By Drew Terhall

DailyAdvocate.com

ANSONIA — Ansonia High School football pulled out a 20-14 victory over Preble Shawnee High School on Oct. 14 at home. Head coach Adam Hall said while Preble Shawnee deserves a lot of credit for their play in the game, his teams deserves some as well.

“You have to give credit to our guys too .We went toe-to-toe with them. We got big stops down the stretch when we needed them. We got moving on offense, finally, in the fourth quarter. Got the stop at the end when we needed it, heck of a job by our guys,” Hall said.

It took awhile for Ansonia to get going. On their first drive, they couldn’t convert on fourth and five from the 9-yard line. They eventually got the ball back and started to drive down the field again.

Running back Exzaviar Moody ran in from two yards out to put Ansonia up 6-0.

The first play from scrimmage for Preble Shawnee after that score was a touchdown. A 62-yard rushing touchdown gave Preble Shawnee the 7-6 lead.

Ansonia didn’t go down quietly. On a third and seven, quarterback Ian Schmitmeyer found tight end Ethan Reichert for a 28-yard gain through the air and a first down. A few plays later, Moody ran for a 21-yard touchdown for the 14-7 lead.

Preble Shawnee did threaten to score before half, but Ansonia stopped them in the redzone to keep their seven-point lead heading into halftime.

On their first possession of the half, Preble Shawnee went down the field and scored to tie the game at 14 each.

The Tigers had their chances but couldn’t find the endzone. After getting the ball back on the 50-yard line, they couldn’t score on fourth and goal from the 6-yard line. They had it at the 1-yard line, but a false start moved them back.

They were also stopped near the redzone. On defense, a facemask penalty helped Preble Shawnee extend their drive.

Ansonia got a stop on the 22-yard line and took possession with 4:14 left on the clock. Hall said he told his team prior to the stop to contain the quarterback and wrap up. Brayden Doran was killing the Tigers on the ground during the game. It was the perfect time to finally get him down.

The offense found enough within themselves to move the ball down the field. Moody made chunk play after chunk play to get down to the 1-yard line. From there, Moody scored to put Ansonia up 20-14.

An interception by Landyn Bowman iced the game for the Tigers.

Hall said he is proud of his whole team. The players and coaches have made his job easier and has made this season a great one so far. Eugene Hoeing, TJ Philpot, Kenny Edwards, Matthew Shook and Andrew Rowland all contribute to the success of this team.

“They do a great job with the guys. They help us get prepared every week. With the combination of the coaching staff that we have and the players that we have on our team, it makes coaching very easy,” Hall said. “We’re very fortunate with the crew that we got. Can’t say enough about our team, can’t say enough about our coaches. It’s been a great year because we got great guys on the team.”

The Tigers can at least clinch a share of the WOAC title next week with a win against rival Mississinawa Valley. The 8-1 Tigers know the job isn’t finished yet.

“It’s week 10 for a reason. We know they’ll be ready to play. We got to come in ready to go,” Hall said.

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