High school football: Wadsworth authoritatively beats Brecksville

WADSWORTH — The Wadsworth football team broke out big plays early and often in every phase of the game Friday night to roll past Suburban League National Conference rival Brecksville 49-12. From making two fourth-down stops in the red zone to blocking a punt and extra point to an offense that scored seven touchdowns on its first eight possessions, the Grizzlies (6-0, 3-0) were in control of the Bees (3-3, 1-2) from start to finish on homecoming. "That's a big win," senior defensive back Grady Hughes said. "There were a lot of distractions this week (with homecoming). We stayed focused and dedicated all week for us. That's a big win for us." Hughes set the tone on the opening drive, breaking up a Nate Henegar pass intended for Bryndan Williams to force a three-and-out. Sophomore speedster Jay'len King then came off the corner to block Owen Grieser's punt and set the Wadsworth offense up on the Brecksville 20-yard line. "When I blocked that punt, I was so hyped," King said. "It really set the tone for the offense and got us in good field position." Senior Gavin Madigan made sure to take advantage with a 4-yard touchdown run behind the left side of the offensive line. Madigan had 115 yards on 12 carries and a pair of touchdowns. Stepping in for the injured Luke Maddox, King also had two catches for 23 yards, while Kyle Schmeltzer had three catches for 27 yards and Dawson Mendel had two for 26. As good as Madigan was at running over Brecksville defenders, the speedy Cooper Gray made the biggest splash with 181 yards and three TDs on 16 carries. Gray had 169 yards and two touchdowns in the first half before he was announced as homecoming king at halftime. The celebration didn't last long, as Gray got back to work to score his last touchdown on the first drive of the second half, giving Wadsworth a running clock with a 42-6 lead. "Homecoming king is an honor, but I've got to lock in on football after that," Gray said. "I had the time to take pictures and stuff, but it's football season." Gray credited his blockers for his big night on the field, which featured scoring runs of 64, 43 and 12 yards. "Obviously, I couldn't have done it without my offensive line. They really stepped up tonight," Gray said. "Gabe Ludtke's first game back from injury. Dawson (Mendel) and (Colton) Leavitt at tight end were getting some key blocks for us. Outside, Jay'len (King) had a key block on one of my runs." Quarterback Brysen Hall had an efficient night at 13-of-16 for 232 yards and two touchdowns to Calix Lemp (4 catches, 140 yards), the biggest an 85-yard strike on third-and-9 for a 28-0 lead midway through the second quarter. The only blemish was an interception to Peter Chermonte with the Grizzlies already ahead 14-0. Hall came back to complete 10 of his final 12 passes, including eight in a row to end his night. Following the interception by Chermonte, the Bees showed life and moved to the Wadsworth 16, where they faced fourth-and-9. Quarterback Nate Henegar (8-for-23, 105 yards, rushing TD) found top receiver Carson Zabkar, but Hughes stopped him 2 yards short. That stop led to Madigan's second touchdown. Hughes broke up a pass on the next possession on another fourth down, this time at the Wadsworth 14. "Those are big moments," Hughes said. "Those are stops that we need to have in order to win big like we did." The Grizzlies got a lift in the kicking game as soccer leading scorer Justin Lazzaretti came on to kick the final four extra points. Brecksville got on the scoreboard right as the clock hit zeroes before halftime when Henegar punched in a 1-yard sneak, but Lemp blocked the extra point. Wadsworth tried to sneak an extra possession before the half, but failed to recover the onside kick at the start of that drive, leading to a 35-6 lead. The Bees' final score came with seconds remaining when Nick Milanich scored from 3 yards. Milanich led Brecksville with 40 yards on 12 carries despite not touching the ball until the fourth quarter. Contact John Urchek at jurchek@medina-gazette.com. Wadsworth 49, Brecksville 12 BRECKSVILLE &emsp;&emsp;0 6 0 6 — 12 WADSWORTH 14 21 14 0 — 49 First W — Gavin Madigan 4 run (Jack McNeil kick), 10:02. W — Cooper Gray 64 run (McNeil kick), 8:41. Second W — Madigan 15 run (McNeil kick), 8:36. W — Calix Lemp 85 pass from Brysen Hall (Justin Lazzaretti kick), 4:49. W — Gray 43 run (Lazzaretti kick), 1:13. B — Nate Henegar 1 run (kick blocked), 0:00. Third W — Gray 12 run (Lazzaretti kick), 9:30. W — Lemp 30 pass from Hall (Lazzaretti kick), 4:15. Fourth B — Nick Milanich 3 run (conversion not attempted), 0:12. &emsp;&emsp;B &emsp;&emsp;W First downs &emsp;&emsp;14 &emsp;&emsp;19 Rushing &emsp;&emsp;39/118 33/309 Rushing average &emsp;&emsp;3.0 &emsp;&emsp;9.4 Passing &emsp;&emsp;8/23&emsp;&emsp;13/16 Passing yards &emsp;&emsp;105 &emsp;&emsp;232 Total offense &emsp;&emsp;62/223 49/541 Punting &emsp;&emsp;6/40.0 1/42.0 Penalties &emsp;&emsp;1/10 &emsp;&emsp;4/34 Fumbles &emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;2/0 &emsp;&emsp;0/0 RUSHING: Brecksville — Milanich 12-40, Jacob Eterovich 8-31, Tommy Toth 7-31, Henegar 7-11, Bryndan Williams 1-3, Tut Matchittom 3-2, Cameron Stephan 1-0. Wadsworth — Gray 16-181, Madigan 12-115, Jude Haller 1-9, Hall 1-6, Cayden Muich 2-4, Bryson Bupp 1-(-6). PASSING: Brecksville — Henegar 8-23-105-0. Wadsworth — Hall 13-16-232-1. RECEIVING: Brecksville — Carson Zabkar 3-46, Patrick Murphy 2-40, Williams 2-12, Max Ritter 1-7. Wadsworth — Lemp 4-140, Kyle Schmeltzer 3-27, Dawson Mendel 2-26, Jay'len King 2-23, Colton Leavitt 1-11, McNeil 1-5.