Hillsboro wins 2nd consecutive Rotary Bowl
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
GREENFIELD — The Hillsboro Indians end the 2017 season just like they did the season before — but not as pressure-packed as the previous season. The Indians used their rushing attack and a stout defensive effort to gain not just their seventh win of the season, but their second consecutive Rotary Bowl victory over rival McClain.
By controlling all facets of the game, the Indians won by a 61-13 score, en route to finalizing their first winning season in eight years, and in doing so cementing their 21st Rotary Bowl win since the trophy was presented in 1985.
Last season, the Indians won a thriller by a 43-40 score at Richards Memorial Field, but this year the Indians won on the road at McClain Field, taking a commanding 30-point lead at the half by a 36-6 score. For the game, the Indians finished with 330 yards of offense, while McClain had 117 yards.
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More important than the win or loss of the 2017 edition of the Rotary Bowl, everyone in attendance honored McClain public address announcer, former coach and all-around McClain supporter John Wend, who was unable to be in attendance due to serious medical issues. There was a moment before the game to honor Wend, and for the entire first quarter the mic was silenced for Wend, as there was no announcing over the PA speakers.
Following the moment to honor Wend, the kickoff was held and the Rotary Bowl was under way, quickly going in favor of the Indians, who forced an early turnover on the second play of the game, as a backward pass was recovered by Hillsboro.
The Indians gained possession of the ball on the McClain 25-yard line, and following a 16-yard run by quarterback Mason Swayne (who totaled 47 yards on eight carries for a season total of 721 yards), the Indians later scored on a third-and-goal play when Deon Burns barreled his way through the defense of the Tigers for a two-yard touchdown with 9:30 left in the opening quarter. The Indians used a pitch from Mason Lewis to Josh Keets for a two-point conversion and a 8-0 lead.
Hillsboro’s defense gained a second turnover in the first quarter when Reece Bloomfield intercepted a pass in the middle of the action, having a return of around 20 yards to the 50-yard line.
Though the Indians did score on the ensuing drive, this time the Indians were a bit more methodical with their drive, taking 10 plays — all runs — including one run of 25 yards by Keets, plus another run of 13 yards by the junior running back. The drive also had an eight-yard run by Swayne and ended with a one-yard rush for a touchdown by Burns, on a fourth-and-1 play for six more points with 56 seconds left in the first quarter and his second TD of the game. Lewis caught a pass in the end zone for the two-point conversion and the 16-0 lead.
McClain (0-5, 0-10) was forced to punt following a three-and-out, and the Indians scored on their third straight possession, compiling a four-play drive with plays of a 23-yard rush by Swayne, 14-yard run from Keets and a 15-yard rush from Keets to eventually set up the touchdown.
That rush was for eight yards by Keets, and his trip to the end zone, plus a two-point conversion pass from Swayne to Haines, left the Indians ahead, 24-0 with 9:34 left in the second quarter. Keets finished the game with 10 carries for 172 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 17.2 yards per carry. For the season, Keets totaled 1,163 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Even with the Indians controlling the tempo for the game, the Tigers didn’t back down on their home field and continued to battle their Highland County rival. This time, the Tigers didn’t leave the field without points; rather, they built a 14-play, 71-yard drive that mostly consisted of rushed by senior Darius White. White led MHS with 19 carries for 46 yards.
There were also plays from Tanner Tite (a 7-yard run) and 28 yards of rushing by White on nine carries. The touchdown came on a fourth-and-34 play where senior quarterback Justin Osborne found Jordan Pearson on an eight-yard pass with 3:07 left in the second. The two-point conversion failed on a high snap, leaving the score in favor of the Indians at 24-6.
The Indians answered that score on the ensuing kickoff, with Keets taking the ball on an 85-yard trip to the end zone for six more points with 2:48 still on the second quarter clock. The PAT was blocked, giving the Indians a 30-6 lead.
On the second play of the next drive, the Tigers fumbled, which was recovered by Hillsboro on the 14-yard line of McClain. Four plays later, on second-and-goal from the two-yard line, Mason Stanley scored a touchdown. Before the touchdown run, Stanley had rushes of six yards and 11 yards. The PAT was no good, but gave the Indians a 30-point lead with 1:44 left before halftime at 36-6.
