11-14-2009, 09:01 PM
Will play Traverse City St. Francis next weekend:
RAVENNA —It’s not often a high school football team allows seven touchdowns and wins a game.
But Ravenna flexed its offensive muscle en route to a Division 7 regional championship win over Merrill on Saturday at Citizens Field.
The Bulldogs tied a school-record outburst of 77 points and rolled to a 77-49 victory, earning Coach Dusty Fairfield and his team another shot at top-rankedTraverse City St. Francis next Saturday in the state semifinals.
“I told Dusty we’ll hold them to 49 or less and we’ll be OK,’’ Ravenna defensive coordinator Randy Helsen quipped after one of the highest-scoring offensive games in area history.
The teams combined for 18 touchdowns, 1,205 yards and 126 points, the sixth-highest scoring game in state history in which each team scored 40 points.
Ravenna kicker Paulo Suarez also tied a state record by making 11 consecutive extra points in a game.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in my 27 years of coaching,’’ Fairfield said about the shootout played in sunny ideal playing conditions.
Ravenna will face the defending state champion Gladiators Saturday at 1 p.m. at either Central Michigan University or Ferris State.
In a game of contrasting styles, Ravenna’s power I-formation attack bested Merrill’s spread passing attack.
The Bulldogs scored on 11-of-12 possessions and rushed for 580 of their 590 total yards.
Ravenna’s potent ground attack was led by talented tailback Jamohn Martin with 32 carries for 225 yards and three touchdowns and Josh VanderWagen with 12 carries for 189 yards and three scores.
“We’re playing to our strengths,’’ Fairfield said. “We have good running backs and good blocking. This is who we are.’’
But the Vandals’ high-octane offense, led by quarterback Nate Tack, was as good as advertised, too.
Megan Lange | Muskegon ChronicleRavenna's head coach, Dusty Fairfield, raises the Division 7 Region 2 trophy at Ravenna High School on Saturday after defeating Merrill 77-49.Tack, a gutsy 5-10, 175-pound senior, completed 24-of-47 passes for 516 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. The 516 passing yards ranks second all-time in the state record book behind Chelsea’s George Royce’s 525 passing yards in 2003.
“I was very impressed with their offense and the play of their quarterback,’’ Fairfield said. “He stayed in the pocket and stayed focused and delivered when he knew he would take a hit.’’
Merrill opened the game with two successful onside kicks and touchdowns and the early fireworks were lit.
Vandals’ coach John Streeter said he decided on the onside kicks just before the game after Ravenna won the toss and elected to receive.
“We wanted the ball first and decided that was our way to get it,’’ said Streeter, whose team trailed 35-28 at halftime. “We knew we had to come out with a quick start. We knew we had to come here and win a shootout.
Megan Lange | Muskegon ChronicleRavenna's Matt VanderWal tackles Merrill's Ryan Eggebrecht at Ravenna High School on Saturday. The Bulldogs defeated the Vandals 77-49. “Ravenna is a good football team. We knew going in we’d struggle slowing them down. We figured it would turn into a shootout and it did.’’
The Bulldogs took control in the third quarter after stopping the Vandals on two possessions — a punt and an interception by Martin.
Fullback Tyler Chopp, who had 11 carries for 81 yards and two scores, ran 18 yards for a touchdown and quarterback Ryan Hogan tossed a 10-yard TD pass to VanderWagen on the lass play of the third quarter to put the Bulldogs ahead 56-35.
But the game was far from over as Ravenna scored three more times on a 21-yard run by VanderWagen, 32-yard run by Matt VanderWal and 13-yard run by Chopp.
Merrill added two more TD passes in the fourth quarter from Tack covering 26 yards to Ryan Eggebrecht 17 yards to Kyle Mayan.
The Vandals led 21-14 after one quarter. Tack threw TD passes of 7 yards to Jimmy Schoof and 46 yards to Tyler Guthrie and Eggebrecht caught a 79-yard TD from Tyler Gross on a reverse pass.
Martin scored on a 56-yard run on Ravenna’s first play from scrimmage and VanderWagon raced 5 yards for the Bulldogs’ second score.
In the second quarter, Martin scored on runs of 2- and 24 yards and VanderWagen had a 24-yard TD jaunt.
“They took it to us early, but we came together and did what we had to do to win,’’ Martin said. “It was an exciting game. I wish we had a better defensive game.’’
Merrill’s only score in the second quarter came from Tack, who tossed an 87-yard strike to Guthrie. Tack also had an 18-yard TD run in the third quarter as Merrill tied the game at 35-35, but would get no closer.
“I knew we could score points,’’ a teary-eyed Tack said. “We just couldn’t stop them on defense. We figured it would be a shootout with two very good offenses.’’
Eggebrecht had a big day with nine catches for 198 yards and two TDs, while Schoof made seven catches for 97 yards.
Josh Coburn led the Vandals’ defense with 11 tackles, while Brandon Linhart and Guthrie each had 10 stops.
Top tacklers for Ravenna were Phil Kantola with 13 stops and two sacks, while Chopp recorded 10 tackles and a sack. Hogan also had an interception for the Bulldogs.
Ravenna will turn its attention to St. Francis, which beat the Bulldogs 21-7 last season in the semis en route to the state championship.
“Our goal was to get back to the semifinals and give them our best shot,’’ Fairfield said. “I’ll be disappointed if we don’t go there and play our hearts out. We’re not afraid to play anybody. We’ll leave it out there and see what happens.’’
