Columbiana shut down the Rams’ running attack.

By JIM FLICK

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

MINERAL RIDGE — In a key conference showdown that took a form few expected, Columbiana defeated Mineral Ridge 28-20 Friday night.

Both teams had bashed their opponents with rushing attacks in previous games. But while Columbiana (5-1, 3-0 Inter Tri-County League) continued its bulldozer ground game, Mineral Ridge’s rushing attack faltered. Instead, the Rams (5-1, 2-1) turned to a passing attack, gaining 217 yards.

Josh Hertel led the Clippers, gaining 140 yards on 20 carries and rushing for two touchdowns. He added a third touchdown on a 40-yard pass reception. Quarterback Ryan Williams added 100 yards on 23 carries, completed 6-of-14 passes for 94 and scored two touchdowns, one on the pass to Hertel and a second a 22-yard scamper into the end zone.

Mineral Ridge running back A.J. Zitello entered the game with 878 yards rushing, one of the top totals in the area, but gained only 45 yards on 16 carries Friday.

On the other hand, Rams quarterback Joey Miller completed 11-of-19 passes for 217 yards. But his productive passing performance was short-circuited by two passes intercepted by Columbiana.

We knew we had to make ’em pass,” Columbiana coach Bob Spaite said. “We told our kids Mineral Ridge prides themselves on bringing the bigger hammer. But tonight, we had the bigger hammer.”

Back and forth

The Clippers delivered the first blow, taking a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter when Hertel dashed 10 yards to the end zone.

Mineral Ridge struck back quickly, cutting the lead to 7-6 when senior Jon McRoberts hauled in a pass from Miller and wove his way through defenders to the goal line. The extra point attempt failed, leaving Columbiana with a narrow lead.

But Hertel scored two more touchdowns in the second quarter, the first on a 76-yard run and the second on a 40-yard pass from Miller. Hertel’s third touchdown gave Columbiana a 21-6 lead with a little more than a minute remaining in the first half.

But Mineral Ridge refused to relax as halftime neared. Instead, the Rams executed a quick drive capped by Miller’s 47-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ken Mazurkiewicz. The touchdown cut the Clippers’ halftime lead to 21-13.

The first half slugfest did not resume in the third quarter, when both teams failed to score point. But Columbiana widened its lead to 28-13 early in the fourth quarter, when Miller ran 22 yards into the end zone.

Still, the Rams weren’t finished. Again led by Mazurkiewicz’s catches of passes from Miller, Mineral Ridge drove toward the Columbiana end zone. Zitello dived in from 2 yards out with just over four minutes left in the game to cut the Clippers’ lead to 28-20.

The Rams’ defense forced a punt and Mineral Ridge took over at its own 22 yard line with 1:03 remaining. But Columbiana’s Clay Stone pulled in an interception with only 42 seconds remaining to seal the win.

“We’re young and we learned a lot tonight,” Spaite said. “This was not a place for the weak-hearted tonight.”

“They were more physical than us tonight,” Mineral Ridge coach Dom Leone said. “They blitzed, they came at us from everywhere. They took some risks and those risks paid off.”