Viking Brandon Stone drives for the first touchdown of the night. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie Wright-Daniel)
Miami East’s tough play in the trenches and clutch defensive stops earned the Vikings a crucial win over Lehman Catholic. They now control their own destiny to win their first TRC championship.
Casstown, OH – “We knew this was the biggest game of most of our careers,” Miami East quarterback KJ Gustin said.
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It showed.
With the top spot in the TRC standings on the line, Miami East sent a reminder that speed is great, but the toughest team usually wins.
That Viking toughness propelled Miami East to 51 points, and held Lehman Catholic’s offense at bay, relatively speaking, in a 51-32 win at home, giving the Vikings the inside track to the TRC crown.
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This marks Miami East’s first win against Lehman Catholic since the Three Rivers Conference’s inaugural 2021 season, and it couldn’t have come in a better season. The 6-1 Vikings are still perfect in conference play, and now control their own destiny to win their first TRC title.
“They’ve been one of the top teams in our conference the last few years, so it felt good to go out there and execute,” Miami East coach Hunter Folkertsma said.
If they can fend off Milton-Union (2-5), Troy Christian (0-7), and Riverside (3-4) in the weeks to come, they’ll lay claim to the trophy.
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers (6-1, 3-1 TRC) have to recover from their first loss quickly to maintain playoff status. They play Bethel (2-5), Riverside (3-4), and Covington (3-4).
Brandon Stone and Landen Francis celebrating after Brandon scooped up a Lehman fumble and ran it in for six.
East’s offensive and defensive lines dominated the game, tilting the scales of every play in their favor. The O-line gave Gustin enough time to brew coffee in the pocket before finding an open receiver. But more importantly, they paved the way for his rushing attack, which came in handy nearly every time Miami East faced ‘Gotta have it’ play on offense.
Defensively the Vikings dug deep and made a play whenever they needed it most. There’s no way to stop Lehman’s prolific passing attack; you can barely even slow it down. But winning most of the high leverage plays made up for Turner Lachey’s 439 passing yards.
A first-quarter strip sack turned scoop-and-score gave the Vikings an early 14-point lead. And despite bending as far as it could, the defense protected the lead with two interceptions near the red zone, and goalline stand at the 1-yard line.
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Miami East’s defensive line and linebackers displayed toughness and an aggressive mentality better than anyone. They made every throw harder than it has been all season for Lachey. Defensive lineman Owen Collett led the charge, and linebacker Evan Maxson frequently torpedoed off the edge to push Turner off his spot before he could find one of his ultra-talented receivers.
Lehman’s CJ Olding hauled in a pass from quarterback Turner Lachey.
East’s Brandon Stone barreled into the end zone from seven yards out on the opening possession. A few plays later, Maxson came screaming off the edge, sacking Lachey and knocking the ball loose. Stone picked the ball up in stride and carried it right back to the end zone for the 14-0 lead.
“Coach always tells us, ‘be around the ball and good things happen,’” Stone said.
The blitz troubled Lehman all night, which seemed more accustomed to defenses sitting back and trying to cover their bases against the spread offense. Lachey evaded sacks well, but forced to leave his spot, and absent his favorite target after CJ Olding left the game early with an apparent upper body injury, he completed just 23 of his 51 pass attempts.
Olding’s last act of the game was beating a double-team bracket down the sideline for a 38-yard catch, but an awkward landing sidelined him. Sophomore Gus Richard took his place as the primary deep threat, and immediately won a one-on-one matchup for a 32-yard touchdown.
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Miami East fumbled the ensuing kickoff, setting Lehman up to tie it up, but the Viking defense stood tall, making another massive stop, this time via a turnover on downs.
The Cavs’ next drive started in plus territory again thanks to Evan O’Leary’s punt return. But cornerback Owen Ondera bailed East out again by intercepting a pass to the goalline.
Miami East’s Evan Maxson stopped a Cavalier in his tracks.
Lachey, who plays safety on defense, clobbered Miami East’s sophomore receiver Landon Francis, who fumbled the ball away for the fourth turnover in the first quarter. But the wild ride was far from over.
Offenses found rhythm in the second quarter, and points followed. O’Leary on a 25-yard misdirection shovel pass: 14-14. Five-yard fourth down touchdown run by Gustin: 21-14 East. Forty-yard bomb from Lachey to Richard, and a missed two-point conversion: 21-20. Gustin 37 yards downfield to Jack Hamaker: 28-20 East at halftime.
That was the quarter everyone expected to see, two elite offenses trading blows. But which team was tough enough to do it for 48 minutes?
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Early in the second half, it looked like it might be Lehman Catholic. Its run game had just enough success against the blitz to make the Vikings think twice about sending their star linebacker off the edge as a pass rusher.
With an extra beat to hold the ball, Lachey drove the Cavs to East’s 1-yard line, facing 4th & goal. Lehman opted for the QB sneak, but the tougher team won again. Miami East’s defensive front sent Lehman’s offense packing, inexplicably scoreless once again.
War in the sea of green, the Cavalier was surrounded by a ship of Vikings.
“It was just a lack of execution,” Lehman coach Dwane Rowley said. “They beat us up front, we turned the ball over too many times.”
Halfway through the third quarter, O’Leary brought the Cavaliers back to the doorstep with a stellar sideline grab, just one of several on the way to 239 yards on 13 catches. This time, Lachey converted on the ground, but the two-point conversion attempt fell flat, preserving a 28-26 Viking lead.
Under duress for one of the first times all night, Gustin scrambled around, and found the unlikeliest of heroes. Francis, the receiver who turned the ball over earlier in the night, the sophomore who only found his way into the starting lineup due to an injury, was as wide open as wide open can be. Gustin let it fly, and Francis did the rest for a 75-yard touchdown that reinstituted a two-score lead the Vikings wouldn’t again surrender.
Miami East’s KJ Gustin sacking Turner Lachey.
“That wasn’t the design of the play,” Francis said. “It was supposed to just be a little five yard hitch. But I saw the QB scrambling, so I just had to find open space and make a play. It was cool to get that experience of getting in and stepping up.”
From that point, Miami East’s linemen went into boa constrictor mode, squeezing the life out of Lehman Catholic. Collett batted down a screen pass on 3rd & 10, then blocked the resulting punt for a safety.
Gustin, Stone and Garrett Fine drubbed the Lehman defense on the ground behind their surging offensive line.
“We put an emphasis on being able to run the football this week,” Folkertsma said. “We know we can throw it a little bit, but we’ve struggled running the football. We really showed that we can work in the trenches a little bit.”
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Gustin continued to cash in on money downs. On third down you could bet the ball would be in his hands, and double down that he’d make a play.
Stone dealt the death blow, a two-yard run for his third touchdown to extend the lead to 44-26 late in the third quarter.
“The run game was really good,” Stone said. The O-line really stayed on their blocks and drove the pile forward. That made it easy for us running backs.
Coach Hunter Folkertsma having a victory talk with his team after the 51-32 win over the Lehman Cavaliers.
Francis atoned for his fumble with a red zone interception of his own, which set up another Hamaker TD reception to cross the half-century mark.
A late O’Leary touchdown was well deserved by the receiving workhorse, but it was way too little, way too late as Lehman stumbled to a 51-32 final.
With each of their toughest games in the rear view mirror, it’s a climb to 9-1 and beyond. And now both teams know firsthand, toughness will go a long way to get them there.
Lehman’s Gus Richard hauling in one of Turner Lachey’s bombs with Jack Hamaker on his tail.