RAVENNA —It’s not often a high school football team allows seven touchdowns and wins a game.
But Ravenna flexed its offensive muscle en route to a Division 7 regional championship win over Merrill on Saturday at Citizens Field.
The Bulldogs tied a school-record outburst of 77 points and rolled to a 77-49 victory, earning Coach Dusty Fairfield and his team another shot at top-rankedTraverse City St. Francis next Saturday in the state semifinals.
“I told Dusty we’ll hold them to 49 or less and we’ll be OK,’’ Ravenna defensive coordinator Randy Helsen quipped after one of the highest-scoring offensive games in area history.
The teams combined for 18 touchdowns, 1,205 yards and 126 points, the sixth-highest scoring game in state history in which each team scored 40 points.
Ravenna kicker Paulo Suarez also tied a state record by making 11 consecutive extra points in a game.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in my 27 years of coaching,’’ Fairfield said about the shootout played in sunny ideal playing conditions.
Ravenna will face the defending state champion Gladiators Saturday at 1 p.m. at either Central Michigan University or Ferris State.
In a game of contrasting styles, Ravenna’s power I-formation attack bested Merrill’s spread passing attack.
The Bulldogs scored on 11-of-12 possessions and rushed for 580 of their 590 total yards.
Ravenna’s potent ground attack was led by talented tailback Jamohn Martin with 32 carries for 225 yards and three touchdowns and Josh VanderWagen with 12 carries for 189 yards and three scores.
“We’re playing to our strengths,’’ Fairfield said. “We have good running backs and good blocking. This is who we are.’’
But the Vandals’ high-octane offense, led by quarterback Nate Tack, was as good as advertised, too.
Megan Lange | Muskegon ChronicleRavenna's head coach, Dusty Fairfield, raises the Division 7 Region 2 trophy at Ravenna High School on Saturday after defeating Merrill 77-49.Tack, a gutsy 5-10, 175-pound senior, completed 24-of-47 passes for 516 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. The 516 passing yards ranks second all-time in the state record book behind Chelsea’s George Royce’s 525 passing yards in 2003.
“I was very impressed with their offense and the play of their quarterback,’’ Fairfield said. “He stayed in the pocket and stayed focused and delivered when he knew he would take a hit.’’
Merrill opened the game with two successful onside kicks and touchdowns and the early fireworks were lit.
Vandals’ coach John Streeter said he decided on the onside kicks just before the game after Ravenna won the toss and elected to receive.
“We wanted the ball first and decided that was our way to get it,’’ said Streeter, whose team trailed 35-28 at halftime. “We knew we had to come out with a quick start. We knew we had to come here and win a shootout.
Megan Lange | Muskegon ChronicleRavenna's Matt VanderWal tackles Merrill's Ryan Eggebrecht at Ravenna High School on Saturday. The Bulldogs defeated the Vandals 77-49. “Ravenna is a good football team. We knew going in we’d struggle slowing them down. We figured it would turn into a shootout and it did.’’
The Bulldogs took control in the third quarter after stopping the Vandals on two possessions — a punt and an interception by Martin.
Fullback Tyler Chopp, who had 11 carries for 81 yards and two scores, ran 18 yards for a touchdown and quarterback Ryan Hogan tossed a 10-yard TD pass to VanderWagen on the lass play of the third quarter to put the Bulldogs ahead 56-35.
But the game was far from over as Ravenna scored three more times on a 21-yard run by VanderWagen, 32-yard run by Matt VanderWal and 13-yard run by Chopp.
Merrill added two more TD passes in the fourth quarter from Tack covering 26 yards to Ryan Eggebrecht 17 yards to Kyle Mayan.
The Vandals led 21-14 after one quarter. Tack threw TD passes of 7 yards to Jimmy Schoof and 46 yards to Tyler Guthrie and Eggebrecht caught a 79-yard TD from Tyler Gross on a reverse pass.
Martin scored on a 56-yard run on Ravenna’s first play from scrimmage and VanderWagon raced 5 yards for the Bulldogs’ second score.
In the second quarter, Martin scored on runs of 2- and 24 yards and VanderWagen had a 24-yard TD jaunt.
“They took it to us early, but we came together and did what we had to do to win,’’ Martin said. “It was an exciting game. I wish we had a better defensive game.’’
Merrill’s only score in the second quarter came from Tack, who tossed an 87-yard strike to Guthrie. Tack also had an 18-yard TD run in the third quarter as Merrill tied the game at 35-35, but would get no closer.
“I knew we could score points,’’ a teary-eyed Tack said. “We just couldn’t stop them on defense. We figured it would be a shootout with two very good offenses.’’
Eggebrecht had a big day with nine catches for 198 yards and two TDs, while Schoof made seven catches for 97 yards.
Josh Coburn led the Vandals’ defense with 11 tackles, while Brandon Linhart and Guthrie each had 10 stops.
Top tacklers for Ravenna were Phil Kantola with 13 stops and two sacks, while Chopp recorded 10 tackles and a sack. Hogan also had an interception for the Bulldogs.
Ravenna will turn its attention to St. Francis, which beat the Bulldogs 21-7 last season in the semis en route to the state championship.
“Our goal was to get back to the semifinals and give them our best shot,’’ Fairfield said. “I’ll be disappointed if we don’t go there and play our hearts out. We’re not afraid to play anybody. We’ll leave it out there and see what happens.’’