by North Royalton, OH – Wadsworth took home the game this Friday night at North Royalton with a score of 38-0, making this a blowout against the home team.
Wadsworth kicked off this week’s Friday night game against North Royalton to begin this weekend’s battle.
North Royalton quickly lost possession of the ball after Wadsworth’s defense started to hold its ground like an immovable object. After obtaining possession, junior Brayden Todd quickly set the tone for the night with a 47-yard touchdown within the first three minutes of the game.
The extra point was good, meaning there were seven points on the board for Wadsworth to start the night and set the tone for North Royalton.
Back on offense, North Royalton continued to struggle to maintain any ground as Wadsworth pushed the team all the way back to the end zone, where the ball was quickly turned over.
Wadsworth continued their relentless assault on offense upon obtaining the ball. Within two plays, senior Kyle Schmeltzer, with assistance from junior QB Brysen Hall, scored another touchdown for Wadsworth and scored the extra point.
This put the score at 14-0, and it began looking like an uphill battle for North Royalton at this point in the game. Once North Royalton received the ball, Wadsworth made it clear they weren’t giving North Royalton any field progress tonight and quickly turned the ball back over.
With Wadsworth in possession, they brought the same energy to this series. With quick advancements toward North Royalton’s end zone, junior Jay’len King brought another 15-yard touchdown down on North Royalton. Schmeltzer scored the extra point, making the score 21-0 at 3:18 in the first quarter.
North Royalton quickly turned the ball back over again, and it started to become clear that Wadsworth wasn’t going to relent anytime soon. This series concluded the first quarter.
As the second quarter began, Wadsworth opened strong with a 30-yard pass from Hall to Todd, putting them just 15 yards from the end zone. The series was quickly brought to an end when Wadsworth kicked a field goal by freshman Braxton Wagner, putting another three points on the board for Wadsworth and making the score 24-0.
North Royalton tried to recover but couldn’t make it past the first 10-yard line. Wadsworth refused to let up any pressure in the first half, showing their skills on offense and defense. After quickly turning over the ball, the Wadsworth Grizzlies started making rapid progress up the field once again.
Eventually, Wadsworth made it back to North Royalton’s end zone, with senior Donny Bettis scoring another touchdown. The extra point was scored by Wagner, making the score 31-0 at 5:32 of the second quarter.
North Royalton needed a plan to prevent them from being 30 points down in the first half, but their efforts were sorely in vain as Wadsworth brought the stop to the Bears once again.
Wadsworth, upon gaining possession of the ball, pushed into North Royalton’s end zone once again, with Todd scoring and an extra point from Wagner, making the new score 38-0.
North Royalton maintained possession of the ball for the remainder of the half, and they made very little movement toward the end zone.
Moving into the third quarter, Wadsworth started with possession, and North Royalton’s defense seemed to have some fresh life in them that was absent in the first half. This forced Wadsworth’s so-far-uncontested offense to switch up their game plan going into the second half.
North Royalton brought the heat right back in the second half, with junior Robbie Edmiston making an interception and a 45-yard rush across the field, putting the pressure on Wadsworth.
With the league regulations, this was a very quick quarter with a perpetually moving clock, with the score remaining 38-0 by the end of the quarter.
Moving into the fourth quarter, Wadsworth started with possession, and North Royalton continued to barely make any new ground. Every time they pushed, Wadsworth pushed back twice as hard tonight.
Unfortunately, due to the clock, this quarter was a ticking clock for North Royalton to close out this game with at least one touchdown.
But with very little movement from North Royalton, the fourth quarter closed out this Friday night with a score of 38-0, with Wadsworth being the victor of this Friday night battle.
Players of the Game:
Wadsworth Defense with the shutout
