Brock Netter, Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE — For the last two weeks, all Unioto has heard is how it couldn’t win in the postseason, and how there was no chance of advancing to Week 13 on Friday.
But do you know what blocks out that noise? Winning.
This year’s senior class has played in three straight playoff losses — all at home — in the past three seasons.
This fall, all year long, they’ve played with determination to get one final crack at redemption.
48 minutes later, the Shermans are heading to Week 13 — and the noise has, all of a sudden, turned into silence.
Behind a dominant defensive performance in the second half, and a stout running game, the Shermans (11-0) grinded out a 21-12 victory over Columbus East (10-2) in a Division IV, Region 15 Quarterfinal.
“This moment, seeing the players celebrate with the fans and their classmates, is a culmination of all the work we’ve put in, and a representation of every player that’s ever come through this program,” Unioto coach Matt Hoops said. “This has been five years of getting to this point. It was an absolute dogfight, but we’re standing right here and doing something people said we couldn’t do and moving onto Week 13.”
It marks the second-ever playoff victory in program history.
“We’ve been so locked in for the last two weeks, and no one thought we’d be here, after the game, talking about us winning,” Unioto’s Cody Braden said. “This a feeling we’d never had before, and for those who talked about how Unioto couldn’t win a playoff game, we just did.”
After the Shermans forced East to punt on its opening drive, they strung together a time-consuming 15-play drive that ended with a two-yard plunge from Braden to make it 7-0.
However, despite the early momentum, the rest of the half belonged to the Tigers.
They responded midway through the second when Dior Hansard escaped the pocket and found Tayjon Roster deep for a 49-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 7-6 after a failed two-point try.
On the next drive, Unioto attempted a quick pass, only for the route to be jumped. East’s Jabarri Ray came up with the interception and set the Tigers up with a short field.
They cashed in on the turnover when Hansard found Darion Matlock for a two-yard touchdown connection, giving East a 12-7 lead heading into halftime.
“We’d wanted a game like this all year where we had to face some adversity in the second half, since we’ve pretty much blown everyone out this year,” Unioto’s Bryce Jarvis said. “We went into the locker room knowing that we were still in the game. There were a few things we changed since they were throwing the ball on us, so I told my d-line guys that we had to get to the quarterback.”
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
Out of the gates in the third, Unioto returned the opening kickoff to East’s 42-yard line. It took only a handful of plays before Isaac Coy called his own number for a two-yard touchdown run, putting the Shermans back on top at 14-12.
It was then time for the Shermans’ defense to feast.
They forced East into fourth downs on back-to-back possessions, and in both instances, came up with a pass breakup to regain possession.
Midway through the fourth, following an East punt, it was time to gain some insurance.
With a heavy dose of Braden on the ground, Unioto pieced together a scoring drive that ended with an eight-yard power run from the senior back — his second score of the night — to make it a 21-12 ballgame.
“The offensive line played their hearts out tonight. I couldn’t do my thing without those guys, so they deserve just as much credit,” Braden said. “I also have to give a shoutout to David Long. He’s usually my lead blocker playing fullback, so he helps out a lot. I won’t lie, East hit hard and I felt some of those hits. But we pushed through and made it happen.”
Unioto’s Bryce Jarvis and company went back to work on the defensive end as the defensive line began to take control. The group came up with a pair of sacks, including one that ended with a fumble and Sherman recovery.
East got the ball back after a fourth down stop late in the game, but Unioto put the game on ice when Jack Winegardner came up with the game-ending interception,sending the Shermans to the third round.
“It’s our senior year, and we told our young guys that we want to go out with a bang and I think those guys really played for us,” Jarvis said. “They stepped up and played varsity football the way we knew they could do.”
Braden finished the night with 38 carries for 150 yards and two touchdowns while Coy finished 8-of-15 passing for 82 yards and an interception, alongside a rushing touchdown.
The Shermans’ defense finished with six sacks, including three from Luke Howard, while Jaxon Zickafoose and Winegardner each had an interception.
Unioto returns to action on Friday in a Division IV, Region 15 semifinal at top-seeded New Lexington, who defeated Fairfield Union to advance.
“We didn’t want this to be over, and hearing that victory bell in the background feels absolutely amazing,” Jarvis said. “I’m so happy that we get to have another week of practice and get another shot on Friday to keep our season going.”
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