by Gregg Meadows
Tri-Valley used a ball control offense with a good balance of the run and the pass – and rode the legs of junior tailback Drake Durst on Friday night, Oct. 28 in Dresden at Jack Anderson Stadium, as the Scotties defeated Jonathan Alder 30-10 in their OHSAA state playoff opener.
With the win, Coach Cam West’s Scottie football squad – who finished as the 4th seed in D-III, Region 11 entering post season action, will host No. 5 seed, Bloom Carroll in a second round playoff contest on Friday night, Oct. 4 at Jack Anderson Stadium.
The BC Bulldogs (from Fairfield County) are no strangers to post season play, reaching the state semi-final the past two seasons (in Div. IV), have nine wins in their last 11 playoff appearances, and boast a senior class that has posted a 43-6 record the past four seasons. They are led by 6’3”, 220 lb senior linebacker Andrew Marshall – a Kent State recruit – who also plays running back on offense.
In the Jonathan Alder win, Scottie junior running back Drake Durst had a career night, rushing for 160 yards on 23 carries with two scores, and catching two passes for 22 yards as well. Durst capped a first quarter TV scoring drive with a one-yard run at 2:46 of the first quarter to give the home team a 6-0 lead. An early second period Jonathan Alder field goal cut the Scottie lead to 6-3, but then the offense got rolling for Tri-Valley, as sophomore QB Max Lyall hooked up with standout junior receiver Ashton Sensibaugh for a 32-yard score at 5:54 of the second frame – followed by a Bode McCullough PAT – then McCullough added a 23-yard field goal on the last play of the half, as the home team took a 16-3 to the lockerroom.
The Scotties added to their lead early in the third quarter, on another Lyall to Sensibaugh scoring play – this one from 55 yards out – and a McCullough PAT saw TV up by a 23-6 margin. A fourth quarter interception from senior cornerback Jayden Walker (his second the contest) set up another Durst scoring run with 7:44 left in the game, as a McCullough PAT tacked on the Dawgs’ final points of the night for a 30-3 lead. Jonathan Alder QB Doug Nussbaum added a two-yard scoring run to cap scoring.
The Tri-Valley offense had 218 yards rushing, and 259 yards passing, on Lyall’s ultra-efficient 16 completions in 18 attempts, and two scores as well. Sensibaugh added to his eye-popping season numbers, hauling in six catches for 149 yards and two more end zone visits as well. TV senior Jayden Walker also had an outstanding game on both sides of the ball for the winners, with four catches for 40 yards, 33 rushing yards, and six tackles on defense with a pair of interceptions to boot.
Senior two-way lineman Mason Prouty had another exceptional game, anchoring the offensive line at center, while wrestling six JA Pioneers to the ground for six solo stops on defense. And speaking of that TV defense, the Scotties held Jonathan Alder leading rusher Cameron Jewell – who came into the game averaging nearly 140 yards per contest – to just 76 yards on 26 carries.
Kick-off for the Nov. 4, TV vs Bloom Carroll 2nd Round state playoff contest is set for 7:00 p.m. at Jack Anderson Stadium.
Looking Back:
Back on Oct. 21 in New Concord in the 2022 regular season finale, the Scotties defeated host John Glenn 41-7 and finished with an overall record of 8-2 heading into the OHSAA state playoffs. And it was a record-setting night for a pair of Scotties – as TV sophomore quarterback Max Lyall set a school mark for most passing yards in a game, completing 16 0f 23 attempted passes for a new school record 434 yards, (breaking the mark set last year by Drew Burkhart’s 401 yards) and throwing for six scores to boot. And junior receiver Ashton Sensibaugh added his name to the Tri-Valley football record books as well, catching six of Lyall’s aerials for a new school mark of 250 yards – a whopping 41.7 yards per catch average, (breaking Wade Warner’s 2007 school record mark) and three end zone visits as well for the talented – and speedy – Scottie receiver.
