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Viscounte creates Lake defense that defeats Indians
By Nate Ulrich
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Published on Saturday, Aug 25, 2007
COPLEY: First-year Copley football coach Ron Viscounte will not forget where he came from because Lake won't let him.
The Blue Streaks earned bragging rights against their former defensive coordinator, Viscounte, by defeating the host Indians 34-7 on Friday night in the season opener for both teams.
After serving as an assistant coach at Lake for 15 years, Viscounte took the head coaching job at Copley when longtime Indians coach Dan Boarman left to take over at his alma mater, St. Vincent-St. Mary. The Blue Streaks (1-0) wasted no time reminding Viscounte about the tradition he left behind in Lake Township.
''We were glad to beat him tonight,'' said Jeff Durbin, who is in his 18th season as head coach at Lake. ''We wish Ron all the best. He's a hell of a coach and has a lot of integrity and character. I'm sure he'll lead this program, but I felt a little bit bittersweet about it.''
Lake opened the game and Please see Lake, C8
took a 7-0 lead with a 14-play, 76-yard drive that was capped by senior running back Gene Onabiyi's 5-yard touchdown run with 5:27 remaining in the first quarter.
Copley (0-1) fired back during the next series. Indians senior running back Justin White-Reid carried the ball three times for 75 yards, then finished the four-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run that tied the score 7-7 with 3:19 left in the first quarter.
Viscounte soon was reminded about his past. The new Indians coach was forced to acknowledge that he had created a monster: the Lake defense. Senior linebacker Matt Higginbotham and senior defensive linemen Mike Hammond and Ryan Jones made key plays to help the Blue Streaks' defense shut down the Indians' offense for the rest of the game.
''They are a big, physical team,'' Viscounte said. ''They were better in all phases of the game. They are a good footbal team. Right now, we've got to prove a lot to be considered in that category of being a good football team.''
Higginbotham, a three-year starter and defensive captain, said Lake's defense adjusted to White-Reid's speed and style after Copley's first possession.
''We were in the right spots, but we just weren't tackling,'' he said. ''After that, we settled down and ended up coming out the next series tackling.''
The Blue Steaks, though, continued to score at will. In the second quarter, Onabiyi added touchdown runs of 22 and 21 yards, and junior running back Tyler Crowl had a 30-yard rushing touchdown. Lake led 28-7 at halftime.
Lake started the second half with a 76-yard touchdown run by Crowl to extended its lead to 34-7.
Copley looked like it would respond like it did in the first quarter. The Indians drove to the Blue Streaks' 7-yard line, but Higginbotham recovered a fumble to kill the drive. Copley's offense never threatened again.
Onabiyi finished with 153 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries. Crowl had 189 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries.
''They're tough and they have good vision and balance,'' Durbin said of his rushing duo. ''The guys up front did a pretty good job getting them creases to run through.''
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Nate Ulrich can be reached at 330-996-3800.
COPLEY: First-year Copley football coach Ron Viscounte will not forget where he came from because Lake won't let him.
Get the full article here.
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