MINSTER — After a close first quarter, Fort Loramie ran away to beat rival Minster 40-7 in a season opener on Friday at Memorial Stadium.
It’s the first victory for Fort Loramie over the Wildcats since 2013. Minster had won the last nine matchups.
Senior running back Damon Mescher, who missed almost all of last season after suffering a season-ending injury in Week 1, helped the Redskins pull away late in the second quarter.
Mescher scored on a 19-yard TD run with 3:28 left, and Caleb Maurer threw a two-point conversion pass to Darren Eilerman to give the squad a 14-7 lead.
Logan Eilerman intercepted a pass shortly after and returned it to the 5-yard line, and Mescher scored on a 3-yard run with 2:36 left to boost the lead to 21-7 at halftime.
Logan Eilerman caught a 12-yard TD pass from Maurer with 9:26 left in the third quarter, then recovered a fumble and ran in from about 25 yards out with 8:33 left to boost the lead to 34-7.
Ethan Keiser finished the Redskins’ scoring with a 10-yard run with 6:30 left.
Eilerman scored the game’s first TD after catching a 15-yard TD from Maurer with 9:07 left in the first to give the Redskins a 6-0 lead after a missed extra point. Brogan Stephey scored on a 1-yard run with 3:25 left, then kicked the extra point to put the squad ahead 7-6.
Fort Loramie had 369 yards of offense.
Maurer completed 14-of-21 passes for 196 yards and two TDs. Eilerman caught 10 passes for 100 yards with two TDs.
Mescher ran for 85 yards and two TDs on 12 carries while Jacob Sherman ran for 67 yards on 14 carries.
The Wildcats committed three turnovers and managed 88 yards of offense. Mescher also recorded an interception for the Redskins.
Stephey completed 8-of-12 passes for 68 yards for Minster. The squad managed 22 rushing yards on 29 carries.
The Redskins are scheduled to host Versailles this Friday while Minster will travel to Otterbein University on Saturday to play the Columbus Crusaders, a club organization.
Anna 24, Indian Lake 21
Zach Ambos kicked a 26-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Rockets in their season opener on Friday at Booster Field.
Justin Richards gave the squad a 7-0 lead after a 2-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, and Carter Seigle threw a 14-yard TD pass to Brandon Axe in the second to increase the advantage to 14 points.
Indian Lake scored on an 85-yard run in the second to cut the halftime lead to 14-7, but Hunter Schmidt scored on a 53-yard run in the third quarter to increase the lead to 21-7.
The Lakers scored on a 46-yard run in the third quarter, then a 1-yard run in the fourth to tie it.
Anna had 324 yards of offense with no turnovers while Indian Lake had 315 yards and committed three turnovers. Ambos and Axe each intercepted passes for the Rockets while Schmidt recovered a fumble.
Schmidt ran for 165 yards on 18 carries while Richards ran for 103 yards on 20 carries. Seigle completed 10-of-16 passes for 48 yards.
Anna is scheduled to travel to Brookville this Friday.
Lima Perry 27, Lehman Catholic 13
The Cavaliers lost their season opener on Friday at Sidney Memorial Stadium.
Perry took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a 16-yard pass from Joey Hoersten to Jamarion Byrd, then Ryan Yingst threw a 90-yard TD pass to Joey Hoersten to give the squad a 13-0 lead.
Sophomore quarterback Donovan O’Leary scored a 1-yard TD run in the second to cut the lead to 13-6. Yingst threw a 15-yard TD to Isaiah Sanders to push the lead to 19-6, but Nathan Sollmann scored on a 45-yard run before halftime to cut the gap to 19-13.
Yingst scored a 17-yard run in the third quarter and threw a two-point conversion pass to Ayden Simpson to secure the result.
Perry had 384 yards of offense while Lehman had 135, 103 of which came on the ground. Each squad had one turnover.
Yingst completed 14-of-27 passes for 246 yards for the Commodores and ran for 112 yards on 13 carries.
The Cavaliers are scheduled to travel to New Bremen this Friday.
New Bremen 28, Marion, Ind. 14
The defending Division VII state champion Cardinals won their season opener on Friday in Marion, Indiana.
Branxton Krauss scored on a 5-yard TD run with 5:41 left in the first quarter to give New Bremen a 7-0 lead.
Marion scored on a 44-yard run to tie it 7-7 early in the second, but New Bremen’s Nolan Kuenning recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown with 5:03 left to give the team a 14-7 lead. David Homan ran for a 33-yard TD with 32 seconds left to increase the lead to 21-7.
Colten Muether scored on a 6-yard TD run with 11:52 left in the fourth quarter to finish the Cardinals’ scoring. Marion narrowed the final gap with a 49-yard TD run with 3:20 left.
New Bremen had 286 yards of offense and committed one turnover while Marion had 289 yards of offense and committed three turnovers. Nathan Rindler made an interception for the Cardinals and had a team-high six tackles.
Homan led New Bremen with 103 rushing yards on 16 carries while Muether gained 86 yards on 20 carries and Krauss gained 52 yards on seven carries.
Homan completed 8-of-14 passes for 51 yards with one interception.
The Cardinals are scheduled to host Lehman Catholic this Friday.
Riverside 29, Ansonia 14
The Pirates rallied to beat Ansonia on the road in their season opener on Friday.
Ansonia scored on a short run to take a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter. Warren Shockey scored a 2-yard run with 9:43 left in the second to bring Riverside within 7-6 after a missed extra point.
Shockey scored on a 4-yard run about four minutes later to give the Pirates a 13-6 lead after Isaac Bender kicked the extra point, but the Tigers scored on a 47-yard TD pass with 29 seconds left to take a 14-13 halftime lead.
Riverside fought back in the fourth quarter. Shockey scored on a 1-yard run with 8:31 left, and Myles Platfoot ran in for a two-point conversion to give Riverside a 21-14 lead. Platfoot then scored on a 20-yard run with 2:21 left, and Simon Godwin ran in on a two-point conversion run to boost the lead to 15 points.
Riverside had 330 total yards of offense, 305 of which came on the ground on 51 carries. The squad committed two turnovers.
Shockey led the Pirates with 226 rushing yards on 36 carries. Platfoot completed 3-of-10 passes for 25 yards with one interception and ran for 39 yards on eight carries. Walker Whitaker gained 53 rushing yards on six carries.
Shockey, Hayden Wren and Braden Brandyberry each had seven tackles for Riverside while Dylan Smith, Whitaker and Ayden Clary each had one sack.
Ansonia gained 270 yards of offense.
Versailles 42, Celina 0
The Tigers steamrolled Celina in their season opener on Friday in Versailles.
Landon Henry scored on a 3-yard TD run in the first quarter while Carson Bey threw a 12-yard TD pass to Eli McEldowney and ran for a 14-yard TD run in the second to give the Tigers a 21-0 halftime lead.
Henry scored on a 6-yard run in the third and Jack Osborne scored on a 45-yard run. Gabe Thomas scored the Tigers’ last TD on a 14-yard run in the fourth.
Versailles had 384 yards of offense and committed two turnovers while Celina had 162 yards of offense and committed one turnover. Carter Luthman recovered a fumble for the Tigers.
Bey completed 6-of-9 passes for 77 yards with one TD and one interception and ran for 115 yards on 12 carries with one TD. Osborne ran for 110 yards on 11 carries and scored one TD and Henry ran for 75 yards and two TDs on 13 carries.
Versailles is scheduled to travel to Fort Loramie this Friday.
