Columbus Grove’s Trenton Barraza gets away from Black River’s Nathan Urbas during Friday night’s Division IV playoff game at Columbus Grove.
Richard Parrish | The Lima News
COLUMBUS GROVE – Columbus Grove’s offensive unit made a statement on its very first possession of the game.
However, Sullivan Black River did not fold.
Columbus Grove, behind big plays on both offense and defense, was able to pull away in the second half, en route to a convincing 42-17 victory over Black River in a Division VI, Region 22 first-round playoff football game Friday night at Clymer Stadium.Columbus Grove (9-2) will take on West Salem Northwestern at 7 p.m. next Friday in a regional quarterfinal at West Salem Northwestern.
Black River came into Friday’s playoff game riding a six-game winning streak after losing its first four games of the season. The Pirates end their campaign, 6-5.
“I think the key to the game was the third quarter,” Columbus Grove head coach Andy Schafer said. “This team (Black River) has scored 71 points in the third quarter (this season). For some reason, the third quarter has been their quarter. We talked about it all week. I told them (his players) that we will win or lose this game in the third quarter; and we certainly did not lose it.”
Columbus Grove had the first possession of the contest.
The Bulldogs promptly marched 75 yards on 13 plays to find the end zone. A.J. Schafer (seven carries, 29 yards) ran it in from one yard out to score the touchdown. The extra point by Shep Halker gave Columbus Grove an early 7-0 lead with 6:06 left in the opening stanza.
Black River responded after Columbus Grove’s successful opening drive. Eric Groesser booted a 28-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 7-3 with 2:16 left in the first quarter. That score held up to the first stop.
Then, Columbus Grove’s defense got into the act.
Defensive back Antonio Gray intercepted a pass from Black River quarterback Eric Groesser and returned it 93 yards for the touchdown. With the extra point, the Bulldogs now led 14-3 with 7:28 left in the half.
The Bulldogs rounded out their first-half scoring with a TD run by freshman Landon Best at the 2:03 mark to give Columbus Grove a 21-3 lead. Best shared snaps behind center Friday night with Renner. Best rushed for 50 yards on six carries.
However, Black River quickly responded with a 75-yard TD pass from Groesser to Tyler Mrakuzic (seven catches, 108 yards).
At the halftime break, Columbus Grove led 21-10.
“They are talented,” Coach Schafer said about Black River. “There for a while, our defense had 14 points and our offense had 14 points. I said, ‘Come on guys, we had better get our offense going’. Our defense was playing so well. It was big plays. … We’re a big play team. I don’t know what our stats were in the third quarter, but we played lights out in that third quarter.”
In the first half, Columbus Grove’s offensive unit rolled up 215 yards of total offense. Trenton Barraza rushed for 117 yards on eight carries in the first half to lead the Bulldogs. Barraza ended the night with 133 yards on 10 touches. For the game, the Bulldogs rushed for 261 yards.
Columbus Grove quarterback Brenton Renner was 5 of 8 passing for 40 yards in the first half. Renner finished the night, 6 of 9 passing for 116 yards.
Black River rushed for 66 yards in the first 24 minutes of action. Groesser was 11 of 15 passing for 167 yards.
Black River ended the night with 109 yards on the ground, and 204 yards in the air.
Early into the second half, Columbus Grove’s defense stepped up again.
This time, defensive back Landen Schroeder intercepted a pass from Groesser and ran it back 55 yards for a TD. With the extra point by Halker, Columbus Grove’s lead had grown to 18, 28-10, with 8:59 left in the third quarter. The Bulldogs’ offense wasn’t done.
On Columbus Grove’s next possession, Renner connected with Shep Halker (two catches, 57 yards) for a 49-yard TD pass to extend the Bulldogs’ lead to 35-10 with 5:22 left in the third.
The Bulldogs added one more score right before the end of the third. Landen Schroeder capped off a 7-play, 73-yard scoring drive with an 8-yard TD run. With the extra point, Columbus Grove led 42-10.
The Pirates added a touchdown late in the game, with a 6-yard TD pass from Groesser to Mrakuzic.
“We have kind of a two-headed monster (at running back) with A.J. (Schafer, the coach’s son), who is physical; and with Trenton Barraza, who is very dangerous with his speed,” Coach Schafer said. “I also liked the way we were able to use both quarterbacks, tonight. Landon Best did a nice job of stepping in. Then, having Brenton Renner back from an injury was nice. He (Renner) played one of his best games – just managing the game.”
Mark Altstaetter wrote this story for LimaScores.com. Reach The Lima News sports department at 567-242-0451.
