by Barberton, Ohio – Behind senior running back Xzavier Macon’s three rushing touchdowns, the Barberton Magics held off the visiting Shaker Heights Red Raiders, 48-41, on a rainy Friday night at Rudy Sharkey Stadium.
The Magics took the lead, 6-0, two plays in on a Xzavier Macon touchdown run from 56 yards out. Shaker countered on their second drive with a 40-yard touchdown from Trey McNutt, taking a 7-6 lead.
The Magics responded as Macon rushed for his second score from 23 yards out. After a Rigo DeLaTrinidad fumble recovery, Dominic Wilson found Kenny Larry for a 21-yard touchdown toss. Wilson would later rush for a 20-yard score as well.
Shaker Heights countered on offense, as Cornell Beard rushed for a two-yard score, and Abdullah Ahmad found Trey McNutt from three yards out. Barberton led, 27-21, going into the halftime break.
The third quarter featured a brief shower before the skies eventually cleared up. The rainy conditions did not seem to slow the scoring from either team.
Noah Dehart took a direct snap ten yards to the house to increase the Magics lead to 34-21. Cornell Beard followed up with a 28-yard rushing touchdown for the Red Raiders, trimming the margin to 34-27. One play later, Xzavier Macon broke free for a 75-yard touchdown to push the Magics lead to 41-27.
The two teams traded scores aplenty in the fourth quarter. Kheyden King scored on a 12-yard rushing touchdown for the Red Raiders, and Barberton countered with a rushing TD from 28 yards out, following up an impressive catch a few plays earlier.
Abdullah Ahmad found Trey McNutt for a 40-yard score to cut the Raiders’ deficit to 48-41 with 3:55 to play. Barberton used their effective ground game to milk the clock and force Shaker Heights to use its timeouts. The Magics picked up a key first down with 1:47 left, and knelt to end the ball game.
Shaker Heights senior quarterback Abdullah Ahmad tossed three touchdowns, all to junior and four-star recruit Trey McNutt. His scores came on tosses of 46, 3, and 40 yards, respectively. Cornell Beard had a rushing touchdown in each half, and Khayden King also added a rushing touchdown.
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