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Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024

Friday Flashback: Knights win opener

Note: The Crestview Knights and the Parkway Panthers will meet in tonight’s season opener and with that in mind, this week’s Friday Flashback takes us back to Week No. 1 of the 2016 high school football season. The Knights and Panthers met in Convoy and Crestview was able to pull away in the second half for a win. Below is the story as it appeared on the VW independent Sports page.

Van Wert independent sports

CONVOY — The Crestview Knights had a tougher time of it than the last couple of years, but still managed to defeat Parkway 40-27 in both teams’ non-conference opener at Crestview on Friday.

Parkway kept it close nearly the entire game, with the Knights up by just six points with less than four minutes to play, but Crestview scored the clinching touchdown with just over three minutes remaining to ice the game.

Crestview's Wade Sheets (3) makes an athletic catch over a Parkway defender for at touchdown in Friday's opener won by Crestview 40-27. Bob Barnes/Van Wert independent
Crestview’s Wade Sheets (3) makes an athletic catch over a Parkway defender for at touchdown in Friday’s opener won by Crestview 40-27. Bob Barnes/Van Wert independent

The Panthers scored first on an 18-yard pass from quarterback Justin Barna to Caden May with 9:55 remaining in the first quarter. The point-after was no good and Parkway was up 6-0. The Knights scored on their next possession as Payton Knittle ran the ball in from the Parkway 1-yard-line with 6:02 remaining in the first stanza. Dylan Hicks kicked the PAT and it was 7-6, Crestview.

The Knights also scored the next two touchdowns on, respectively, a 7-yard pass from Drew Kline to Wade Sheets at the 9:50 mark of the second quarter, and a 7-yard run by Kline with 3:43 left in the first half. Hicks kicked the PAT after the first score, but the PAT failed on the second, and Crestview was up 20-6 with time running out in the half.

Parkway put those few minutes to good use, though, as the Panthers put together a drive that culminated with a 24-yard run by May with just 48 seconds left in the half. Alex Schoenleben kicked the extra point and Parkway trailed by seven points, 20-13.

And the Panthers weren’t through yet.

With 33 ticks left on the first-half clock, Parkway’s Noah Stephenson intercepted a Knight pass and ran 30 yards to shock the Knights and make it 20-19. Justin Rice kicked the point-after and it was all tied up at 20 as the half ended.

Although Crestview couldn’t have been pleased with the way the first half ended, the Knights came out ready to play as the third quarter opened.

The Knights scored the only touchdown in the quarter when Kline found Knittle on a 34-yard scoring strike with 5:02 remaining in the period. Knittle then kicked the PAT and it was 27-20, Crestview.

The Knights made it two in a row when Trevor Gibson bulled it in from the Parkway 1-yard line with 6:33 remaining in the final quarter. The PAT was no good and Crestview led by 13 points, 33-20.

Parkway didn’t give up, though, scoring at the 4:27 mark when Andrew Baker hit Shoenleben for a 22-yard TD to bring the Panthers within six points, 33-27.

The Knights didn’t lose their composure, and came back with a big score with 3:02 remaining when Kline broke loose for a 43-yard touchdown run. Hicks kicked the PAT for the 40-27 final score.

Crestview had three players with more than 70 yards rushing, led by Knittle, with 150 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries (10 yards per carry average). Kline rushed 14 times for 80 yards and two TDs, while Luke Gerardot had 74 yards on 11 carries.

Cview vs. Parkway football 8-26-16

POSTED: 08/20/21 at 3:49 am. FILED UNDER: Sports