Allen East’s Kade Wireman (left) and Braylon Kimmet tackle Columbus Grove’s Trenton Barraza during Friday night’s game at Allen East.
HARROD – Defense stepped to the forefront in Friday’s key Northwest Conference football matchup between Allen East and Columbus Grove at Goodwin Field.
All night long, both defensive units came up with big stops.
However, in the fourth quarter, Allen East finally made the one big offensive play it needed, as the Mustangs slipped out with a hard-fought 7-0 victory over Columbus Grove.
The lone scoring play of the contest came late in the fourth quarter.
Allen East got the ball with five minutes remaining in the game. The ball was at Columbus Grove’s 48-yard line.
Three plays later, Allen East quarterback Jacob Hershberger found a crease and ran 40 yards for a touchdown. With the point-after by Braylen Kennedy, Allen East finally had the lead.
The Mustangs held off Columbus Grove in the waning moments of the game to secure the thrilling win.
With the victory, Allen East improves to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the Northwest Conference. Columbus Grove slips to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the NWC.
Columbus Grove came into this season with a string of four consecutive Northwest Conference titles (shared it in 2018 and 2019).
The last time Allen East won an NWC title in football was 2019, when it shared the crown with Columbus Grove and Spencerville.
“It was a battle,” Allen East head coach Joel Billings said. “They (Columbus Grove) are a good football team. Defensively, ‘holy cow’. … They are something else.
“They are big, physical kids, and they’re well-coached. It came down to just a few plays. … That’s the way all these games seem to go. Two good teams that made big plays; and we made just one more. … That was the difference.”
It was a defensive battle for four quarters.
A 27-yard field goal attempt with seven seconds left in the first half by Columbus Grove’s Shep Halker was blocked by the Mustangs.
Both teams chewed up some valuable yardage in the first half. However, both defensive units came up big when they needed to.
Allen East rolled up 111 offensive yards in the first 24 minutes of action. For the game, Allen East recorded 259 total yards of offense.
In the first half, Hershberger was 6 of 15 passing for 67 yards, and had an interception. The senior signal-caller rushed for 29 yards on seven carries in the first half.
For the game, Hershberger was 11 of 25 passing for 106 yards and one interception. He also rushed for 96 yards on 14 carries
Columbus Grove’s offensive unit recorded 155 yards in the first half. For the game, the Bulldogs’ offensive unit ended up with 206 total yards.
In the first half, Columbus Grove quarterback Brenton Renner was 9 of 25 passing for 107 yards, and had an interception. Renner ended the night 17 of 40 passing for 166 yards and four interceptions. Zach Reynolds was Renner’s favorite target. Reynolds hauled in eight passes for 77 yards.
Columbus Grove looked to cash in, early in the second half.
Trenton Barraza returned the kick-off to start the second half 85 yards, all the way to Allen East’s 14-yard line.
However, Allen East stuffed the Bulldogs in four plays, and took over on downs.
Then, in the fourth quarter, Allen East’s offensive unit got the job done.
Allen East got the ball with five minutes remaining in the game.
The Mustangs finally erased the goose eggs with the TD run by Hershberger.
On Columbus Grove’s next possession, Allen East defensive back Carson Clum intercepted a pass by Renner to secure the victory for Allen East.
On the night, Allen East’s offensive unit recorded 16 first downs. Columbus Grove moved the first-down chains 14 times.
“The atmosphere was awesome,” Billings said. “This crowd was great. It was just an awesome experience. I told the kids, ‘This is a game that you’re going to remember forever’.”
Mark Altstaetter wrote this story for The Lima News. Reach The Lima News sports department at 567-242-0451.
