions for another 20 minutes to hammer home a message: They didn’t play well enough to advance at the state level, but they’re capable of it.
The Wildcats scored the first two touchdowns and never trailed in a 21-14 victory over Perrysburg in a Division I, Region 2, semifinal and will advance to a regional final for the seventh time in the last eight seasons.
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“We didn’t perform up to our standard, but we’re thankful to be advancing,” Springfield coach Maurice Douglass said. “… It may have been good enough for somebody else, but we didn’t feel we performed like we’re capable of today.”
Springfield (10-2) advanced to face Greater Western Ohio Conference rival Wayne at a neutral site to be determined. The Warriors beat Hilliard Darby 56-14 in Region 2’s other semifinal on Friday.
The Wildcats beat Wayne 43-12 in Week 7.
“We need a better performance than we had this week,” Douglass said. “We’ve got to come locked in next week, focused on the goal at hand, paying attention to details. Today, we were off. We were off kilter all day today, right after school to the end of the game. Thankfully, we’re advancing.”
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While Springfield didn’t dominate like it did in last week’s dominating win over Fairmont, the squad’s defense largely held Perrysburg’s offense in check.
Springfield’s offense sputtered, though, with quarterback CJ Wallace being sacked several times.
Junior running back Amileo Norvell Jr. followed up last week’s three-touchdown performance with another stellar outing, and Douglass credited him for giving the squad life on offense.
Norvell scored two touchdowns and had a long run to set up the other TD, and he had a crucial interception in the second quarter.
“He’s special,” Douglass said. “He came in and played as a freshman. He was a running back, then last year he came and asked, ‘Coach, can I play corner?’ He’s just a tremendous athlete.
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“… He laid it on the line tonight, and he did what we had to do. We’re advancing because of his effort today.”
Springfield led 14-7 at halftime.
Both offenses sputtered in the third quarter. The Yellow Jackets had a promising drive end in part due to a penalty but pinned the Wildcats at their 6-yard line on a punt.
Norvell broke free on a run up the middle, veered to his right and raced up the field until being forced out at the 1-yard line on a 93-yard run. Corey Evans Jr. ran in on the next play to give Springfield a 21-7 lead with a little over seven minutes left.
The Yellow Jackets (10-2) struck back with a lengthy drive that ended with a 14-yard TD run by Dakota Jackson with 3:39 left to cut the gap to 21-14.
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Perrysburg forced a fourth down on Springfield’s next drive. Norvell picked up about five yards on a fourth-and-inches with about 1:30 left to clinch it.
After a slow first quarter, Springfield scored on the first play of the second quarter. Norvell scored on a 13-yard touchdown run and Natalie Erdman kicked the extra point to give the Wildcats a 7-0 lead with 11:55 left.
Norvell intercepted a tipped pass by Perrysburg backup QB Matthew Helman, who has played since starter Brady Maxwell tore an ACL in Week 8. Norvell then scored a couple plays later on a 6-yard TD run to push Springfield’s lead to 14-0.
The Wildcats’ offense sputtered the rest of the first half. Perrysburg scored on a 24-yard TD run by Jackson with 3:27 left to cut the gap to 14-7.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
