Glenville’s coach said that Boardman had the
strongest line his team faced this season.

By JOE SCALZO

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

TWINSBURG — The scorebook doesn’t lie, but it sure can mislead.

Twice on Saturday night, the Boardman High football team had a first-and-goal inside Cleveland Glenville’s 8-yard line. Twice, the Spartans failed to score.

It proved fatal.

“You’ve gotta score when you get inside the 10-yard-line,” said Boardman coach D.J. Ogilvie following his team’s 21-3 loss to Cleveland Glenville in a Division I regional semifinal Saturday night in Twinsburg. “At this level, you’ve gotta be perfect.”

The Spartans’ special teams played a big role in the loss. Senior kicker Phil Curl was 1-for-3 on field goals, the Spartans gave up an 81-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on the first play of the second half and Boardman struggled all night with its punting.

“That’s absolutely correct,” said Ogilvie. “Our special teams did not play very well.”

Still, Boardman’s defense kept the Spartans in the game. The Spartans’ defensive line, led by Miami (Ohio) recruit Evan Klepec, wreaked havoc most of the night, stuffing Glenville’s explosive offense, particularly senior running back Shannon Frieson.

Senior defensive lineman Mike Sypert was outstanding, collecting a sack and two more tackles for a loss. Senior Jordan Paradise added two more tackles for losses and senior linebacker Ryan Holmes also had two stops behind the line of scrimmage.

Glenville finished with 136 yards rushing, but most of those came late in the fourth quarter when the game was no longer in doubt. The Tarblooders led just 7-3 at halftime, when they had 31 yards rushing. Boardman, meanwhile, had 80 yards rushing and seemed to be controlling the line of scrimmage — except in the red zone.

“They’re the strongest team up front, offensively and defensively, that we’ve seen all year,” Glenville coach Ted Ginn said of Boardman. “If we didn’t get a break here or there, it might have been a different outcome.”

Glenville’s first big break came early in the second quarter when Boardman quarterback Nick Tuminello fumbled and Glenville took over at the Boardman 38. Seven plays later, Frieson exploded through the center of Boardman’s line for a 12-yard TD.

Boardman responded with a 10-play, 43-yard drive that stalled at Glenville’s 9 just before halftime. Curl, who had made a 30-yarder in the first quarter, missed from 26 yards out.

After DeRon Hawkins returned the opening kickoff of the second half, Boardman again drove deep in Glenville territory, earning a first-and-goal at the Tarblooders’ 3. Boardman junior Damien Jarrett appeared to score on the next play, but the Spartans lined up incorrectly and the touchdown was waived off. Three more plays netted nothing and Curl missed a 28-yarder.

“We made sure to put in fresh guys down near the goal line,” said Ginn. “We knew we needed to play tough.”

Frieson put the game away late in the fourth, carrying five straight times for 64 yards, capping the drive with a 28-yard TD with 4:16 left. Frieson finished with 119 yards on 25 carries for Glenville (10-2), which will play Mentor next week.

Jarrett had 78 yards on 19 carries to lead Boardman (8-4), which last week won its first playoff game since 1999. Jarrett played a big role in that resurgence, rushing for more than 1,000 yards while filling in for injured running back Tyler Amendola.

“No one expected us to do this well,” said Ogilvie, who is 12-30 at Boardman. “We kept fighting.

“We proved a lot of doubters wrong.”

scalzo@vindy.com