CHAGRIN FALLS–Sophomore Donny Hardy stepped in at running back for the injured Xavier Perez and helped lead Chagrin Falls to a 16-6 win over visiting Harvey on Friday.
Hardy and senior running back Owen McClintock each had a rushing touchdown and Andrew Kirkpatrick added a 27-yard field goal in the victory.
Junior wide receiver Rick Coleman Jr. scored the only touchdown of the day for the Red Raiders as the Tigers’ defense was able to keep Harvey’s offense in check throughout the night.
“We played together. That’s the most important thing,” said assistant coach John Scott, who filled in for head coach Mark Iammarino. “When the weather is the way it’s going to be, you’re going to expect some snaps to go wrong. You’re going to expect it to be difficult to throw the football. Offensively, when you get rain like this, you have to rely to on your offensive line to produce. We’ve got four returning starters; they did the job, they opened up holes and our backs had a lot of success running downhill today.”
Both teams struggled to deal with the harsh weather conditions early as they both fumbled on their opening possessions. Both teams then went three-and-out as the first quarter ended quickly with no score.
McClintock opened up the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run after converting on 4th-and-1 at the 3.
After back-to-back three and outs, senior wide receiver Willie Grimes set up the Raiders with their best field position of the night with a solid punt return. Two plays later, Coleman took a Jaden Debevec bubble screen 64-yards for a touchdown. A missed extra point left the score 7-6.
Hardy was subbed in on the ensuing Tiger possession as Perez left the game for precautionary reasons. Hardy had carries of 18, 31, and 14 yards and finished the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.
Another missed extra point gave the Tigers a 13-6 lead going into the half.
“The one thing they do really well is spread the ball out on the perimeter, and that’s what we prepared for,” Scott said when discussing the team’s defensive effort. “We really focused on playing the perimeter this week and obviously the rained kind of played into our hands as well, gave us an extra defender.”
The Red Raiders opened up the second half with a beautiful pass across the middle of the field from Debevec to Grimes, but a solid tackle for loss by McClintock two plays later forced the Raiders into a turnover on downs.
The Raiders were able to stop the Tigers on their ensuing possession, but a holding penalty stalled their next drive leaving the score 13-6 at the end of the third.
On Chagrin’s next possession, an 18-yard carry by Hardy and a 24-yard pass from senior quarterback Dawson Pierce to senior tight end Josh Norton set up the Tigers for a 27-yard Kirkpatrick field goal, extending the lead to 16-6.
The Tiger defense did the rest as it forced the Raiders into three consecutive three-and-outs to end the game.
“Honestly, I feel like we did great,” Harvey’s Coleman said after the game. “Coach really prepared us for this game, and I say, if it’s better weather, we’re whooping these guys. But, good game to Chagrin and we have to do better.”
Chagrin Falls is scheduled to host Lakeside while Harvey is scheduled to host Perry next Friday.
