Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
Jaxon Magnone caught seven passes for 120 yards and a touchdown, while an early blocked punt swung momentum, as the Genoa football team defeated Port Clinton 35-7 in a Division V regional final at Jim Firestone Field on Nov. 7.
The No. 3 seeded Comets (10-1), who also got touchdown runs from Alex Materni and Ryan Routson on fourth-down carries, advance to face No. 2 Wooster Triway on Nov. 14 in Wooster. The winner will face either No. 1 Liberty Center (11-0) or No. 5 Liberty-Benton (12-0) the following week for a berth in the state semifinals.
Myles Mollenhauer completed 14-of-18 pass attempts for 203 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and he tacked on another on the ground, where the Comets outgained Port Clinton 135-77.
Of Genoa’s 135 yards rushing, Materni had a team-best 58 yards on 13 carries, while Logan Routson (38) and Ryan Routson (19) combined for 57 more. In addition to Magnone, Ryan Routson added four catches for 44 yards, including a second-quarter touchdown reception that put Genoa up 14-7.
After Genoa nearly recovered a fumble before forcing a fourth down on the game’s first drive, Tommy Braun broke through the line and blocked the attempt to set the Comets up in solid field position. Less than two minutes later, Materni punched one in on a fourth and one.
Despite Port Clinton’s equalizing score four minutes later, Ryan Routson’s touchdown catch, and a quarterback sneak from Mollenhauer with 4:52 left in the opening half, gave the Comets a 21-7 lead at the break.
Magnone’s highlight-reel catch in the back left corner of the endzone opened the scoring in the third quarter, and a 31-yard catch from Ryan Routson set that play up.
Routson then made it 35-7 with a score on fourth and goal to open the final quarter.
Gavin Grigson led Genoa’s defense with 13 tackles, while Evan Millner had nine. Hunter Bickel chipped in eight, while the trio of Tyler Abbey, Ryan Routson, and Preston Maher each had seven.
The Comets are making their first appearance in the regional semifinal round since 2018, where they knocked off Elyria Catholic 42-41 before falling 43-40 to Liberty Center in the regional final. The victory over Port Clinton also snapped a four-game losing streak in the playoffs for Genoa, who had last defeated North Union in an opening-round matchup in 2021.
Gibsonburg falls to Columbus Grove
Gibsonburg saw its season end with a 28-8 loss to Columbus Grove in a Division VII regional quarterfinal at Clymer Stadium on Nov. 7.
No. 4 Columbus Grove advances to face No. 1 Lima Central Catholic in the regional semifinal round.
Columbus Grove held Gibsonburg to 78 yards of offense in the first half while accumulating a 21-0 lead at the break.
However, Gibsonburg used an extended drive to open the second half to produce their first score, which came on an 18-yard touchdown run from Aiden Morant. A two-point conversion pass from Reece Walby to Chuy Rodriguez pulled the Golden Bears within 13.
A defensive stop gave Gibsonburg the ball back, and they engineered their way inside Columbus Grove’s 10-yard line, but the drive stalled and the hosts forced a turnover on downs. In turn, Columbus Grove drove the length of the field for a touchdown to put the game away.
Columbus Grove also had two interceptions to hurt Gibsonburg’s offense.
Grant Smith led Gibsonburg (8-4) with 119 yards rushing on 19 carries, while Morant added 55 yards on seven carries. Defensively, Smith added a team-high 10 tackles, while Rodriguez (9), Luke Foster (7), and Morant (6) weren’t far behind. Foster had the lone tackle for loss.
Liberty Center too much for Oak Harbor
Oak Harbor also saw the end to its season in a 56-5 Division V regional quarterfinal loss at Rex Lingruen Stadium to top-ranked Liberty Center, a program that is looking for its fourth-straight trip to the state semifinals.
Liberty Center (11-0) will face undefeated Liberty-Benton (12-0) in the regional semifinal round.
The Ohio football powerhouse scored 28 points in the first quarter before blocking a punt for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter for its 35-0 lead. Oak Harbor got on the board with a 24-yard touchdown strike from Breydan Porath to Cooper Schultz just before the end of the half. The score capped a seven-play, 71-yard drive.
The Tigers scored all of the 21 points in the second half, however. Garrison Kruse had just six carries for Liberty Center, but he produced four touchdowns along with 204 yards. Thomas Mohler added 72 yards rushing.
The Rockets (9-3) got 83 yards on the ground over 20 carries from Blake Nickel. Porath finished 17-of-28 passing for 151 yards. Schultz had 85 of the team’s receiving yards on nine receptions.
Liberty Center outgained Oak Harbor 433-271, including a 381-120 advantage in rushing yards.
