Eagles face Jackets on the gridiron in Game of the Week

Press Sports Editor
sports@presspublications.com

What an opportunity – Clay has a tremendous chance to beat one of Northwest Ohio’s best teams.
The Eagles, who are members of the Northern Lakes League’s Cardinal Division, face Perrysburg from the Buckeye Division on Friday in our Game of the Week.
Clay, which is 2-1 following a 45-14 loss to Whitmer, opened the season with a 38-21 win over Sandusky before trouncing Northview 49-0 in week two.
In the win over the Wildcats, Mason Heintschel completed 11-of-13 passes for six touchdowns, a school record, and Troy Hazuda caught six passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
The victory over the Blue Streaks saw Heintschel complete 22-of-35 passes for 293 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran 15 times for 119 yards, and his top target was Brodi Ostrander (13 catches, 125 yards, a TD). Landon Eversman scored the Eagles' final three touchdowns (37- and 20-yard receptions, plus a 2-yard run) after the Eagles trailed Sandusky, 21-17, late in the first half.
Clay’s loss to Whitmer saw them commit too many mistakes. The Panthers, who had 446 yards of total offense, scored 21 points in the first quarter and 38 in the first half.
“We played pretty well the first two weeks, but against Whitmer, we had breakdowns in all three phases of the game, which you cannot have against really good teams like Whitmer,” said Clay coach John Galyas. “We had some assignment breakdowns and lapses in situational awareness that really hurt us against Whitmer. The good news is it is all fixable. I thought our guys really battled against Whitmer, especially in the second half when it would have been really easy not to play as hard. I think that says a lot about the character of this group of guys.”
After three games, Heintschel has completed 52-of-78 passes for 676 yards and 12 touchdowns and three interceptions while rushing 30 times for 211 yards.
Hazuda has caught 17 passes for 290 yards and two touchdowns; Ostrander has 12 catches for 119 yards and two scores; Hudson Byers has nine receptions for 116 yards and five touchdowns and Aaron Miller has caught seven passes for 104 yards.
The Eagles are 10th in the Division II, Region 6 standings with 4.00 points, which is tied with Southview. A win over the Yellow Jackets would vault Clay to the upper portion of the region. Perrysburg, which is 3-0, is ranked second in the Division I, Region 1 standings with 7.91 points.
The Jackets beat Fremont Ross last week, 35-0, and blanked Marysville, 37-0, in week two. In the opener, Perrysburg beat St. Francis, 28-21.
The Jackets are coached by Dirk Connor, who previously coached at Bowling Green High School. He has taken over where Matt Kregel left off and has the team playing well.
Quarterback Josh Takats has completed 18-of-39 passes for 351 yards and four touchdowns while rushing 41 times for 227 yards and Dominick Woods has caught 10 passes for 227 yards and four touchdowns and Joseph Seney has six rushing touchdowns.
“Perrysburg is a well-coached, tough, hard-nosed football team. In order to beat them, we have to be very physical and disciplined,” said Galyas. “They have a really good quarterback, a big offensive line and some really good skill-position players. Their defense is really playing at a very high level. They are led by Josh Takats and Joseph Seney, and both of those guys are very experienced players.”
When asked what it’s going to take for the Eagles to reach the next level, Galyas said winning close games will be key.
“All of our Cardinal Division losses last year were either one-score games or really close late in the game,” he said. “We need to win those games to get over the hump and win the Cardinal Division.”