COLDWATER, OHIO - The defending 2020 Division VI state football champion Coldwater High School will continue its quest for a repeat after defeating the Deer Park Wildcats 49-7 at Cavalier Stadium.
Deer Park received the ball first and the offense, led by sophomore quarterback Jace Parsons and senior wide receiver Norey Johnson, could not get out of its own way despite a 30-plus yard run from running back Kendall Luckett.
Multiple false starts and illegal formation calls killed any chances for Deer Park to gain a rhythm on offense in that first series, forcing them to punt the ball back to Coldwater.
Coldwater quickly took advantage of the situation once it got the ball back.
Coldwater’s first offensive play from scrimmage resulted in a 71-yard pass touchdown from quarterback Reece Dellinger to wide receiver Tyler Schwieterman. Coldwater would keep the hot start going all the way through to the first half tacking on another four touchdowns while keeping Deer Park scoreless, including a Marcel Blasingame 68-yard punt return touchdown in the first quarter.
More:Roger Bacon grinds out 16-6 win over Mariemont in Division V regional quarterfinals
More:Week 12 Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky high school football scores
A Blasingame run at the 7:09 mark in the second, a Blasingame 42-yard touchdown reception at the 4:42 mark and an Isaac Fullenkamp 4-yard run with 47.9 second left in the half made the score 35-0 Coldwater at half.
Deer Park players couldn't adjust to Coldwater's natural grass field and struggled with their footing all night. There were a few runs where Deer Park players were visibly frustrated by it after the play.
The second half featured a running clock since the score was more than 30. Coldwater continued to move the ball effectively, scoring three second-half touchdowns and their defense stifled Deer Park’s potent running attack. Deer Park gained 179 yards on the ground on 45 attempts for an average of 3.97 yards a carry.
Coldwater head coach Chip Otten knew going into the game Deer Park had some offensive firepower and had this to say about his team’s performance.
“We talked about right before the game that the two keys that I felt like on defense was to prevent the long touchdown plays, which we did, and offensively not to turn the ball over, which I don’t think we had one,” Otten said. “It was a good clean game. Our kids played hard.”
As for Deer Park, head coach Calvin Johnson was upset about the outcome but proud of his guys for fighting hard as they have all season.
“It’s a state championship program, and there is nothing better than playing at home. I'm just going to leave it at that,” he said.
In Johnson’s opinion, the officials made questionable calls that hurt his team.
Deer Park will finish the season with a 4-8 record. Coldwater will advance to 10-2 and is set to face off against fellow Division VI powerhouse Mechanicsburg (12-0) at 7 p.m. Saturday at a location still to be determined.
Source link
