Tyler Harris, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
LUCASVILLE — You hear all the time how a team is “looking to get back on track.”
CREDIT: Baylee Harris/SOSA
After coming into Friday’s contest on a four-game skid, it took little time for Waverly to find the rails, get its switches and crossing in order and get the train rolling towards a dominant win over Valley.
The Tigers are indeed back on track after a 60-7 drubbing
“It’s nice to get back on track. It hasn’t been an easy road for us,” Waverly coach Chris Crabtree said of his team. “These are the things we believe we are capable of doing and we went out and executed and performed at all levels tonight.”
That’s an understatement.
Waverly (3-4, 1-1 SOC II) played near perfect football. The team’s only blemish came on a late score in the first half when they gave up a 12-play, 78-yard drive, marking Valley’s first and only only score — a testament to how well the team’s defense played all night long.
The Tigers forced a three-and-out to begin the game, setting up the offense up at its owns 37-yard line. Five plays and 44 seconds later, Jase Hurd did what he’s done so many times this year, finding the end zone from four yards out. After another defensive stop, quarterback Mason Kelly logged a 29-yard touchdown pass to Kody Swords before a 36-yard scoring scamper from Hurd with 10:39 left in the second, making it 19-0.
And the rout was on.
PHOTOS: Images from Waverly’s win over Valley
Valley’s next possession ended with a strip sack that handed Waverly the football at the Indians’ 43-yard line. Hurdn then took two carries to the 20-yard line before Kelly found his brother, Hudson Kelly, for a 20-yard touchdown pass and a 26-0 tally. The Tigers then capped their near flawless first half with Hurd’s third house call, a three-yard run, making it 33-0.
Valley (3-4, 1-1 SOC II) was then finally able to get something going offensively. After a change at quarterback, Carter Nickel settled in nicely and led the Indians on a 12-play drive, using the passing attack to do so and capping the sequence off with a Colton Buckle one-yard plunge, closing the first half scoring at 33-7.
The Tigers’ defense got in on the scoring action in the third, but not before sophomore quarterback Kelly found Wyatt Crabtree for a 28-yard touchdown to open the second half scoring, making it three touchdown tosses for him on the night.
“First of all, our offensive coordinator, coach Knight, has developed some great quarterbacks in recent years. But Mason has worked really hard this offseason,” Crabtree said of his young signal caller. “It’s taken some time but he’s found some security blanket, and throwing to his brother definitely helps.”
In the second half, Waverly’s defensive performance went like this: scoop and score, pick-six, interception and interception. That illustrates all four Valley drives in the final two quarters.
Coming off four straight losses and sitting at the bottom of the SOC II, Crabtree had high praise for his defensive unit and their performance on the night.
“[Valley] has some athletes and we knew they were going to take some shots downfield,” Crabtree said. “We’ve struggled with that at times this year, but we challenged our guys to execute this week and we got back to doing some basic things and our guys got the job done.”
After back-to-back defensive scores from Peyton Harris (fumble recovery) and Carson Peters (pick-six), Creed Smith put the final stamp on this one with a 75-yard dash to the house.
Statistically, Waverly was led by Kelly, who was 12-of-20 passing for 275 yards and three touchdowns. He was followed by Hurd, who had 13 carries for 106 yards and three scores. Smith added two carries for 80 yards and a touchdown, Hudson Kelly caught five passes for 127 yards and a score, and Swords and Crabtree each added a touchdown catch.
Valley was led by Colt Buckle, who had 16 catches for 113 yards alongside eight carries for 19 yards and a touchdown. Aiden Waughtel hauled in five receptions for 91 yards, and Nickel was 21-of-36 passing for 190 yards alongside two interceptions.
Waverly is back in action Friday night, hosting Wheelersburg, while Valley looks to rebound at West.
“It’s great because after four losses, we got down a little bit. But after a 60-7 win, it builds the energy back up and everybody is healthy,” Wyatt Crabtree said. “We want to get back on the right track, win out and finish 6-4.”
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