Cougars clamp down on Defiance 36-0

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

Van Wert’s defense came to play Friday night.

The Cougar ‘D’ forced Defiance to turn the ball over on downs five times, picked off a pair of passes, had three sacks and held the Bulldogs scoreless in a 36-0 victory at Eggerss Stadium. In addition, Van Wert held the visitors to just 219 total yards.

“They really stepped up when they needed to,” Van Wert head coach Keith Recker said of his defense. “They had some big stops against a really good running game. They had the Nichols kid and he’s tough to bring down and they have the (Brogan) Castillo kid who’s tough to bring down, so our defense had their work cut out for them having to stop that running game. They did a great job against the run.”

Craig Nichols, a 5-10, 205 pound senior, moved in from Alabama this week and finished with 13 carries for 61 yards, while Castillo was held to 29 yards on 10 carries.

Van Wert (3-0, 2-0 WBL) began the game with a bang when Maddix Crutchfield returned the opening kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown. Damon McCracken, who was 4-4 on PATs, kicked the extra point and the Cougars led 7-0 13 seconds into the game.

After forcing a quick three-and-out, Aidan Pratt flipped a short pass to Garett Gunter, who took it 45 yards for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead. Gunter eventually caught five passes for 111 yards.

Defiance (1-2, 0-2 WBL) answered with a 10-play drive that ended on downs at the Van Wert six yard line and after a quick Cougar punt, the Bulldogs took over at the Van Wert 27, but could only gain six yards before being stopped on downs again. The Cougars then went 79 yards in 12 plays and scored on Brylen Parker’s 3-yard touchdown run with 10:08 left in the second quarter. Pratt completed four passes for 49 yards on the drive, including a 23-yarder to Crutchfield. Pratt went on to finish 14-of-22 for 238 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, while rushing for 49 yards on nine carries.

The Bulldogs then ran off 11 plays but were again turned away on downs. The two teams traded interceptions, with Reese Krugh picking off Brez Zipfel, then Pratt fired a perfect 27-yard touchdown strike to Connor Campbell for a 28-0 lead with 2:05 left until halftime. Zipfel was intercepted again, this time by McCracken with 59 seconds left until the break. Zipfel went on to finish 16-of-28 for 145 yards and two interceptions. His favorite target was Brian Phillips, who had seven receptions for 51 yards.

“They’re figuring it out with my dad (Steve Recker) coming over and the more we go the more we’re going to keep figuring out exactly how we want to align the formations and what adjustments we’re making,” Recker said. “Coach Sealscott, coach Poletta, coach Pauff had a few nice wrinkles to stop the run game.”

After a scoreless third quarter, Parker, who finished with 36 yards rushing, opened the final period with a five-yard touchdown run, which put the continuous clock rule into effect. After the PAT snap went awry, Parker found Crutchfield directly under the goalpost for the two point conversion. Crutchfield had to be helped off the field after catching the pass, but Recker later said the senior receiver was suffering from cramps.

As a team, Van Wert finished with 418 yards of total offense, but Recker noted it was a struggle at times.

“Penalties really hurt us especially early,” he explained. “Penalties and tackles for loss – we want to get going quick and when those things happen it really slows us down and gets us out of our rhythm, so we have to shore some of that up.”

The Cougars will travel to Wapakoneta on Friday. The Redskins defeated rival St. Marys Memorial in overtime, 29-22.

“They’re so well coach and they’re very good at what they do,” Recker said. “They mix in so many formations and they’re very good defensively. As physical and as much effort as we gave tonight, we have to be even better than that next week.”

Scoring summary

Cougars 14 14 0 8 – 36
Bulldogs 0 0 0 0 – 0

First quarter

VW – 11:47: Maddix Crutchfield 87 yard kickoff return (Damon McCracken kick)
VW – 9:33: Aidan Pratt 45-yard pass to Garett Gunter (Damon McCracken kick)

Second quarter

VW 10:08: Brylen Parker 3-yard run (Damon McCracken kick)
VW 2:05: Aidan Pratt 27-yard pass to Connor Campbell (Damon McCracken kick)

Fourth quarter

VW 11:53 Brylen Parker 5-yard run (Brylen Parker to Maddix Crutchfield)