KIRTLAND – Kirtland ran past visiting Perry, 44-24, in a Chagrin Valley Conference crossover win on Friday after a first-half shootout.
The Pirates opened the game with a kickoff return touchdown, but the Hornets answered quickly. The teams combined for five touchdowns in the first quarter before Kirtland took control in the second and never let up.
“We knew it was going to be a battle. These guys are a great football team with a great coaching staff, and they work hard,” said Kirtland head coach Tiger LaVerde. “We knew it would be a battle, and I was proud of how our kids responded to that opening score and stayed in the fight. I told the kids to enjoy the fight.”
Traxton Richards gave Perry an early spark with a 95-yard kickoff return, but Ty Bledsoe erased the deficit on Kirtland’s first play from scrimmage, a 65-yard touchdown run to tie it at 7-7.
Perry regained the lead when McKoy Richards hit Greg Mechenbier on a screen pass that turned into a 30-yard score.
Kirtland quarterback Jake LaVerde tied the game at 14 with a 25-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-five, but Richards answered again with a 27-yard strike to Justin Costello for a 21-14 Perry advantage.
LaVerde responded with a 22-yard run to tie it at 21-21, then ripped off a 60-yard scamper to set up his third touchdown of the half, a 10-yard dash that gave the Hornets their first lead at 28-21 with 7:22 left in the second quarter. They never trailed again.
“All week we said this would be a four-quarter game; we knew we had to hang in there no matter the score,” Coach LaVerde said. “Sometimes our kids are out at halftime, we knew it wasn’t going to happen this game. I told them to enjoy the battle with their friends, and appreciate that you’re going to go out there and compete for four quarters.”
Kirtland struck again to open the second half. John Silvestro keyed the drive with a 33-yard run and capped it with a 12-yard touchdown rush. He added the two-point conversion to push the lead to 36-21.
Perry’s final points came on a 33-yard Colton Crissinger field goal, trimming the deficit to 36-24. But Bledsoe sealed it with a 53-yard touchdown run, and Silvestro added another two-point conversion.
The Hornets piled up big numbers on the ground.
LaVerde ran 19 times for 197 yards and three touchdowns, Bledsoe carried 18 times for 182 yards and two scores, and Silvestro added 109 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.
Perry, meanwhile, couldn’t sustain its early momentum in its first loss of the season.
“That flurry at the start is not something that you plan on. We scored the opening kickoff, and then it was back-and-forth from there. It was almost like restarting the game three times,” said Perry head coach Bob Gecewich. “Everything happened so fast, but Kirtland kept rolling offensively, and we kept getting further behind. We got into a situation where they can get into Cover 2 and still cover our run with five (defenders) in the (tackle) box, and we have to find answers for that.”
Despite falling to 2-1, the Pirates have faced a tough schedule with games against Madison, Kenston, and Kirtland.
“This team fights. I know they’re going to come back on Monday ready to work,” Gecewich said. “They’re going to take what we say and try to improve on those things. It’s a great group of kids, and we’re just going to keep working.”
McKoy Richards finished 8-of-16 passing for 115 yards and two touchdowns. Costello caught six passes for 52 yards and a score, while Mechenbier added three receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown.
Next week, Kirtland visits Fairview in another CVC crossover, while Perry hosts future CVC foe Chardon.
