Eight football teams open OHSAA playoffs with victories

There wasn’t a familiar name on the field Friday, but the result for Indian Valley football was the same.

Another victory.

Sophomore quarterback Ryker Williams did his damage on the ground, rushing for 176 yards and one touchdown as the host Braves got their way with the No. 15 Heat, 40-15, in the first round of the Division IV, Region 15 playoffs.

Indian Valley (11-0) will now host No. 10 Waverly (6-5) on Nov. 8.

Junior running back Grady Kinsey, Ohio’s top player, did not play Friday. Senior Eric Golder answered the call, rushing eight times for 91 yards and three touchdowns. Golder added 31 receiving yards and 26 on kick returns, finishing the game with 148 all-purpose yards.

Williams also hit Colton Smith with a 35-yard score. Williams completed 5-of-10 passing for 75 yards.

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Garaway 41, Lakeview 21

Dillon Soenlen got a taste of postseason success last season when Garaway reached the state semifinals.

The senior said Friday he is ready to help the Pirates repeat that success.

Soenlen scored six touchdowns to account for the Pirates’ entire offense as they opened the Division V, Region 17 playoffs with a 6-5 win over Cortlandt Lakeview.

Lakeview scored first, but after that it was the Soenlen Show. He scored on runs of 29, 37, 7, 1 and 24 and caught a 48-yard throw from Brady Geibel for the sixth score. He finished with 199 yards on 20 carries and 57 yards on three catches.

On defense, Braden Raber had seven tackles and Colson Keller had six, plus two sacks.

Up next for Garaway (9-2): road game at Garrettsville Garfield (10-1) on Nov. 8. The winner will receive top-seeded Canfield South Range or Girard at a neutral site.

Malvern 40, Lucas 26

The Inter-Valley Conference-North champions won their sixth straight game to improve to 10-1.

Malvern took to the air as Jared Witherow went 21 of 25 for 347 yards and six touchdowns. Three of them were caught by Rodney Smith, who finished the game with nine catches for 181 yards. Smith’s long bomb was a 79-yard bomb from Witherow.

Roy Simmons also put up triple figures with 107 yards on eight catches and one score. Jordyn Detchon and Drake Hutchison caught the other two touchdown passes.

The Hornets will host 11th-ranked Lowellville in the next round of the Division VII Region 25 playoffs.

Dover 33, Granville 0

The Tornadoes (8-3) got off to a smooth start with a Division III Region 11 playoff win.

Dover, which led 19-0 after one quarter, will play No. 3 seed Tri-Valley (10-0) in the next round at Jack Anderson Stadium.

The Scotties, the Muskingum Valley League high school division champions, are 11-0 for the first time since 2014.

Ridgewood 28, Mechanicsburg 21

The host Generals (10-1), whose only loss this season came to undefeated Indian Valley, led the Indians with 21 second-half points.

Grant Lammers rushed 23 times for 135 yards and completed a 51-yard pass to Matt Humphrey as Ridgewood scored 21 unanswered points to overcome a 14-7 halftime deficit.

Mechanicsburg (7-4) cut a 28-14 deficit to 28-21 with five minutes left and had the ball with a chance to score again, but the Generals held deep in their own territory with 1:04 left to seal the score. win. This came after the Indians dropped a potentially game-tying pass in the end zone.

Aidan Sparger also scored two touchdowns for Ridgewood, while Jace McQueen intercepted a pass and completed a 64-yard pass to quarterback Jackson Cabot.

Ridgewood will now host Newcomerstown, its longtime neighboring IVC rival, for a berth in the regional semifinals.

Jackson 21, New Philadelphia 14

Keaton Fausel found C.J. Carlisle for a 29-yard touchdown midway through the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough as the Quakers’ season ends at 7-4.

Eli Ray intercepted Fausel late in the third quarter as the Ironmen led 14-7 entering the fourth quarter. That led to Bodhi Wolford’s 23-yard scoring strike to Gaven Jones, extending the lead to 21-7.

Jackson scored first on Nolan Johnson’s 5-yard scoring run in the first quarter, while the Quakers tied the game at 7 with 8:54 left in the second quarter on Fausel’s 1-yard keeper on fourth-and-goal.

Johnson added another rushing score in the bottom of the third to put Jackson up 14-7.

Tri-Valley 43, Carrollton 12

Max Lyall passed for 327 yards with four touchdowns and Keaton Hahn had 207 receiving yards as the Scotties knocked the Warriors out of the Division III Region 11 postseason with a victory at Jack Anderson Stadium in Dresden.

Hahn made catches of 80 and 60 yards as Tri-Valley held a 444-247 yard advantage.

The No. 14 Warriors finish the season with a 7-4 record.

Newcomerstown 23, Grove City Christian 14: The Trojans improved to 9-2 and will face Ridgewood in the next round of the Division VI, Region 23 playoffs.

Connotton Valley 46, Fairfield Christian 7: The Rockets (8-3) earned their third straight win to open the Division VII Region 27 playoffs. Next up at CV is Glouster Trimble on Nov. 8.

West Holmes 28, Unioto 21: The Knights (6-5) will face East Liverpool in the next round of the Division IV, Region 15 playoffs.

South Range 56, Fairless 13: The No. 16 Falcons advanced to the South Range for the second year in a row. They finish the season 4–7.

Eastern 30, Strasbourg 6: The undefeated Eagles proved too much for the No. 15 Tigers, who finished with a 3-8 record.

This article originally appeared in The Times-Reporter: OHSAA Football Playoffs: Indian Valley and Garaway start strong