By Greg Gulas

sports @vindy.com

GATES MILLS

C.J. Charleston rushed for 294 yards and five touchdowns and had three other scores called back as Gilmour Academy beat Crestview 43-21 in a Division VI, Region 15 first-round playoff game Saturday.

The fourth-seeded Lancers (11-0) racked up 371 total yards in a matinee game at Weber Stadium. The fifth-seeded Rebels bow out at 6-4.

“They didn’t do anything we didn’t prepare for, so hats off to them,” Crestview head coach Paul Cusick said. “I felt like we had an excellent week of practice and preparation, but they ran the ball well today. They did a really good job of executing their plays.”

Crestview and Hubbard lead all Mahoning Valley teams with 15 playoff appearances since the eight-team tournament format was adopted by the OHSAA 19 years ago.

Crestview last met Gilmour in the second round of the 2103 playoffs, coming away with a 27-26 win at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary High School.

A 24-yard field goal by Max Mendels staked the Lancers to a 3-0 lead a little over five minutes into the game.

After Charleston had the first of his three touchdown runs called back — a 56 yarder at 4:23 of the opening period — quarterback Jack Krebs scored from 23 yards out as Gilmour opened a 10-0 lead.

Krebs finished with 31 yards on four carries.

Charleston’s first score of the game from 45 yards away made it 17-0 early in the second quarter. It came two plays after a 51-yard TD run was because of a holding call.

Crestview’s Dylan Huff, who rushed for a team-high 100 yards on 16 carries, got the Rebels on the board with a 23-yard touchdown run at 6:31 of the second period to cut the deficit to 17-7.

“This wasn’t the outcome we expected. All week we focused on the run so hats off to them because they’re a good program,” Huff said. “This was a great senior group, and I loved playing with every one of them.”

Charleston’s second score, this time from 5 yards away at the 4:51 mark helped the Lancers open a 24-7 advantage heading to the intermission. It came shortly after an 8-yard TD was wiped out by a penalty.

“Give credit to my offensive line because they’ve done a tremendous job of opening holes for me all year, doing it once again today,” said Charleston, a senior who already has offers from Youngstown State and Brown University. “They open holes that allow me to get downfield so credit them for all of their hard work. Penalties are a part of the game so you don’t argue, you just move on.”

Charleston added two more touchdowns after the half: the first from 5 yards out; the other on a 1-yard run at the 2:02 mark for a 37-7 lead.

Charleston’s TD tally, a 44-yard run at 9:59 of the final period, gave the Lancers a 43-7 advantage.

Crestview’s Andrew Yanssens, who finished with 82 yards on 13 carries, added TD runs of 42 and 1 yard.

“All 20 seniors on this year’s team had fun careers and they’re a bunch of guys that I love,” Yanssens said. “I’m glad we had one last time to play together.”