by The 1-5 Stow-Munroe Falls Bulldogs failed to defend their home turf, on homecoming weekend, against the 4-2 Wadsworth Grizzlies, losing 49-3.
The best players for the Grizzlies were Luke Fischer and Will Stack.
Fischer was unstoppable at quarterback. He went 18/20 passing for 301 yards and 4 touchdowns, while adding three rushes for 8 yards and another score. Stack was the favorite target. He caught 5 passes for 69 yards and a score.
The lone bright spot for Stow was Teddy Gregory Jr. Gregory touched the ball 10 times for 66 yards. He also flew around defensively, gaining 5 tackles.
The Grizzlies started the game on offense, on their own 12-yard line after a bad return. Quarterback Luke Fischer looked sharp on his opening drive. He completed 6/6 passes to four different receivers, including a 13-yard slant for a touchdown to Aaron Keating. Wadsworth led 7-0 with 9:06 in the first quarter.
Stow’s first drive went nowhere. The team was forced to punt after three plays. Fischer took advantage. He found Davis Nye on a short pass, Nye made a man miss, and took it 51 yards to the endzone. Wadsworth led 14-0 with 7:15 in the first.
On the Bulldog’s next drive they managed to get a first down, but couldn’t get anything else. The ball got punted right back to Fischer and the Grizzlies. Fischer extended his completion streak to 10 on the drive. The drive was capped off when he found the edge and ran it in himself for a 5-yard touchdown. Wadsworth led 21-0 with 2:12 in the first.
The Bulldogs had a drive of highs and lows. Teddy Gregory Jr was a bruiser on the drive, headlined by a 28-yard run right up the middle. A low snap put Stow in a fourth and 32, but a pass interference call bailed them out and put them in field goal range. Davis Brohammer hit a 33-yarder to put the Bulldogs on the board. The score was 21-3 with 9:06 left in the first half.
The Grizzlies kept their dominance on the next drive. This time running back Kyle Figuary took over. He looked elusive on the drive, especially on a 34-yard breakaway run for a touchdown. Wadsworth led 28-3 with 5:53 left in the second quarter.
The Grizzlies wanted to keep their foot on the gas. They recovered an onside kick and looked to continue the big day. Fischer found Keating for a 41-yard pickup and Maverick Blackburn for a 6-yard touchdown on a drag route. Wadsworth led 35-3 with 4:25 left in the half.
The Bulldogs started another strong drive with a 41-yard catch by Jabari Hopkins, but they shot themselves in the foot with a holding penalty. Quarterback Jacon Harrington ran a pooch punt, and pinned Wadsworth at the 5 before the half ended.
The second half was more of the same. Stow got a single first down before punting. Fischer found a new favorite target for the drive, this time it was Drew Jones. Jones hauled in catches of 29 and 30 on the drive, the latter of which was a touchdown. The Grizzlies led 42-3 with 3:35 in the third quarter.
Stow’s next drive was rough. The offense struggled to get any yards, and the punter did not have time to get it away, so he tried to run it to no avail. The Grizzlies got the turnover on downs, 19 yards from the end zone.
Nathan Metzger didn’t want to waste his reps. He ran it a few times before finally finding the endzone on a 4-yard touchdown. The Grizzlies extended the lead to 49-3 with 10:07 left in the game.
The offense didn’t get better in the fourth for Stow. Harrington threw his first pick of the game to Tyler Probst.
The defense made their first stand of the game. They forced Wadsworth to turn the ball over on downs, marking the first possession of the game the Grizzlies did not score on. The Bulldogs then ran the clock out.
The player of the game was Luke Fischer. He missed 5 weeks and came back flawless. He looked composed and delivered strike after strike.
The Bulldogs will continue trying to get back in the win column as they take on the Nordonia Knights at home.
The Grizzlies will look to extend their win streak against the Austintown-Fitch Falcons.
