Friday Flashback: Knights tame Bulldogs

Note: The latest installment of the Friday Flashback takes us back to October, 2012, when Crestview traveled to Putnam County and picked up a Northwest Conference win over Columbus Grove. Below is the story as it appeared on the VW independent Sports page.

Van Wert independent sports

The Crestview Knight football team got a satisfying 27-14 win over perennial Northwest Conference football power Columbus Grove on Friday at Columbus Grove.

The Knights came out scoring and led 20-14 at halftime. While the Bulldogs edged Crestview in offensive yards (395-366) and first downs (22-14), ‘Grove also had two big turnovers, and that was the difference in the game.

The Knights drew first blood when Jacob Harmon rambled 24 yards for a score with a little more than a minute off the first-quarter clock. Kameron Grubaugh kicked the extra point and Crestview led 7-0 with 10:53 left in the period.

The Bulldogs responded with a 1-yard touchdown run by Joey Warnecke five minutes later. Mason Smith kicked the PAT and the game was all tied up at 7 apiece with 5:30 remaining in the first quarter.

But the quarter wasn’t over, and Crestview used the rest of it to put together a scoring drive that culminated in a 59-yard touchdown run by Malcom Oliver with 9 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Grubaugh again kicked the point-after and it was 14-7, Knights.

After a couple of fruitless drives, ‘Grove again tied it up at 14-all when quarterback Collin Grothaus found Blake Hoffman for a 30-yard scoring strike with 3:36 remaining in the half and Smith kicked the PAT.

Again, Crestview responded as Knight quarterback Preston Zaleski sprinted 10 yards for a TD with just over a minute to play. Grubaugh missed the point-after attempt, though, and the teams went into the locker room with Crestview leading 20-14.

The second half saw just one score, with the Knights adding an insurance touchdown when Oliver ran 17 yards to paydirt with 5:02 left in the third quarter. Grubaugh put this one through the uprights for a final score of 27-14.

Oliver and Harmon provided a strong 1-2 offensive punch for the Knights. Oliver rushed for 195 yards on 17 carries (11.5 yards per carry) and two touchdowns, while Harmon had 103 yards on nine carries (11.4 yards a carry) and one TD. Dakota Vogt led the Bulldogs with 61 yards on 10 carries.

Grothaus was Columbus Grove’s chief scoring threat, completing 16 of 37 passing attempts for 239 yards, a touchdown, but also two interceptions. Hoffman led the Bulldog receivers with six catches for 104 yards and a touchdown, while Derek Rieman caught four passes for 77 yards.

With the win, the Knights go to 2-5 in the NWC and are 4-5 overall. Columbus Grove is 3-4 in league play and 5-4 overall.