By Cort Reynolds
ADA–The Bluffton High School football team dominated local rival Ada in their last Northwest Conference matchup to spoil the Bulldog Homecoming on a warm Friday night, September 22.
The big-play Pirate offense scored two early touchdowns, and Bluffton was in control throughout after leading 27-0 at halftime.
Junior back Landen Worcester authored four TD runs and racked up 211 yards rushing to lead the potent Pirate ground attack.
Bluffton improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the NWC with the lopsided win.
Ada fell to 2-4 overall and 0-3 in the NWC after suffering their third consecutive defeat.
The Pirates took over at their own 12 on the first possession after forcing a punt. On the second play, Worcester burst into the clear and raced down the right sideline. He was tripped up on the Ada four by Kaine Fisher but managed to lunge into the end zone to cap an 83-yard TD run.
Kyle Basil’s point after kick made it 7-0 with 7:24 left in the first period.
The Bluffton defense forced a punt and the visitors took over at their own 34. A 17-yard aerial to Hayden Dearth converted a key first down. On second and eight, the 6-3 Dearth hauled in another pass from Garret Bogart for nine yards.
A roll-out pass by Garret Bogart to Gavin Bogart netted 16 yards to the Ada 13. On fourth down at the one, Worcester burrowed into paydirt off right tackle to extend the lead to 13-0. The Basil PAT made it 14-0 with 26 seconds left in the opening stanza.
The scoring drive took 4:59 and covered 66 yards in 12 plays.
Tough junior Bulldog quarterback Levi Green was sidelined in the first half with a sprained right ankle and missed the rest of the game.
Green reversed field and gained six yards on a run to end the first period. Freshman Blake Zoladz replaced him after the ankle injury and Ada had to punt again. This time the Pirates blocked the kick and recovered at the Bulldog 18 with 10:28 left in the half.
On second down, speedy Griffin Stackhouse scampered 18 yards around left end to paydirt to stretch the lead to 20-0. Basil’s third PAT made it 21-0 at the 10:15 mark.
Ada’s next drive was aided by a roughing the kicker penalty as Max Puerto punted. Jalee Bolden ran for nine yards, followed by a nine-yard pass from Zoladz to Kayleb Hickman for a first down.
Bolden broke a few tackles for a five-yard run. But the drive stalled and Ada had to punt again.
Bluffton took over at their own 43 and Stackhouse ripped off a 14-yard run to the right side. A 20-yard pass to Quinn Eachus set up Worcester’s 22-yard run as he rumbled untouched to the right corner of the end zone with 1:22 left.
The extra point missed to keep the score 27-0 at halftime.
Stackhouse’s long kickoff return past midfield to open half two was negated by an illegal block. The Pirates started at their own 21.
Worcester weaved through a left side hole and sprinted 79 yards to paydirt on the first play to make it 34-0 after the PAT kick, which squeaked through despite being partially blocked.
The long TD run started the running clock rule since the margin exceeded 30 points. Ada started on its own two after the ensuing kickoff.
A fumbled Bulldog snap was recovered by Garret Bogart in the end zone for a Pirate touchdown with 9:43 left in the third period. The Basil extra point made it 41-0.
Junior lineman Brody Sommers broke through the line for a four-yard tackle for loss on the next Ada possession. Zoladz rolled right and completed a nice pass to Gavin Oldfield for a 14-yard gain at the sideline.
Yet two penalties and a fumble stymied the Bulldog drive. On third and 26, a good long Zoladz spiral was dropped.
After an Ada punt Dearth caught a short Bogart pass, broke one tackle and sprinted down the right sideline 65 yards to score with 51 seconds left in the third quarter.
The Basil extra point made it 48-0.
Time expired in the third period on the kickoff. Sommers recorded a nine-yard sack to help thwart the next Bulldog possession.
Stackhouse rambled 36 yards to the Ada five on the next Pirate drive. After a holding penalty, on fourth and 15 Basil missed a 32-yard field goal try with 3:03 remaining.
1 2 3 4 F
Ada 0 0 0 0 0
Blf 14 13 21 0 48
Notes and stats
Bluffton rolled up 300 yards rushing on 21 carries, while limiting Ada to just 59 yards on 34 runs.
The Pirates passed for 142 yards to compile 442 yards on total offense in 29 snaps. The Bulldogs added 26 yards passing for a mere 85 yards in total offense on 39 plays vs. the stingy Pirate defense.
Bluffton averaged a whopping 15.2 yards per play, while the Bulldogs averaged just 2.2 yards per snap. The Pirates compiled 16 first downs compared to six by Ada.
Garret Bogart completed five of seven aerials for 142 yards and one score.
Tayte Giesige relieved Bogart and was 0-1 passing.
Dearth snagged three passes for 106 yards and a TD. Eachus made a 20-yard catch, and Gavin Bogart added a 16-yard reception.
Worcester rushed for 211 yards on just 10 carries (21.1 avg.) with four scores. Stackhouse netted 81 yards and a TD on six runs.
Braeden Jordan added 35 yards on five punt returns.
Green completed his only passes before getting hurt. He also rushed for 21 yards on four carries. Zoladz completed three of four aerials for 23 yards in relief.
Bolden rushed for 58 yards on 17 carries (3.4 avg.). Liam Vieira added five yards on three runs.
Hickman grabbed two receptions, and Oldfield added a 14-yard catch.
Bluffton did not punt the entire game.
The Bulldogs committed six penalties for 40 yards, while the Pirates were flagged six times for 75 yards.
Ada converted two of 10 third down tries, while the visitors were successful on two of five third-down attempts. Bluffton was 1-1 on fourth down, while the Bulldogs went 1-8 on fourth.
The Pirates have outscored their opponents by a dominating total of 279-28 this season. The Bulldogs have been outscored by their foes, 238-125.
The Bulldogs won in time of possession, 24:10 to 10:54. Ada committed one costly turnover on two fumbles, while the Pirates made no miscues.
In the unofficial Div. VI, Region 22 computer rankings Bluffton is first. Western Reserve (5-0) was second pending the outcome of their game at Norwalk St. Paul Friday.
The Pirates host fellow league unbeaten Crestview (5-1, 3-0 NWC) next Friday in a key NWC battle. The Knights whipped winless Delphos Jefferson 52-6 Friday.
