Local Sports
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Commodores sail past Mohawks, 47-3SPORTS WRITER
Kendell Franklin rushed for 86 yards on seven carries and scored two touchdowns as Lima Perry defeated St. Wendelin 47-3 in Friday night's Northwest Central Conference game at Memorial Stadium.
The win lifted Perry to 4-4 overall and 4-2 in the NWCC. The Mohawks dropped to 0-8 overall and 0-5 in the conference.
“We haven't been able to find an identity for most of the season,” St. Wendelin coach Bill Hrabak said. “We had success in the air last the time we played Perry, but it took a toll on our quarterback. That's why we chose to run the ball.”
But St. Wendelin's running game never really got going. In contrast, the Commodores' tailbacks just couldn't be stopped.
Perry's John Turner started the scoring early in the first quarter with a 5-yard run on the Commodores' first possession. Andrew Gipson kicked the extra point.
The Mohawks' Chase Beam, the quarterback who doubles as a linebacker, kept his team in the game by forcing and recovering a fumble in the second quarter. Beam also made two sacks and seven tackles on the night.
St. Wendelin's possession after Beam's fumble recovery set up Clare Berry for a 34-yard field goal attempt, but senior's powerful kick missed just wide to the left.
Perry capitalized on its physical superiority, as it continued to punish the Mohawks on the ground.
After leading his team with a series of first-down runs, Ryan Knuckles found the end zone with an 11-yard sweep. Gipson converted the PAT. Knuckles ran for 55 yards on seven carries on the night.
Tanner Hunt eluded a handful of Mohawks defenders, dashing 31 yards down the middle of the field for a touchdown just before halftime, making the count 21-0.
“If we just executed a few tackles, it could have easily been 7-3 at halftime,” Hrabak said. “It would have been a huge boost and told our kids that we were in the game.”
In the second half, the Commodores didn't ease up. Franklin inched his way into the end zone for a touchdown, and tip-toed down the sideline for a 38-yard score just a few minutes later. Gipson nailed both extra points.
Perry's backup quarterback, Zach Keehn, found Quis Woods with a 43-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter. Gipson missed the PAT kick.
St. Wendelin didn't give up, handing freshman Zach Miller a chance to spark something in the offense. Miller didn't disappoint either, immediately throwing a 30-yard pass to receiver Alex Shontz to put his team within field goal range.
Berry redeemed her earlier miss, sinking a 21-yard kick between the uprights with just over a minute left in the game.
Perry rounded out the scoring on the subsequent kickoff return, with Knuckles racing 65 yards untouched for the touchdown. The Commodores took a knee on the extra-point play.
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Ph: (419) 435-6641 • Fax: (419) 435-9073
113 E. Center St. • P.O. Box 947
Fostoria, OH 44830
The Findlay Publishing Company
P.O. Box 609
Findlay, OH 45839-0609
Phone: (419) 422-5151
www.findlaypublishing.com
Please read our privacy guidelines
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