Chaney routs Niles, waits to qualify

The Cowboys needed Kenston and Bedford to lose this weekend.
By DOUG CHAPIN
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
NILES -- Quarterback Justin Hood scored four touchdowns, and the Chaney Cowboys did their part. Now they must wait to see if they qualify for the Ohio high school Division II football playoffs.
Hood's 68-yard punt return for a touchdown less than three minutes into the game sparked Chaney to a 33-0 rout of Niles on Friday night at a rain-soaked Bo Rein Memorial Stadium.
The Cowboys came into the game in seventh place in the Region 5 computer rankings. Chaney, though, needs some help to hold onto one of the eight playoff spots.
"We talked all week about living to fight another day," Chaney coach Ron Berdis said. "We gave ourselves an opportunity to continue our season."
According to Berdis, the Cowboys need Kenston and Bedford to lose the final weekend of the season.
"All we can do now is wait," Berdis said. "If we don't make it, we finish 7-3 and tie a school record for the most wins over a three-year period."
Touchdowns
Hood scored his first three touchdowns in the first period. After the punt return, he capped a four-play, 69-yard drive with a 30-yard scoring run with 3:19 left in the quarter. Hood bootlegged to the right, almost slipped down, then slipped two tackles on the way to the end zone.
Chaney then blocked a Niles punt and Ed Molina recovered at the Red Dragons' 4-yard line. Hood scored around left end on the next play, and the Cowboys led 21-0 with 1:19 left in the period.
Niles held Chaney's star running back, Ed McElroy, in check for the most part except for a 75-yard touchdown burst late in the third quarter. McElroy finished with 133 yards on 16 carries, and Hood added 65 yards from scrimmage on six carries. He capped off the game's scoring with a 1-yard sneak with 4:58 to play.
"Justin's been our number two punch all season long," Berdis said. "He really responded tonight under the conditions. The punt return was huge. At the time we were thinking that considering the conditions, a 7-0 lead might be enough. Then when we got the big lead, it just took them out of their game."
Coach resigning
The Red Dragons, who finish 1-9, played for the final time under coach Bill Bohren, who has resigned. Niles won two Metro Athletic Conference titles, qualified for the playoffs twice and set a school single-season record for victories (11 in 2000) during his tenure.
"I've enjoyed my seven years here," Bohren said. "Niles is a good football town, and we had six real good years. This year we just weren't a very good team.
"In the last half of last year, we thought we had turned the corner for this season with seven or eight guys coming back," he said. "But we started off on the wrong foot against Girard and never got going."