Friday Flashback: Knights top Raiders

Note: Crestview and Wayne Trace will square off in non-conference high school football action tonight and accordingly, this week’s Friday Flashback goes back to the 2014 season when the two teams lit up for scoreboard for nearly 90 points. Below is the game story as it appeared on the VW independent Sports page.

Van Wert independent sports

CONVOY — Friday night’s football game between Crestview and Wayne Trace was an offensive slugfest, with a total of 13 touchdowns, nearly 1,000 yards of total offense and 88 total points scored as the Knights downed the Raiders 56-32 in a non-conference game that could be meaningful come play-off time.

Both teams put up some impressive offensive stats, with Crestview generating 501 yards of total offense – 346 of that on the ground – and Wayne Trace garnering 441 yards of offense, 288 of those yards through the air.

Knight quarterback Preston Zaleski was impressive as he ran for 294 yards and three touchdowns and passed for 155 yards and three more touchdowns in the game.

Wayne Trace quarterback Tyler Showalter also had some enviable numbers, running for 146 yards and three touchdowns, while passing for 288 yards and two touchdowns, although he also threw two interceptions in the game.

Crestview got the scoring going with a 33-yard run by Zaleski with 4:58 remaining in the first quarter. Jake Tatum kicked his first of eight points-after touchdown and it was 7-0, Knights.

The Raiders scored their first TD early in the second quarter when Showalter ran the ball in from the Knight 1-yard line. The PAT try failed and it was 7-6, Crestview.

Crestview scored again at the 9:48 mark of the second stanza when Zaleski hit Isaiah Kline on a 30-yard scoring strike and Tatum again booted the PAT for a 14-6 lead.

Wayne Trace then got the closest it would come to a lead when Tyler Showalter hit Daron Showalter on a 24-yard touchdown pass with 7:30 left in the first half. Tyler Showalter then legged it in for a two-point conversion and it was 14-all.

The Knights scored twice more in the quarter, on a 33-yard run by Zaleski and an 8-yard scoring strike from Zaleski to Kline, who caught three passes, all of them for touchdowns, and 88 yards in the game. Sinn had five receptions and a TD for the Raiders.

The score was 28-14 at the half, and Crestview was far from done, as the Knights went on to outscore the Raiders 28-18 in the second half to ice the game.

With the win, Crestview is now 3-0 on the year, while the Raiders fall to 2-1 overall.