High school football: Woodridge hangs on to beat Cloverleaf

The Cloverleaf football team had an opportunity to escape Summit County with an important Metro Athletic Conference victory Friday, but a late fourth-and-goal pass went begging and Woodridge held on 21-15 for a mild upset. While the Colts (6-3, 4-2) had put themselves behind the 8-ball in the league title race two weeks prior with a loss to undefeated Norton, a Division IV, Region 14 first-round home game was on the table. Cloverleaf officially clinched a playoff berth but fell to ninth in the computer ratings and must upset Streetsboro (7-2, 5-1) next week to host. Playing without first-team All-MAC tight end Brayden Beier and standout wide receiver/safety Ashton Gray, Cloverleaf struggled with offensive consistency despite finishing with 324 yards and converting 10 third downs. The Colts relied heavily on ground-and-pound runs with Ethan Gray (25 carries, 108 yards) and Marzell Davis (14, 52), while Isaac Smith completed 7-of-20 passes for 131 yards. Down 21-15 after a Smith 13-yard TD pass to Jimmy Tolley, Cloverleaf had multiple chances to take the lead. The first came when Ethan Martin forced a fumble recovered by Elliot Jordan at the Woodridge 41-yard line, but the Colts threw an interception on the next play from scrimmage. The second came after Woodridge (5-4, 4-2) failed on a gutsy fourth-down attempt from its own 48 when a pass fell incomplete. Cloverleaf calmly marched down the field, and a Gray run gave the Colts first-and-goal from the 10. A third-down run advanced the ball to the 2 where Gray was tackled for a 2-yard loss on a counter trey to the right. Smith rolled right on fourth down, only to find no receivers open. The junior tried to flip the ball into the end zone before fading out of bounds, but the pass was broken up. The drama was far from over, as Cloverleaf safety David Hunter tackled Bulldogs running back Johnathan Tyree at the ½-yard line. Two sneaks with tight end Carter Maxa brought up fourth down, but Woodridge pulled off the ultimate roll of the dice and converted another sneak on fourth-and-1 from its 13 before kneeling out the clock. Cloverleaf got off to a rough start, with its offense stalling and the defense struggling to contain quick-cutting sophomore Tyree (20 carries, 186 yards), who showed a great ability to make running room with a slashing style in the box. Tyree set up a Kellen Morr 9-yard TD reception from Rory Johnston with a 42-yard scamper, then made the score 14-0 in the second quarter when he went to the house from 53 yards. The Colts finally settled down, and Smith scrambled before heaving a pass that tight end Jordan hauled in for a much-needed 43-yard touchdown. Smith then made a fantastic one-handed catch with his off hand on a wild extra point snap and lofted a pass to Tolley for the two-point conversion. Woodridge went ahead 21-8 when Tyree scored from 14 yards in the third quarter. Smith answered on a QB sweep to the left to account for the final score. Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com. Woodridge 21, Cloverleaf 15 CLOVERLEAF &emsp;&emsp;0 8 7 0 — 15 WOODRIDGE &emsp;&emsp;7 7 7 0 — 21 First W — Kellen Morr 9 pass from Rory Johnston (Mason Endlich kick). Second W — Johnathan Tyree 53 run (Endlich kick). C — Elliot Jordan 43, pass from Isaac Smith (Jimmy Tolley pass from Smith). Third W — Tyree 14 run (Endlich kick). C — Jimmy Tolley 13 pass from Smith (Austin Sustersic kick). &emsp;&emsp;C &emsp;&emsp;W First downs &emsp;&emsp;15 &emsp;&emsp;13 Rushing &emsp;&emsp;49/193 33/196 Rushing average &emsp;&emsp;3.9 &emsp;&emsp;5.9 Passing &emsp;&emsp;7/20 &emsp;&emsp;8/20 Passing yards &emsp;&emsp;131 &emsp;&emsp;71 Total offense &emsp;&emsp;69/324 53/267 Punting &emsp;&emsp;4/32.8 3/44.7 Penalties &emsp;&emsp;7/45 &emsp;&emsp;2/20 Fumbles &emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;0/0 &emsp;&emsp;3/1 RUSHING: Cloverleaf — Ethan Gray 25-108, Marzell Davis 14-52, Smith 10-33. Woodridge — Tyree 20-182, Nathaniel Lohoski 4-15, Carter Maxa 2-11, Johnston 3-4, Team 4-(-16). PASSING: Cloverleaf — Smith 7-20-131-2. Woodridge — Johnston 8-19-71-0, Morr 0-1-0-0. RECEIVING: Cloverleaf — Kellen Price 2-53, Jordan 2-51, Tolley 1-13, Davis 1-8, Gray 1-6. Woodridge — Morr 5-42, Maxa 1-18, Andrew Stull 1-7, Tyree 1-4. MISSED FIELD GOAL: Woodridge — Endlich 47 (SH).