by LAKEWOOD, OH – The Eagles used a strong run game combined with dominating defense to defeat Berea-Midpark 45-14 in round two of the OHSAA Playoffs. They will now go on to play Toledo Whitmer next Friday Night in Lakewood in the Final Four of Division One Region One of the OHSAA Playoffs. All 6 Eagles touchdowns came on the ground.
Leading the Eagles once again was their dynamic running back Brandon White with 232 yards on 16 carries, all in the first half. This went nicely with 4 touchdowns. Backup tailback Tyrese Buchanan compiled 75 yards on just 5 carries with a touchdown as well.
The leading threat for Berea-Midpark was wideout Nick Reece with 11 catches for 111 yards while co wideout Dylan Maddox had 6 catches for 95 yards. Slinging the rock for Berea-Midpark tonight was the sensational junior Dylan Papushak who went 19 of 29 for 220 yards.
It took exactly one snap for the Eagles to score to start the game. The strike coming on a Brandon White 60-yard gallop 13 seconds into the action, making the score 7-0 within moments.
A 25-yard rumble by White got the next Eagle drive cooking quickly into the Titan redzone. This came following a 3 and out from the Titans and good field position for the Eagles to work with. A few plays later it was White again with a double pump move to score from 14 yards out, increasing the Eagle lead to 14-0 with 7:28 remaining in the first quarter.
The Eagles next possession began on the Titan 45-yard line following a punt from the Berea-Midpark endzone. A few plays into the drive, tight end Joe Moore lined up as an H-Back and took it 24 yards for the score. Not often do you see a tight end move like a running back but Moore hit the jets and scored untouched.
The Titans captured their first chain mover of the game on their next drive as they looked to establish positive movement. A 13-yard scramble and spring from Papushak moved them across the 50-yard line for the first time on the night. From there a beautiful 42-yard launch from Papushak to the leaping Dylan Maddox who made an amazing catch put the ball at the goal line. Harden scored on the next play to cut the Eagle lead to 21-7 with 54 seconds to play in the first quarter.
The first Evanchick pass of the night was picked off by Dylan Maddox who made another leaping catch, this time on defense for a Titan interception. It was an incredible 5-minute stretch for Maddox. The pending drive looked promising but resulted in a missed field goal, keeping the score at 21-7 Eagles with 8:15 to go.
The Eagles put another score on the board with White again on the following possession. The entire drive consisted of running plays before White finished it from 9 yards out, increasing the lead to 28-7 with 6:03 to play in the first half.
A Brayden Thomas interception halted the next Titan drive. White took over from there with a 28 yard touchdown run to increase the Eagle lead to 35-7 with 4:12 left to play in the opening half. They went on to cruise to a 45-14 victory.
