FAYETTEVILLE — Blanchster rattled off 28 points in a 10-minute span of the first half and coasted to a 35-0 win that spoiled Fayetteville-Perry’s homecoming and secured the Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division crown.
The Blanchester win and Williamsburg’s victory over Bethel-Tate gives Jon Mulvihill and his Wildcats the outright National title.
The Wildcats (5-4, 4-0) cashed in on two Rocket fumbles and a horribly executed punt on their way to 21 points in the last half of the first quarter.
Fayetteville’s first possession ended at the Blan 25 with a fumble. Adam Frump found Tyler Gillman moments later on a 59-yard pitch-and-catch to put the Wildcats on the board.
The Rockets’ next drive ended in a three-and-out. Backed up to its end zone, the punt was shanked and tipped. Brady Phillips gathered the pigskin at the 17 and sprinted to paydirt.
Blan’s first quarter spurt ended with Colt Conover ripping the ball away from a Rocket rusher and rumbling 35 yards to put Blan up 21-0.
Gage Huston sent Blanchester into the intermission with a 28-0 advantage on his 1-yard plunge early in the second quarter.
Tanner Creager’s 32-yard run in the fourth quarter forced a running clock. Creager had returned the punt that started that drive 75 yards for a score, but it was called back because of a penalty.
Fayetteville (4-5, 0-4) reached Blan territory just three times. In addition to the fumble on the Blan 25 at the beginning of the game, it turned the ball over on downs at the Blan 27 with less than a minute to go in the first half and got stopped a foot short on a 4th-and-5 play at the Blan 10 late in the third quarter. It would’ve been 4th-and-short except for a false start penalty.
Blanchester will go for the outright SBAAC National title next Friday on its Senior Night versus East Clinton.
SUMMARY
Oct 25, 2019
@Fayetteville-Perry High School
Blanchester 35 Fayetteville-Perry 0
FP^0^0^0^0^^0
BL^21^7^0^7^^35
First quarter
BLAN – Gillman 59 pass from Frump (Damewood kick), 6:55.
BLAN – Phillips 17 punt return (Damewood kick), 5:01.
BLAN – Conover 35 fumble return (Damewood kick), 1:07.
Second quarter
BLAN – Huston 1 run (Damewood kick), 9:12.
Third quarter
No scoring.
Fourth quarter
BLAN – Creager 28 run (Damewood kick), 7:46.
