Liberty pulls away in fourth to advance

By PHILIP K. MURPHY
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
LIBERTY -- The Liberty High football team scored 22 fourth-quarter points to pull away from a stubborn Orrville team and register a 36-19 win in a Division IV, Region 13 playoff contest Friday at Leopard Stadium.
Liberty's victory marked the first playoff win in the school's history.
The Leopards' quick-strike offense opened the scoring just two minutes into the contest as Marcellus Bowman's 33-yard run capped a four-play drive that met little resistance from the Orrville defense.
Red Rider momentum
Threatening to score on its next possession, Liberty (10-1) looked set to rout the Red Riders until an end zone interception by Damon Robinson thwarted the drive and began a surprising change in momentum that saw Orrville score 19 unanswered points.
Led by senior quarterback Tim Hiller, who threw for 203 yards while completing 19 of 30 passes, the Red Riders seized control of the game with an impressive air attack that featured two Hiller TD strikes late in the second quarter.
A 3-yard touchdown run by Orrville's Tay Tillison just after halftime gave the Red Riders a 19-7 lead.
Down by 12 points, Liberty unleashed the big-play offense that has been the Leopards' calling card all season long. Junior running back Chris Hardin ripped off a 43-yard run to set up a 1-yard score by quarterback Brian Jones that cut Orrville's lead to 19-14.
After a short Hardin TD run and successful two-point conversion gave Liberty its first second-half lead at 22-19, Bowman produced his second long touchdown run of the game, this time scoring from 51 yards out with just over five minutes left in the game.
Hardin provided an exclamation point with a scintillating 45-yard run that closed the scoring with 1:42 left.
Rushing total
Hardin, who finished with 186 yards on 22 carries, gave credit to his blockers.
"The offensive line did a great job," he said. "They opened some wide holes, especially for the draw play. It took us a while to get into it, but we finally got it together."
Liberty coach Jeff Whittaker, who saw his Leopards advance to a second-round game with the Ursuline Irish, acknowledged his team's big-play capability and praised the players' "team-first" attitude.
"We have some playmakers on this team, and we spread the ball around," he said. "Our guys are unselfish. They don't care about their statistics. They're only worried about winning, and they don't mind sharing the ball."