Bluffton visits Grove in the regular season finale October 20

By Cort Reynolds

The Bluffton High School football team shut out visiting Crestview 21-0 in a Northwest Conference showdown Friday night, September 29, at Harmon Field. (Scoreboard HERE.)

The stingy Pirate defense posted its fifth consecutive shutout to pave the way for unbeaten Bluffton. The Pirates did not allow a point in the month of September.

Bluffton improved to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the NWC with the lopsided win. The Pirates are tied for the conference lead with Columbus Grove.

Crestview fell to 5-2 and 3-1 in NWC play with the defeat, knotted with Leipsic for third in the league standings.

The teams played to a scoreless tie for most of the first half. The Pirates then scored on a 29-yard pass from Garret Bogart to Braeden Jordan with 1:19 left in the second period.

Kyle Basil’s extra point kick made it 7-0 at intermission.

With 8:19 to go in the third quarter, Bluffton doubled its lead. Bogart connected with Griffin Stackhouse on an 11-yard TD aerial. 

Basil’s second PAT boot stretched the lead to 14-0.

Late in the fourth stanza, junior back Landen Worcester plunged into the end zone from one yard out to put the finishing touch on the win. 

The Basil extra point with 3:52 remaining provided the final margin of 21-0.

Notes and stats

Bluffton netted 216 yards rushing on 44 carries (4.9 avg. per rush), while Crestview netted just 53 yards on 28 runs (1.9 per carry).

The Pirates passed for 85 yards to compile 301 yards on total offense on 52 snaps. The Knights added 175 yards passing for 228 total yards on 61 plays vs. the Pirate defense.

Bluffton averaged 5.8 yards per play, while the Knights averaged just 3.7 yards per snap.  The Pirates compiled 18 first downs compared to 12 chain-movers by Crestview.

Garret Bogart completed five of eight aerials for 85 yards and a pair of TDs. He added 32 yards rushing on five runs, with a long of 24.

Workhorse Worcester rushed for 193 yards on 32 carries (6.0 avg.) with one score. His longest run was 41 yards.

Braeden Jordan grabbed two receptions for 39 yards and one TD. Hayden Dearth snared two aerials for 35 yards. Griffin Stackhouse made one catch for 11 yards and a TD, and added a 36-yard kickoff return.

The Knights completed 17 of 33 aerials, with a long gain of 38.

Brody Anderson led the Pirate defense with 10 tackles and one interception. Worcester contributed eight stops and one tackle for loss. Gavin Bogart picked off a pass as well.

The Knights committed three penalties for 10 yards, while the Pirates were flagged five times for 31 yards.

Crestview converted five of 16 third down tries, while the Pirates were successful on five of nine third-down attempts. Bluffton was 0-0 on fourth down, while the Knights were 0-1 on fourth.

The Pirates have outscored their opponents by a commanding margin of 300-28 this season.  

The Knights committed two turnovers on a pair of interceptions, while the Pirates committed one miscue with a lost fumble. 

In the unofficial Div. VI, Region 22 computer rankings Bluffton remained in first after the win.  

The Pirates entertain Leipsic (6-1, 3-1 NWC) next Friday in a key NWC battle. The Vikings lost 28-14 to visiting Columbus Grove in week seven to suffer their first loss of the season.

Leipsic fell one spot to seventh in the Div. VII, region 26 rankings after their loss to the 5-2 CG Bulldogs. Crestview is 13th in region 26 after the shutout loss to the Pirates.

Bluffton visits Grove in the regular season finale October 20 in what is shaping up as a potential championship game showdown.