Harding defense delivers 21-6 win

By Doug Chapin

The Raiders stopped Akron Buchtel twice within their 1-yard line.

WARREN — Harding High’s defense came up with two big stops and an even bigger score on the way to a 21-6 triumph Saturday night over Akron Buchtel at Mollenkopf Stadium.

On successive Buchtel possessions — one late in the first half and the other to start the third quarter — Harding (3-0) thwarted the Griffins after they had penetrated inside the Raider 2-yard line.

“Our kids have been doing that all year, we’ve played really great defense in the red zone,” Harding coach D.J. Dota said. “Hats off to our front seven, they did a great job for us in those situations.”

In the first instance, the Harding front line stopped a dive play on fourth-and-goal from the 2, preserving a 7-6 Raider lead at halftime.

Buchtel (0-3) then took the opening possession of the second half and drove 72 yards on 14 plays only to fumble on third-and-goal from inside the 1. Desmond Reed came out of the pile in the end zone with the ball and Harding still led by one.

Senior linebacker Ben Penman provided the defensive score on the first play of the fourth quarter. He picked off a Buchtel pass which was deflected at the line of scrimmage and returned it 31 yards for a touchdown and a 14-6 Harding lead.

The Raider defense, which held the Griffins to 88 yards rushing on the night, followed up with a three-and-out, and the Harding offense took over.

Twelve plays, 63 yards and almost six minutes later, Kyree Flowers (20 carries, 72 yards) burst up the middle for a 10-yard touchdown run with 3:37 left in the game.

The Raiders converted three third-down situations on the drive and all but nine yards came on the ground.

“We went into what we call our four-minute offense; we wanted to control the ball and take as much time off the clock as we could,” Dota said. “The guys did a great job of executing and you’ve got to feel great about that. It’s hard to put 12 plays together and not make mistakes, and our kids did a great job with that.”

Harding had an impressive 10-play, 76-yard drive in the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead. The score came on a 1-yard run by Isaiah Taylor.

Buchtel tallied midway through the second period when a quick slant pass from quarterback Tahj Dent to Dominique Gray turned into a 47-yard scoring play. The Griffins missed their point-after attempt.

The Raiders totaled 133 yards on the ground on 35 carries. Quarterback Aunre Davis was efficient in the air, completing nine of 13 for 73 yards.

“We feel good about where we are at right now,” Dota said about the progress his team has made. “We still have to fix a lot of things and keep trying to get better each week that we show up and play.”

Harding plays host to Mooney on Friday.