High school football: Cloverleaf jumps out to early lead, routs Springfield

WESTFIELD TWP. — The Cloverleaf football team has made it a point of emphasis to start fast this season. The Colts started so quickly Friday in a 42-7 Metro Athletic Conference victory over Springfield that the game was over after the first quarter. Cloverleaf (3-1, 1-0) scored touchdowns on its first six drives, which spanned less than 15 minutes of game time, and forced two turnovers in a stifling first half in which the Spartans were held to minus-13 yards offense. "The past couple of years, (fast starts) have been the thing that we've been preaching," senior Ethan Gray said. "This year we're finally able to start getting that." Gray got the offense going with a 17-yard touchdown run behind the left side of line just 32 seconds in. He also scored the Colts' final touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with 9:01 left in the second quarter. After Gray's first score, slotback Kellen Price put his versatility on display with an 8-yard rushing TD up the middle and receiving scores of 42 and 29 yards to make sure the Colts left the Spartans (1-3, 0-1) in the rearview mirror. Price led Cloverleaf with 60 rushing yards on five carries and 71 receiving yards on two catches. As a defensive back, he played a key role in the Colts allowing just 12 yards on 3-of-14 passing by Springfield quarterback Koen Keller. The Spartans had 35 yards total offense. "He's so versatile," Colts coach Justin Vorhies said. "He can cover guys, you can get him out on routes and he can run the ball. He's a nice weapon to have. "We've got so many guys that can do stuff with the ball that you can't key on one. It makes it a lot of fun." Eight players carried the ball for Cloverleaf, with Gray (8 carries, 58 yards), Marzell Davis (8, 35) and Ashton Gray (3, 25) giving the Colts four runners that reached at least 25 yards. Price's two receiving touchdowns came on identical play calls that involved quarterback Isaac Smith faking a handoff and rolling out with Price wheeling out of the backfield down the sideline. The first went down the left sideling for 42 yards. The second went to the right for 29 yards on third-and-18. "Coach (Vorhies) saw it on film and we hit it twice," Price said. "Isaac can get me the ball, so it's nice." Smith was an incredibly efficient 3-for-6 for 93 yards and three touchdowns. The first TD to Price almost never was. Earlier in the drive it looked like Smith had hit tight end Brayden Beier for a 21-yard score, but officials ruled he was down at the 1-yard line before deciding he had dropped the ball. The offense's efforts were buoyed by two momentum-changing plays by the defense. After Ethan Gray's scored to start the game, Springfield found itself pinned on its 9-yard line to begin the next drive. After what looked like a quick three-and-out, the Spartans tried to snap the ball to up-back Trevor Durham, an offensive lineman. Durham fumbled the snap and Jimmy Tolley recovered. One play later, Price scored his first touchdown. Later in the first quarter, Ashton Gray intercepted a Keller pass to set up Price's final score. Ashton Gray scored the final touchdown of a 35-point first quarter when he caught a pass from Smith for 22 yards over the middle. "I'm feeling great," Ashton Gray said. "We came out flat in the second half, which kind of sucked, but we came out hot. We played to our ability and got the job done." On the first drive of the second half, Springfield started with the ball and had third-and-7 when running back Marty Thurston broke free for a 56-yard score and the only blemish on an otherwise dominant evening. Contact John Urchek at jurchek@medina-gazette.com. Cloverleaf 42, Springfield 7 SPRINGFIELD &emsp;&emsp; 0 0 7 0 — 7 CLOVERLEAF 35 7 0 0 — 42 First C — Ethan Gray 17 run (Austin Sustersic kick), 11:28. C — Kellen Price 8 run (Sustersic kick), 9:31. C — Price 42 pass from Smith (Sustersic kick), 7:01. C — Price 29 pass from Smith (Sustersic kick), 4:40. C — Ashton Gray 22 pass from Smith (Sustersic kick), 0:33. Second C — E. Gray 1 run (Sustersic kick), 9:01. Third S — Marty Thurston 56 run (Omar Leon kick), 8:41. &emsp;&emsp;S &emsp;&emsp;C First downs &emsp;&emsp;4 &emsp;&emsp;10 Rushing &emsp;&emsp;24/23 31/207 Rushing average &emsp;&emsp;1.0 &emsp;&emsp;6.7 Passing &emsp;&emsp;3/14 &emsp;&emsp;3/6 Passing yards &emsp;&emsp;12 &emsp;&emsp;93 Total offense &emsp;&emsp;38/35 37/300 Punting &emsp;&emsp;7/32.6 3/28.0 Penalties &emsp;&emsp;3/15 &emsp;&emsp;4/45 Fumbles &emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;2/1 &emsp;&emsp;3/0 RUSHING: Springfield — Thurston 11-66, Barron Lang 4-2, Evan Delbrugge 1-1, Bryson Lanham 2-(-1), Trevor Durham 1-(-6), Koen Keller 5-(-39). Cloverleaf — Price 5-60, E. Gray 8-58, Marzell Davis 8-35, Chriss Gilliand 2-30, A. Gray 3-25, Grady Porter 1-6, Brayden Beier 1-3, Team 1-0, Smith 2-(-10). PASSING: Springfield — Keller 3-14-12-1. Cloverleaf — Smith 3-5-93-0, Porter 0-1-0-0. RECEIVING: Springfield — Ty Smith 2-11, Isaac Ternosky 1-1. Cloverleaf — Price 2-71, A. Gray 1-22.