Drew Terhall

DailyAdvocate.com

GREENVILLE — The battle for the Little Brown Jug was a close one. Greenville High School football lost in double overtime to Sidney High School 49-48 at Harmon Field.

“I learned a lot about this team tonight. These kids fight. We got better this week. We made plays and kids stepped up,” Head coach Bart Schmitz said.

It was 14-7 after halftime, in favor of Sidney. Schmitz said they have been in this position in every game this season. This time around, they didn’t let the game get too out of hand.

Sidney extended their lead to 28-7 late in the third quarter. Just before the fourth, Evan Manix ran in for a 3-yard touchdown to cut into the lead.

Sidney responded with a 44-yard touchdown run by Jy Foster-Wheeler to keep their 21-point lead.

Then, the Green Wave came roaring back. With just under eight minutes left, Manix ran in for a 27-yard score to make it a 35-21 game.

Greenville then recovered the ball on the ensuing kickoff. Back on offense, it too just under two minutes to get on the scoreboard again. Manix threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Nolan Ellis. The PAT was blocked and Greenville was down by eight.

The offense started to get going once everyone not named Brock Short stepped up. Schmitz said the team responded well in the second half.

“Some kids took some butt-ripping on the sideline when they deserved it and they responded. As the coach, that’s all I could ever ask for,” Schmitz said.

The defense got a much needed three and out to get the ball back late in the game.

Short did contribute late has he ran for a 22-yard touchdown to be within two of Sidney. Short than completed a pass to Ellis for the two-point conversion. With only a minute and a half left in the fourth quarter, the game went into overtime.

Teams went back and forth scoring. Once Greenville scored their second touchdown, they went for the two-point conversion and win.

In the wildcat, Short looked to pass. With no one open, Short tucked it in and ran for it. He was just stopped within a yard of the endzone.

Short finished the game with 243 rushing yards and two touchdowns. He also had three catches for 32 yards and a touchdown.

Schmitz credited his offensive line for allowing everyone on offense to contribute to the comeback. Manix was the main beneficiary as he had three total touchdowns to get the Green Wave within eight of Sidney.

“He (Manix) played a whale of a ball game tonight as well as everyone else did. Our offensive line, with what they were doing up front, gave him all sorts of time to throw the ball,” Schmitz said.

Manix finished 10 for 14 passing with 96 yards and three passing touchdowns. He also had 38 yards rushing and two rushing touchdowns.

The defense allowed 439 total yards of offense to Sidney. They had great stretches of play. The Green Wave picked off Sidney quarterback Tucker Herron twice. They got key stops to allow their offense to take over the game.

Greenville was just under a yard away from winning the game.

The Green Wave will look to carry this momentum with them on the road against Fairborn High School. Game is set to start at 7 p.m.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]