Pirates edge Crestview in NWC tilt

Van Wert independent sports

CONVOY – Statistically, the Crestview Knights should have beaten the Bluffton Pirates. They outgained Bluffton 338-187 and had 17 first downs to just 9 for the Pirates, but 67 yards in penalties and mistakes that led to Bluffton scores led to a 25-21 loss for the Knights in Northwest Conference action on Friday.

Crestview got behind from the get-go, as the Pirates scored 2½ minutes into the game when quarterback Robbie Stratton ran 14 yards for a score early in the first quarter. Matt Deter kicked the point-after and it was 7-0, Bluffton. Two minutes later, a special teams mistake led to a safety against the Knights and gave Bluffton a 9-0 lead with 6:43 left on the first-quarter clock.

The Knights cut the lead to two points early in the second stanza when Jacob Harmon ran to paydirt from 2 yards out to make it 9-6. Kameron Grubaugh kicked the PAT and it was 9-7, Bluffton, with 10:15 remaining in the first half.

The Pirates answered with a score at the 5:28 mark of the second quarter when Deter kicked a 44-yard field goal to make it 12-7, Bluffton. That’s the way the half ended when Crestview’s next drive stalled.

The Knights got their first lead of the game in the third quarter, when Preston Zaleski found Isaiah Simerman for a 10-yard touchdown pass with 3:21 remaining in the third period. The PAT failed and Crestview led by a point, 13-12.

Again, the Pirates answered when Stratton scored on a 2-yard TD run with just 2 seconds left on the third-quarter clock. The point-after attempt failed, but Bluffton had an 18-13 lead heading into the final 12 minutes of the game.

The lead lasted less than three minutes, though, as the Knights scored on a 10-yard run by Zaleski with 9:43 left in the game. Harmon ran for a two-point PAT and it was 21-18, Crestview.

The Knight defense tried, but couldn’t keep Bluffton out of the end zone when it needed to. The Pirates scored one last time when Stratton rambled 30 yards for a touchdown with 7:39 left to give Bluffton a 24-21 lead. Deter kicked the PAT and it was 25-21, Pirates.

Unfortunately, the Bluffton “D” was more successful, as it held the Knights scoreless the rest of the way to secure the four-point league victory.

Crestview compiled 211 yards on the ground, with Harmon leading with way with 75 yards on 11 carries and Trevor Roop running for 63 yards on 10 carries. Zach Wilson and Stratton led the way for the Pirates, with each rushing for 83 yards on 16 carries.

Zaleski completed 7 of 11 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown, while Stratton was 4 of 9 passing for 23 yards and an interception. Simerman was the game’s leading receiver with 50 yards and a touchdown on four receptions. Malcom Oliver caught four passes for 46 yards for the Knights.

With the loss, Crestview is now 2-2 overall and 0-2 in league play. The Pirates are 1-1 in the NWC and 2-2 overall.