St. Marys’ Kevin Perry tackles Wapakoneta’s Jace Knous during Friday night’s game in Wapakoneta.
Don Speck | The Lima News
WAPAKONETA — Harmon Field was treated to another classic in the Auglaize County rivalry between Wapak and St. Marys on Friday night as the programs teamed up for much more than just a football game.
Before the opening kickoff the towns and fans in attendance paid their collective respects to 11-year-old Jersey Poff from St. Marys who passed away late last week and honored her life with a Pink Out Night for the game, which Wapak won 14-0.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Poff family and the St. Marys community. Tonight, was much more than just a game of football. Treating people with compassion and kindness in a time of need are what I hope we all take away from tonight” said Wapak head coach Travis Moyer.
“I think a night like tonight shows what is special about small town America that you can’t get in other areas” said Roughrider coach Bo Frye.
Working with the football from their own 41-yard line after forcing a three and out to open the game, the Redskins notched the game’s first marker as senior Reece Schnarre thundered in from 4 yards away. Kyle Beach’s extra point with 7:06 remaining in the first half gave the Redskins a 7-0 advantage.
St. Marys threatened on their ensuing drive’s 14th play inside the Wapak red zone but were stopped short on fourth down with less than a yard remaining for a first down by the entirety of the host defense.
Opening their second drive from their own six and forced to move back half the distance after a penalty, the Redskins again marched down field for a touchdown. Eight plays and four first downs after beginning, Wapak took a 14-0 lead on a Jace Knous 10-yard scamper down the sideline into the endzone.
After stopping the red and white attack on defense to open the second half the blue and gold of St. Marys put together its best offensive drive of the contest looking to cut into the Wapak lead.
Starting from their own 20 for the fourth time in their first five drives the Roughriders moved the football with senior back Colton Mabry doing a majority of the work, picking up chunks of yardage and first downs.
Freshman Tre Moore saw his first varsity action on the drive and picked up a first down with an 18-yard run out of the wildcat formation before Mabry took the first of his six carries on the drive.
Nearing the goal line, the Roughriders gambled on fourth down but were turned away at the doorstep as senior running back Kevin Perry was shut out of the endzone as the horn sounded to end the third quarter.
St. Marys defense rose to the occasion once more against the Redskins to force a stop to give the offense a last chance, but an interception by Grant Jolly on a fourth down heave down the sideline kept the contest a shutout for Wapak. The Redskins ran off the final 5:35 before taking a knee to secure their triumph.
“Credit to both programs on a hard-fought game” said Moyer on the win. “We played well in all three phases. Our defense had some crucial stops with our backs against the wall. Special teams played a big part in the battle of field position. Offensively we got off to a great start and picked up some big first downs late”.
Wapak outgained St. Marys 246-211 and were paced by Jace Knous’ 65 yards and a score on 15 carries while QB Caleb Moyer added 11 rushes for 70 yards.
Wapak has now won three straight in the series and 11 of the past 14 matchups between the schools whose rivalry dates back over a century on the gridiron.
Next up for the Redskins (2-2, 2-1) is a Week Five matchup at Van Wert with the 3-1 Cougars. The Roughriders utilized 112 yards on 24 rushes by Colton Mabry to outgain the Redskins 191-171 on the ground.
“Our kids are resilient and work hard and that’s all I can ask for. They’re going to continue to fight and we’re going to find a way to win football games,” said St. Marys coach Bo Frye whose team will travel to battle 0-4 Ottawa Glandorf next Friday night.
Game summary
Score by quarters:
St. Marys 0 0 0 0 – 0
Wapakoneta 7 7 0 0 – 14
Scoring:
W – Reece Schnarre 4 run (Kyle Beach kick).
W – Jace Knous 10 run (Beach kick).
St. Marys Wapak
11 First downs 17
211 Total yardage 246
191 Rushing yardage 171
20 Passing yardage 75
2-5-1 Passing (Com-Att-Int) 7-9-0
0-0 Fumbles-Lost 1-0
2-35 Punts-Average 2-35.5
6-45 Penalties-Yards 2-8
Individual leaders:
Passing: W – Caleb Moyer 7-9-75; SM – Cody Wallace 2-5-20.
Rushing: W – Jace Knous 15-65, Caleb Moyer 11-70; SM – Colton Mabry 24-112.
Receiving: W – Jace Knous 3-49; SM – Carter Steinberg 2-20.
Records: Wapakoneta 2-2 (2-1 WBL); St. Marys 0-4 (0-3 WBL).
Mike Hirn wrote this story for LimaScores.com. Reach The Lima News sports department at 567-242-0451.
