The Raiders rolled past Springfield, 34-7, for a 7-0 league mark.

By GREG GULAS

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

NORTH LIMA — For the third straight year and the fifth time in the last seven seasons, the South Range Raiders can call themselves league champions.

Charlie Lengyel rushed for 84 yards, Jack Dawson added 69 and the Raiders piled up 380 yards of total offense (327 coming on the ground) as South Range defeated rival Springfield, 34-7 in an Inter Tri-County League, Tier One matchup Friday night at Memorial Field.

The win capped a perfect 10-0 season and gave South Range an unblemished 7-0 league mark, marking the 32nd consecutive regular season victory for the Raiders under coach Dan Yeagley.

The Tigers finished 2-8 (2-5 ITCL) under first-year coach Sean Guerriero.

“Springfield’s record is really deceiving because they have been in every game this year. They are a well-coached team; a team that never gives up and one that fights you right to the end. They did exactly that tonight,” Yeagley noted.

“This rivalry kicks the emotions up a notch on both sides. We have some bumps and bruises that we’ll need to evaluate and we’ll do so starting this weekend with each and every position,” he added.

The Raiders, ranked first in Division V, Region 17, got on the board first when quarterback Jack Dawson scored on a 1-yard plunge at 7:06 of the opening period.

The Tigers answered right before the end of the period as Nate Schuler found wide receiver Eric Lipp from 23 yards out at 1:49 and when Bryan Visingardi added the placement the score was knotted a 7-all.

Dawson added his second score, a 34 yard scamper at 10:04 of the second quarter but when the kick failed, South Range had to settle for a 13-7 lead.

Hunter Spitz’s 9-yard run and Craig Jones conversion scamper at 2:40 of the period gave South Range a 21-7 lead heading to the locker room.

“This is just a great rivalry and we’ll use this win as a springboard for the playoffs. Give credit to our coaching staff because they had us totally prepared. We had a bend but don’t break mentality and didn’t give up the big play all night,” Dawson said.

South Range’s Steve Bensinger suffered an ankle injury on his team’s second series of the game and did not return, but ready to pick up the slack was sophomore Nick Golec, who scored at 6:08 of the third period for a 27-7 Raiders lead and senior Charlie Lengyel, who capped the scoring on the night with a 66-yard scamper at 3:49 of the final frame.

“Jack has been a great leader all year long. He works very hard and on senior night, everyone found a way to contribute,” Yeagley said.

The Raiders had 327 yards rushing on 46 carries with Lengyel and Dawson paving the way with 84 and 69 yards, respectively.

Golec added 57 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown for the Raiders.

The Raider defense held the Tigers to just 38 yards on 21 carries, but Schuler completed 12-of-30 attempts for 136 yards, throwing for one score while suffering an interception.

“It’s been a tough season but our players never quit. That is a tribute to our senior leadership and they have been doing it all season long,” Guerriero said.

‘They [South Range] are always well prepared and it was no different tonight. The game was exactly what we expected; a tough game that was hard fought by both teams.”