ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (Sept. 16, 2022) -- Friday's gridiron clash at Rocky River Stadium -- which marked the Great Lakes Conference West Division opener for both sides -- had a little bit of everything and a whole lot of excitement. Big plays on both sides of the ball. Big momentum swings. And late momentum swings. And the latest swing of all went toward the visiting Elyria Catholic Panthers, who scored a go-ahead field goal with 36 seconds left to prevail 23-21.
The Pirates scored the game's first two touchdowns (Johnny Bebie on a 13-yard run, Julian Patti on a 1-yard run) and looked to be on their way to grinding out a methodical 14-0 lead by halftime. But EC beat the buzzer and got on the board before the break when Mason Haliburton scampered 38 yards on a short pass and got down to the Pirates 1-yard line. The explosive play set up a 1-yard TD run by Levi Ellis. Ellis' touchdown came with just two ticks remaining before halftime.
River looked like it had wrested away the momentum of the game when its defense pitched a three-and-out on the first possession of the third quarter. But after the Pirates got the football back -- and at midfield -- they fumbled on their first play from scrimmage in the third quarter. The Panthers' Thomas Niederst recovered the ball and made his way 40 yards to paydirt for a scoop-and-score. The point after was banged home by Nicholas Phillips, and the contest was knotted at 14-14 less than two minutes into the second half.
Rocky River (1-4, 0-1 GLC West) was forced to punt on its next possession. Elyria Catholic (4-1, 1-0) made its next possession count.
EC leveraged good field position (a drive start at River's 49-yard line) and put together a seven-play touchdown drive. Ellis bolted around the right side to score his second TD of the night, and the Panthers had their first lead of the evening at 20-14.
Even after a Johnny Bebie 47-yard return of the ensuing kickoff, the Pirates were again kept off the scoreboard in their next possession. Rocky River's offense would be stymied for much of the second half, with EC's Ellis, Colin Kenneally, Travis Merrill, and Tony Grasso turning in big defensive plays.
Only a bit of a desperation play would put and end to River's offensive stagnation. That play came at the 4:23-mark of the fourth quarter. Like a bolt of lightning. A charge delivering the Sons of Blackbeard from the shadow of their own goal post into a jubilant celebration in the painted turf at the other end of the field.
It happened that way when Julian Patti -- under duress much of the night from a strong Panther pass rush -- eluded a pair of EC defenders and rifled the pigskin some 40 yards downfield. The Pirates were trying to wriggle free from bad field position, and the rainbow toss was a low-percentage opportunity to do so in one slash of the sword.
But it was a Pirate cannon ball hurtling down the field that would do the damage at the other end of Patti's 120-foot heave. That cannon ball was senior wide receiver Mack Massad, whose lit fuse sent him faster and farther than any Panthers in the vicinity of the descending football. Massad caught up with the launched leather and began a mad dash to the left corner of the end zone. With a dogged effort, Massad -- who had already registered key performances in Rocky River's run, receiving, and kick-return games -- reached the end zone. After an injury timeout and then a River timeout, the Swiss Army Knife utility talent capped off his own TD with the point after. And at the 4:23-mark, the Pirates had vaulted back in front 21-20.
But one more momentum swing remained. And this one was swung like a hammer. Elyria Catholic leveraged decent field position and ticked away at the game clock and the River defense, 25 seconds and 8 yards a crack. The Panthers made their way to the Rocky River 7-yard line and then took the lead on a 24-yard Nicholas Phillips field goal.
The Pirates came up short on a desperation attempt to unscramble the digits spelling out a 23-21 deficit. And in a flip of a year-old script, the Panthers had earned a hard-fought win on a late-game field goal. Rocky River won last year's meeting 21-20 when it got a 47-yard yard field goal off the powerful right leg of Mack Massad as time expired. The kick -- the longest field goal in River history -- capped off a comeback from a 20-11 deficit. The River win went a long way to getting the Pirates into the 2021 GLC Championship game, a game they won to notch their 22nd conference title of all time.
On Friday night, the Panthers clawed back. They clawed back with a senior quarterback -- Brady Cook -- going 10-of-13 for 151 passing yards. With two running backs (Tavion Thomas-seven carries, 124 yards; Levi Ellis-23, 129) logging 100-yard rushing efforts. With Ellis coming away with a game-high 16 tackles. And with Kenneally logging 14 tackles, one sack, and four quarterback hurries.
In a game effort from a banged-up Buccaneer squad, Rocky River got 49 rushing and 97 receiving yards from Massad. It got 146 passing yards from Patti and a 21-totes-for-101-rushing-yards performance from Johnny Bebie. The River offense came through with seven first downs on 11 third-down conversion attempts.
Defensively, the Pirates got 12 tackles from defensive back Josh Mommers and a combined 11 tackles and two sacks from senior bookend defensive linemen Aiden Andrako (four tackles, 1-1/2 sacks) and Stan Heuler (seven tackles, 1/2 sack). Mommers and Cam Bulkowski registered interceptions.
Many of the individuals on both teams played in both the 2021 game at EC and in Friday's game at the Gridiron in the Heart of River. And indeed, a lot of heart has been on display in the combined efforts yielding 43 points for the Panthers and 42 for the Pirates.
by Skip Snow
# # # River # # #