For the first half, the Indians totaled 175 yards and the Tigers gained 104 yards of offense.
McClain came out of the gate with a fury in them, scoring on the second play of the third when junior Patrick Fout initially raced for a gain of 46 yards. Fout scored on the next play on a run of 14 yards with 10:50 left in the third quarter. The PAT was good, leaving the score at 36-13 in favor of the Indians. Fout finished with 39 yards rushing on three carries.
For the remainder of the game, though, all of the scoring belonged to the Indians.
That began on the first play of the third quarter for HHS, with Keets rushing for a 39-yard touchdown with 10:35 on the scoreboard in the third quarter. The two-point conversion failed, but the Indians still led by a 42-13 score.
Two plays later, the Indians intercepted a pass from the Tigers, when Mark Gallimore intercepted the pass at the 9:37 mark of the third. The Indians took advantage of the turnovers eventually reaching the end zone on a 37-yard run by Keets — his fourth touchdown of the game — for a 48-13 lead with 7:11 left in the quarter.
HHS added another score following a turnover on downs by the Tigers, taking five plays to reach pay dirt. The drive consisted of a six-yard rush by Devon Gallimore, a 13-yard run by Clifford Coday and a two-yard rush from Stanley, followed by a 22-yard rush from Lewis. Lewis finished the drive with a 14-yard touchdown run with 11:40 left in the fourth quarter. The PAT was good by Haines, giving the Indians a 55-13 lead.
Hillsboro’s final score of the game and the season — a season that consisted of 416 points — came with 7:12 left in the fourth quarter. The drive began with a 9-yard run by Logan Hester, followed by two plays with a touchdown run by Coday for 19 yards with 7:12 left in regulation, giving the Tribe their 61st point on the game.
With the 60-plus point effort in Week 10, this was the fourth time this season the Indians scored at least 50 points and the second straight week Hillsboro scored over 60 points. Last week in the win over Miami Trace, Hillsboro scored a season-high 76 points.
In Week 10, the Indians finished with 16 first downs, while McClain totaled 11.
By controlling all facets of the game, the Indians won by a 61-13 score, en route to finalizing their first winning season in eight years, and in doing so cementing their 21st Rotary Bowl win since the trophy was presented in 1985.
Last season, the Indians won a thriller by a 43-40 score at Richards Memorial Field, but this year the Indians won on the road at McClain Field, taking a commanding 30-point lead at the half by a 36-6 score. For the game, the Indians finished with 330 yards of offense, while McClain had 117 yards.
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More important than the win or loss of the 2017 edition of the Rotary Bowl, everyone in attendance honored McClain public address announcer, former coach and all-around McClain supporter John Wend, who was unable to be in attendance due to serious medical issues. There was a moment before the game to honor Wend, and for the entire first quarter the mic was silenced for Wend, as there was no announcing over the PA speakers.
Following the moment to honor Wend, the kickoff was held and the Rotary Bowl was under way, quickly going in favor of the Indians, who forced an early turnover on the second play of the game, as a backward pass was recovered by Hillsboro.
The Indians gained possession of the ball on the McClain 25-yard line, and following a 16-yard run by quarterback Mason Swayne (who totaled 47 yards on eight carries for a season total of 721 yards), the Indians later scored on a third-and-goal play when Deon Burns barreled his way through the defense of the Tigers for a two-yard touchdown with 9:30 left in the opening quarter. The Indians used a pitch from Mason Lewis to Josh Keets for a two-point conversion and a 8-0 lead.
Hillsboro’s defense gained a second turnover in the first quarter when Reece Bloomfield intercepted a pass in the middle of the action, having a return of around 20 yards to the 50-yard line.
Though the Indians did score on the ensuing drive, this time the Indians were a bit more methodical with their drive, taking 10 plays — all runs — including one run of 25 yards by Keets, plus another run of 13 yards by the junior running back. The drive also had an eight-yard run by Swayne and ended with a one-yard rush for a touchdown by Burns, on a fourth-and-1 play for six more points with 56 seconds left in the first quarter and his second TD of the game. Lewis caught a pass in the end zone for the two-point conversion and the 16-0 lead.
