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Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
50th win against rival pairs McKinley Saturday with Toledo Whitmer
By Jim Isabella
Special to the Beacon Journal
Published on Sunday, Nov 01, 2009
CANTON: In the 118th meeting of the oldest football series in the state, Canton McKinley had no turnovers and played flawlessly on offense to defeat Massillon 35-21 before 15,555 at Fawcett Stadium. Massillon leads the all-time series 63-50-5, but that 50th McKinley win will go down as one of the most meaningful in the storied rivalry.
According to the local mathematicians, the victory will send the Bulldogs into the Division I, Region 2 playoffs. McKinley and Hudson were tied for the eighth and final spot in both Level One and Level Two points, but the Bulldogs had the edge in the rarely used Level Three points.
The pairings will be announced today by the Ohio High School Athletic Association and it looks like Massillon will host North Canton Hoover and McKinley will play at Toledo Whitmer on Saturday.
Bulldogs junior quarterback Kyle Ohradzansky completed 7-of-10 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns. Senior running back Bryce Wilder rushed for 119 yards on 17 carries.
''[Massillon] never stopped us and we just kept doing what we did,'' Ohradzansky said.
The teams combined for 726 yards in total offense. The difference was simple — McKinley took advantage of all its opportunities and Massillon did not.
''They just made too many plays and we could not stop them,'' Tigers coach Jason Hall said.
The first quarter was an exercise in frustration for the Tigers.
Massillon took the opening kickoff, had the ball for almost six minutes but stalled on the McKinley 15 and senior kicker Jeremy Geier was short on a 32-yard field-goal attempt.
The Bulldogs then struck quickly, scoring on a 64-yard pass from Ohradzansky to Angelo Powell for a 7-0 lead.
The Tigers drove into Bulldogs territory again but Brice Everett intercepted a tipped pass from Robert Partridge at the goal line and returned it to the McKinley 31. The Bulldogs took advantage with a 13-play drive, capped by Ohradzansky's 1-sneak for a 14-0 lead.
Massillon cut the lead to 14-7 on the next series. A nine-play, 54-yard drive was capped by a 1-yard plunge by junior Jake Reimen.
Again, McKinley responded quickly. Junior Taron Montgomery took the kickoff at his 8-yard line and went 92 yards for a touchdown that gave the Bulldogs a 21-7 lead.
Another 1-yard touchdown run by Reiman capped Massillon's next drive with 46 seconds to go in the half.
The Bulldogs squelched the Tigers' momentum early in the third quarter when Powell caught his second touchdown pass from Ohradzansky, a 5-yard lob into the left corner of the end zone. Powell, a senior, had three catches for 88 yards.
The Tigers' faint hopes got a boost with a 28-yard punt return by Bo Grunder that put the ball on the McKinley 47. A 26-yard scramble by Partridge and a 19-yard pass to Grunder set up Reimen's third rushing touchdown, a 2-yarder that cut the deficit to 28-21 with 5:56 to go.
McKinley ate up most of the final minutes of the quarter in two possessions, putting the game away on a 25-yard run by Wilder with 1:17 left in the game.
For a team that two weeks ago had lost 38-34 to Hoover after holding a 34-2 lead at halftime, Halloween will be remembered as the day the Bulldogs' playoffs hopes somehow rose from the dead.
CANTON: In the 118th meeting of the oldest football series in the state, Canton McKinley had no turnovers and played flawlessly on offense to defeat Massillon 35-21 before 15,555 at Fawcett Stadium. Massillon leads the all-time series 63-50-5, but that 50th McKinley win will go down as one of the most meaningful in the storied rivalry.
According to the local mathematicians, the victory will send the Bulldogs into the Division I, Region 2 playoffs. McKinley and Hudson were tied for the eighth and final spot in both Level One and Level Two points, but the Bulldogs had the edge in the rarely used Level Three points.
The pairings will be announced today by the Ohio High School Athletic Association and it looks like Massillon will host North Canton Hoover and McKinley will play at Toledo Whitmer on Saturday.
Bulldogs junior quarterback Kyle Ohradzansky completed 7-of-10 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns. Senior running back Bryce Wilder rushed for 119 yards on 17 carries.
''[Massillon] never stopped us and we just kept doing what we did,'' Ohradzansky said.
The teams combined for 726 yards in total offense. The difference was simple — McKinley took advantage of all its opportunities and Massillon did not.
''They just made too many plays and we could not stop them,'' Tigers coach Jason Hall said.
The first quarter was an exercise in frustration for the Tigers.
Massillon took the opening kickoff, had the ball for almost six minutes but stalled on the McKinley 15 and senior kicker Jeremy Geier was short on a 32-yard field-goal attempt.
The Bulldogs then struck quickly, scoring on a 64-yard pass from Ohradzansky to Angelo Powell for a 7-0 lead.
The Tigers drove into Bulldogs territory again but Brice Everett intercepted a tipped pass from Robert Partridge at the goal line and returned it to the McKinley 31. The Bulldogs took advantage with a 13-play drive, capped by Ohradzansky's 1-sneak for a 14-0 lead.
Massillon cut the lead to 14-7 on the next series. A nine-play, 54-yard drive was capped by a 1-yard plunge by junior Jake Reimen.
Again, McKinley responded quickly. Junior Taron Montgomery took the kickoff at his 8-yard line and went 92 yards for a touchdown that gave the Bulldogs a 21-7 lead.
Another 1-yard touchdown run by Reiman capped Massillon's next drive with 46 seconds to go in the half.
The Bulldogs squelched the Tigers' momentum early in the third quarter when Powell caught his second touchdown pass from Ohradzansky, a 5-yard lob into the left corner of the end zone. Powell, a senior, had three catches for 88 yards.
The Tigers' faint hopes got a boost with a 28-yard punt return by Bo Grunder that put the ball on the McKinley 47. A 26-yard scramble by Partridge and a 19-yard pass to Grunder set up Reimen's third rushing touchdown, a 2-yarder that cut the deficit to 28-21 with 5:56 to go.
McKinley ate up most of the final minutes of the quarter in two possessions, putting the game away on a 25-yard run by Wilder with 1:17 left in the game.
For a team that two weeks ago had lost 38-34 to Hoover after holding a 34-2 lead at halftime, Halloween will be remembered as the day the Bulldogs' playoffs hopes somehow rose from the dead.
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