by It was a brisk night in Beachwood for some Friday night lights football. Tonight’s contest saw the Independence Blue Devils travel to face the Beachwood Bison. It was a one-sided affair, seeing the Blue Devils top the Bison 37-0.
Beachwood’s first drive looked promising starting off with a nice kick return by Beachwood’s Johnathan Owens. However, a very motivating kick return was short-lived after the Bison went a quick 3 and out.
The Blue Devils came out firing right away to start their first drive of the game. Independence’s own Dominic Narduzzi was dishing passes out to receivers Stephen Mlynarczyk and Bobby Johnson. Narduzzi was able to connect with Johnson for a deep touchdown pass. This put the Blue Devils up 7-0 with just 6:16 to go in the first quarter.
A promising second drive by the Bisons started with Braylen Hillard for a nice 15-yard gain. However, this would be followed by a high snap by the Bisons in which resulted in a fumble recovered by the Blue Devils.
Narduzzi went right back to Johnson after the Independence fumble recovery and yet again hooked up for another touchdown. A 47-yard touchdown pass from Narduzzi to Johnson put the Blue Devils up 14-0 with 3:55 left in the first quarter. This gave Narduzzi his second passing touchdown of the game and Johnson’s second receiving touchdown of the game.
The Bison came back out for their 3rd drive of the game and were forced with yet another 3 and out and forced to punt the ball away. The Bison gave the ball back to Independence with great field position after not a so good of a put. Blue Devils running back Maverick Durden was running hard getting his team down to the 11-yard line in Bison territory. The Blue Devils gave it right back to Durden to punch it in for a 5-yard touchdown. The Blue Devils went for a two-point conversion but were unsuccessful, making the score 20-0 and ending the 1st quarter.
Beachwood came back out to start the 2nd quarter running the ball with Hillard to pick up a nice gain of 20 yards. However, on the very next play, Beachwood throws the ball backward which was mishandled, and the Blue Devils recover the ball.
Independence was moving the chains after the fumble recovery. Durden saw himself back again in the endzone for his second rushing touchdown of the contest. This made the score 27-0 Blue Devils.
The high snap woes continued for the Bison as their offensive took the field for their second drive of the 2nd quarter. The Bison found themselves facing a 3rd and 17 and Beachwood’s own Larry Clark Jr had a nice quarterback keeper to pick up a gain of 16 yards. Beachwood went for it on 4th and 1 and they didn’t convert.
The Blue Devils got the ball back and on the first play of their drive, they fumbled it and the Bison recovered it. The Bison sent their offense right back onto the field after the failed 4th down try. The Bison handed the ball off on first down and the ball was fumbled and recovered by Independence.
After a few sloppy plays by both teams, Independence saw their offense back on the field with the ball. Narduzzi connected with Mlynarczyk for a 43-yard touchdown but was called back due to a flag. The very next play Narduzzi threw it 40-yards down into the endzone around two Blue Devils receivers. The ball bounced around in the air and Rocco Ressler made a spectacular diving catch for a touchdown. This made the score 34-0 and gave Narduzzi his 3rd passing touchdown of the game. This touchdown also enforced the mercy rule.
Beachwood got the ball back and had yet another quick 3 and out. The Bisons were punting deep in their own endzone, and the ball was deflected right out of bounds. Independence found their offense on Beachwood’s 14-yard line and were in scoring position. The Bisons had a nice defensive stand and force the Blue Devils to kick a field goal. The field goal by Independence was good, making the score 37-0 with just 3.9 seconds remaining in the first half.
Independence received the ball to start the second half. The Blue Devils were steadily moving the chains to start the 3rd quarter but also suffered a handful of penalties as well. This resulted in a lack-luster drive and Independence was forced to punt.
Clark Jr connected with Braylen Moutine for a nice 14-yard gain to convert a 3rd and 13. However, another quick drive by the Bisons ended with them forced to punt the ball away to the Blue Devils and a quick 3rd quarter ended due to the mercy rule.
Beachwood came back out with a bunch of momentum to start the 4th quarter. The Bison were able to pull off a nice trick play that resulted in Clark Jr picking up a nice gain of 20 yards. Beachwood handed the ball back off to Hillard for a nice gain of 30 yards to put the Bison in Blue Devils’ territory. However, yet another high snap by the Bison pushed them back 9 yards, and they were forced to attempt a field goal that was no good.
Independence got the ball back to start their first drive of the 4th quarter but didn’t do much, resulting in a quick 3 and out and punting the ball away. Beachwood got the ball back for one final time hoping to do something. Clark Jr attempted one final deep pass to Caleb White that was just out of reach, and that ended the game.
The players of the game were Independence’s Dominic Narduzzi with 3 touchdown passes and wide receiver Bobby Johnson with 2 receiving touchdowns.
Next week the Independence Blue Devils (4-5) hope to improve their record at home where they take on Trinity. Whereas the Beachwood Bison (0-9) look to get into the win column at Wickliffe.
