Raiders ramble to 35-21 victory

South Range's squib kick on the second half kickoff helped the Raiders rally.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
NORTH LIMA -- After South Range out-gained Independence High by more than 170 yards in the first half, Raiders' coach Dan Yeagley admitted there was frustration in the locker room because of the 21-21 halftime score.
The Blue Devils, from Cuyahoga County, used a fumble recovery and long kickoff return to help answer the three long touchdown drives by the Raiders.
The frustration of that kickoff return, a 63-yard run by Ross Novak, inspired a strategy change that propelled the Raiders to a 35-21 football playoff victory Friday at South Range High School.
Yeagley ordered Pat Majernik to squib the second-half kickoff, stunning the Blue Devils' return unit. As one of the up-men tried to corral the ball, South Range's Matt Novak hit him, jarring the ball loose. Tony Darkadakis pounced on the ball at the Independence 36.
"That was the happiest thing I've ever seen in my life," Novak said of the fumbled ball.
Although the Raiders were stopped on the Independence 7, they forced the Blue Devils to punt from their end zone, triggering a 34-yard scoring march.
Go-ahead points
On fourth-and-goal from the 2, Maxwell hit tailback Ben Johnston in the end zone for the go-ahead points with 2 minutes, 33 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
Darkadakis said the free ball was a surprise. "We were just trying to keep it away from [Ross Novak] -- he was beating us all night."
Quarterback Ryan Maxwell said, "Oh, the lift was big. That was the turning point of the game. We finally had decent field position."
Yeagley said, "We couldn't kick it to them -- that was a no-brainer. It wasn't that our kids were missing tackles -- Novak did a super job finding the seam."
South Range stopped the Devils at the Raiders' 30, and then Novak rambled 27 yards. Six runs later, Darkadakis scored from 4 yards out for a 14-point cushion.
Warren JFK next
After compiling 558 yards on offense against Independence, the Inter-County League champion Raiders (11-0) will meet Warren Kennedy (9-2) next Friday in a Division V, Region 17 semifinal at a site to be announced Sunday.
In the fourth quarter, South Range out-gained Independence, 185-20, with Darkadakis getting 140 of them on 12 carries.
"We work hard to stay in shape, so we felt that if it was a close game, that would be our edge," Yeagley said.
Turnovers late in the game cost the Raiders two scoring chances. Michael Zuber stole a Maxwell pass in the end zone to stop one drive and Darkadakis fumbled at the 1 in the final two minutes.
The Raiders defense limited Independence tailback Mark Guinto, who had 1,557 yards in the first 10 games, to 81 yards on 26 carries.
Maxwell sparkles
"What a great win," said Maxwell, who completed 7-of-16 passes for 137 yards. More importantly, he ran for 141 yards on 15 carries.
"All they had was big plays and awesome field position," Maxwell said. "We [had to go] three-fourths of the field and they were only going a fourth."
The Raiders opened the game with a 71-yard march, capped by Johnston's 1-yard touchdown run.
On their second possession, the Blue Devils recovered a fumble at the South Range 42. Eight plays later, quarterback Russell Schroeder tied the game with a 1-yard run.
The Raiders' second score came after a 10-play, 75-yard drive, with Maxwell scoring on a 7-yard run.
TD on screen pass
The Blue Devils' only long scoring drive followed as they went 65 yards on 10 plays. Under fire, quarterback Patrick Bugaj tossed a screen to Ross Novak who shed four tacklers for a 36-yard touchdown.
A minute later, Maxwell raced 50 yards for a 21-14 lead. The Blue Devils' Novak answered with kick return to the South Range 17 that was followed by Guinto's touchdown run.
williams@vindy.com