Arrows shut out Northridge, 20-0

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DAYTON — The Preble Shawnee Arrows increased their chances for a possible football playoff berth in the Division V brackets, beating Southwestern Buckeye League foe Northridge 20-0 on Friday, Oct. 21.

The Arrows scored two touchdowns in the first quarter, the first one set up by a long punt return by Austin Moore. A few plays later, Shawnee scored on a Luke Lovely run. After a Northridge punt, the Arrows scored again on a passing touchdown from Kevin Ketring to Moore.

The third touchdown came in the second quarter, allowing Shawnee to take the 20 point lead on a run by Eli Gibson.

Neither team managed to score in the second half of the game. Ketring threw an interception in the second half, lofting the ball high for the end zone but putting too much air under it. Both teams were able to move the ball on each other throughout the rest of the game.

Northridge began to blitz more and caused several miscues on PS offense.

“We just didn’t adjust in the second half offensively,” said PS coach Matt Hopkins. “Our defense has been great all year long. We aren’t doing anything crazy — our guys are comfortable with the system and they play so fast. We held their top runner, but we gave up a bit against the pass.”

It was the fourth shutout of the season for the Arrows.

“Fourth shut out of the year, should have been five,” Hopkins said. “We’ve played very well for the most part. We gave up a few games and let teams score too much on us because the offense put the defense in a bad spot. We only have three down linemen in our formation and they do such a great job of absorbing blocks. I don’t ask the defense a whole lot and they do the job.”

Ketring had 10 completions out of 26 attempts for 128 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Gibson led the rushing attack with 128 yards on 19 carries and a score. Lovely had 16 rushes for 77 yards and a touchdown. Ketring added 33 yards on 10 carries. Moore was the main target for Ketring, hauling down six passes for 78 yards and a touchdown reception.

Defensively, Lovely led the Arrows with 14 tackles and one sack. Colton Pugh was in on 12 tackles. John Powers and Gunner Crank had nine and eight stops respectively, while combining for one sack. Alex Steel was in on seven tackles, while Ketring and Gunner Edwards each had six tackles. Kanyon Schall had one sack, while Austin Tutt made three interceptions. Devin Tutt also had one interception.

Preble Shawnee will play its last regular season game on Friday, Oct. 28, on the road against Monroe. Shawnee is now 6-3, and is fourth in the Buckeye Division of the SWBL, with a 3-3 record.

“We need some things to fall in place for us,” said Hopkins. “Monroe has had our number for a long time. They played some pretty strong teams. I can’t remember the last time we won against them. Our guys understand this. We are playing for history here. We could tie for the best record and a playoff shot in 51 years. We are the sixth in history to have six wins, so we have to do it”

“People think of us as a basketball school and nobody thinks much of us in football,” Hopkins said. “This senior class has done such a great job of gaining some recognition for the program. But we have to win no matter what.”

By Oliver Sanders

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Reach Oliver Sanders at 937-683-4062 or on Twitter @osanders_RH

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