by Aurora, Ohio – The Aurora Greenmen held off visiting Tallmadge, 31-30, on a Friday night classic at Veterans Stadium.
After punts from both teams, the Blue Devils struck first when senior Ty Hurst found senior two-way athlete Collin Dixon for a 74-yard touchdown reception. The point after was no good, and the Blue Devils led 6-0 early on.
Aurora responded with a scoring drive of their own. Mate Orgovan took a handoff five yards to the house. The point after was good, and Aurora led 7-6 after one.
The Blue Devils found paydirt once again, when Hurst found junior Gino Spano for a 21-yard touchdown reception early in the second quarter. This gave them the lead, and a fumble recovery from Marc Manzo thwarted a Greenmen drive.
On consecutive series, Dom Trivisonno picked off a pass, as did Tallmadge’s Mark Manzo.
One play later, senior Cade Fromwiller forced a fumble and took it 18 yards to the house two plays later. This gave the Greenmen the lead, 14-13.
Tallmadge would respond once again, when Ty Hurst found Collin Dixon for a 21-yard touchdown strike. It was their second connection of the half. This made the score 20-14 with 1:42 remaining.
In a masterclass of the two-minute offense, Aurora marched down the field in 1:18, capping their drive off when Matt Geier found Jayce Unverferth for a 11-yard touchdown reception.
This gave Aurora a 21-20 lead with :24 left in the half.
However, 24 seconds proved to be more than enough for the Tallmadge offense to counter.
Ty Hurst completed a couple of passes to put the Blue Devils in striking range, and capped the drive with a 35-yard touchdown toss to Collin Dixon to close the first half. The Wisconsin commit also recovered a fumble in the first quarter.
The two teams combined for 28 points in the final 4:16 of the first half, setting the stage for an exciting second half.
Aurora head coach Bob Mihalik rolled the dice, deciding to attempt an onside kick. It went the required ten yards before being recovered by junior kicker Dom Trivisonno.
The Greenmen drove inside the ten yard line and decided to go for it on fourth down. However, the Tallmadge defense came up with a huge stop and got the ball back on downs.
The Blue Devils marched down the field, looking to add another touchdown to gain separation. Aurora was able to hold them to a 35-yard field goal off the leg of junior Cameron Carvanes. This increased the lead to 30-21 with 2:01 left in the third.
After another stop, Tallmadge drove into Aurora territory looking to further increase their lead. However, the Greenmen made another huge stop to get the ball back on downs. Matt Geier marched the offense down the field, and capped the drive with a 14-yard touchdown toss to Cade Fromwiller with 4:39 to play. This cut the Tallmadge lead to 30-28.
On the ensuing play (after a penalty forced Tallmadge to start inside their own ten), junior Brandon Liepins recovered a fumble to put the Greenmen in prime position to take the lead.
Dom Trivisonno booted a 21-yard field goal to give the Greenmen the lead, 31-30, with 3:04 to play.
Aurora came up with another huge stop on defense, and thanks to a couple of first downs, were able to run out the clock and secure the victory in front of a raucous Veterans Stadium crowd.
Both of these teams will be huge contenders in the Division 3, Region 9, as the season continues on, if Friday night’s game is any indication.
Aurora (5-1) (3-0 SL American) travels to Kent Roosevelt to continue Suburban League American Division play.
Tallmadge (4-2) (1-2 SL American) hosts Cuyahoga Falls to continue Suburban League American Division play. Senior quarterback Ty Hurst went 18 of 25 passing for 318 yards and four scores with one interception.
PLAYERS OF THE GAME
Tallmadge WR Collin Dixon
Although the Blue Devils came up short, the senior commit, who is committed to Wisconsin as a safety, had nine catches for 214 yards and three scores. He also recovered a fumble on defense.
Aurora K/DB Dom Trivisonno
The junior picked off a pass in the second quarter, recovered an onside kick in the third, and booted the go-ahead field goal in the fourth.
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