McClain (0-5, 0-10) was forced to punt following a three-and-out, and the Indians scored on their third straight possession, compiling a four-play drive with plays of a 23-yard rush by Swayne, 14-yard run from Keets and a 15-yard rush from Keets to eventually set up the touchdown.
That rush was for eight yards by Keets, and his trip to the end zone, plus a two-point conversion pass from Swayne to Haines, left the Indians ahead, 24-0 with 9:34 left in the second quarter. Keets finished the game with 10 carries for 172 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 17.2 yards per carry. For the season, Keets totaled 1,163 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Even with the Indians controlling the tempo for the game, the Tigers didn’t back down on their home field and continued to battle their Highland County rival. This time, the Tigers didn’t leave the field without points; rather, they built a 14-play, 71-yard drive that mostly consisted of rushed by senior Darius White. White led MHS with 19 carries for 46 yards.
There were also plays from Tanner Tite (a 7-yard run) and 28 yards of rushing by White on nine carries. The touchdown came on a fourth-and-34 play where senior quarterback Justin Osborne found Jordan Pearson on an eight-yard pass with 3:07 left in the second. The two-point conversion failed on a high snap, leaving the score in favor of the Indians at 24-6.
The Indians answered that score on the ensuing kickoff, with Keets taking the ball on an 85-yard trip to the end zone for six more points with 2:48 still on the second quarter clock. The PAT was blocked, giving the Indians a 30-6 lead.
On the second play of the next drive, the Tigers fumbled, which was recovered by Hillsboro on the 14-yard line of McClain. Four plays later, on second-and-goal from the two-yard line, Mason Stanley scored a touchdown. Before the touchdown run, Stanley had rushes of six yards and 11 yards. The PAT was no good, but gave the Indians a 30-point lead with 1:44 left before halftime at 36-6.
For the first half, the Indians totaled 175 yards and the Tigers gained 104 yards of offense.
McClain came out of the gate with a fury in them, scoring on the second play of the third when junior Patrick Fout initially raced for a gain of 46 yards. Fout scored on the next play on a run of 14 yards with 10:50 left in the third quarter. The PAT was good, leaving the score at 36-13 in favor of the Indians. Fout finished with 39 yards rushing on three carries.
For the remainder of the game, though, all of the scoring belonged to the Indians.
That began on the first play of the third quarter for HHS, with Keets rushing for a 39-yard touchdown with 10:35 on the scoreboard in the third quarter. The two-point conversion failed, but the Indians still led by a 42-13 score.
Two plays later, the Indians intercepted a pass from the Tigers, when Mark Gallimore intercepted the pass at the 9:37 mark of the third. The Indians took advantage of the turnovers eventually reaching the end zone on a 37-yard run by Keets — his fourth touchdown of the game — for a 48-13 lead with 7:11 left in the quarter.
HHS added another score following a turnover on downs by the Tigers, taking five plays to reach pay dirt. The drive consisted of a six-yard rush by Devon Gallimore, a 13-yard run by Clifford Coday and a two-yard rush from Stanley, followed by a 22-yard rush from Lewis. Lewis finished the drive with a 14-yard touchdown run with 11:40 left in the fourth quarter. The PAT was good by Haines, giving the Indians a 55-13 lead.
Hillsboro’s final score of the game and the season — a season that consisted of 416 points — came with 7:12 left in the fourth quarter. The drive began with a 9-yard run by Logan Hester, followed by two plays with a touchdown run by Coday for 19 yards with 7:12 left in regulation, giving the Tribe their 61st point on the game.
With the 60-plus point effort in Week 10, this was the fourth time this season the Indians scored at least 50 points and the second straight week Hillsboro scored over 60 points. Last week in the win over Miami Trace, Hillsboro scored a season-high 76 points.
In Week 10, the Indians finished with 16 first downs, while McClain totaled 11.