by ** We are trying to keep coverage paywall free, thus fans and parents can continue to read for free. However, this will no longer be the case unless we can raise some money quickly. Please, we ask you humbly to donate to this cause and keep Kee On Sports a Pay Wall free site. You can donate here – https://keeonsports.com/donate-now/ **
LAKEWOOD, OH – The Massillon Tigers used 236 rushing yards to defeat St. Ed’s for the third straight season, this time by a score of 31-21. The problem for the Eagles was in the form of Tiger running back Ja’Meir Gamble rushing for 148 yards on 24 carries with 2 big touchdowns. Also running well for the Tigers was Mylen Lenix with 64 yards on 4 touches along with the game sealing 39-yard touchdown run late in the fourth.
For the Eagles, they simply couldn’t get out of their way with a series of bad special teams played that put them in several bad spots. Quarterback Thomas Csanyi had a good night however as he went 18 of 30 for 252 yards with 3 touchdowns. His top target was once again Zach Hackleman with 9 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown. Luke Hess had 2 catches for 28 big yards while Joe Safford pulled in 5 balls for 46 yards.
After back-to-back 3 and outs, St. Ed’s hit a huge Hackleman catch of 35 yards to get them inside the redzone. From there however, they went backward and had to settle for a 42-yard Field Goal attempt from Kellen Moyer. The snap was high however and they couldn’t get the kick off. This allowed the Tigers to take over from their own 32-yard line.
The Tigers wasted no time taking advantage and put together a nice drive of their own. This was complete with two big gains to Deontay Malone and the Eagles jumping offside on a fourth and one. Also helping matters was a direct snap to Savior Owens that he took 11 yards leading to an eventual 3rd and goal from the 5-yard line. They didn’t get it, and it led to fourth down as the first quarter winded down to 00:00 with a score of 0-0. The Tigers converted a 26-yard field goal by Matteo Herrea to open the second quarter up 3-0.
The special teams issues continued for the Eagles on their next drive when they elected to punt on a 4rth and 2 from midfield and their punt was blocked. This handed the Tigers the ball at the Eagles 43-yard line. They faced a fourth and two and converted with a Lenix 16-yard carry. Yet again the Tigers went for it moments later on a fourth down, this time going 15 yards into the endzone on a Gamble touchdown run. This made it 10-0 Tigers with 6:05 to play in the first half.
The Eagles were faced with a 4rth and 1 from their 28 on their next drive. This came at the Tiger 28-yard line after multiple personal foul calls on the away team. A Buchanan dive play worked by the nose of the ball barely. The gamble paid off because a few plays later Csanyi found Bradley Eaton on a wheel route for a 14-yard touchdown pass. This made it 10-7 Tigers with 2:58 to play in the half.
The Eagles then got the ball back still down 10-7 with exactly 2 minutes to go. It took them one play to score as Csanyi connected with Hackleman for a 69-yard touchdown pass. Hackleman caught it 20 yards down the field and just took off with it from there for a dash to paydirt. It took 12 seconds, and just like that, the Eagles now led 14-10 with 1:48 to play in the opening half.
Massillon wasted no time scoring on their own two-minute drive to close out the first half. The Tiger drive was capped off by a 7-yard touchdown pass from Slaughter to Ricardo Wells. The drive started near midfield after the Eagles squibbed the kickoff for some reason just prior.
The Tigers wasted zero time scoring to start the second half. The damage coming on a 47-yard touchdown run from Gamble who got a head start, hit the hole and never looked back. This made it 24-14 Massillon with 10:19. The play should have never occurred, but the Tigers won’t be giving it back either.
The Eagles caught the next big break of the second half on a Tigers fumble that allowed them to take over on their visitors 28-yard line. A big strike on the drive came with a 20-yard pitch and toss to Luke Hess on a fourth and long. A few moments later Csanyi rolled out and hit Safford for a touchdown in the corner of the endzone. This cut it to 24-21 midway through the third quarter.
The Eagles took over, down 24-21 with 9:06 to play in the fourth quarter. They went right to work with a big connection to Joe Saffold to get them cooking. The drive eventually stalled and the Eagles opted to punt with the ball landing near the 25 yard line.
Moments later a Slaughter pass was picked off by Aydin Buchanan and taken back to midfield. A 10-yard toss to Saffold was just shy of the marker, making it fourth and inches for the Eagles, on the Tiger 41 yard line with 4:34 to play. A Csanyi keeper didn’t get it, and the ball went back to the Tigers.
The Tigers went on to win 31-21.
Players of the game
Massillon Tiger running back Ja’Meir Gamble for 148 rushing yards on 24 carries with 2 big touchdowns.
St. Ed’s WR Zach Hackleman with 9 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown.
One thought on “Massillon Tigers Defeat St. Ed’s 31-21 With Power Of Running Game”