Friday Scores

[old school]

Forest Hills races past Richland

By SAMUEL LEGG
The Tribune-Democrat

SIDMAN — Forest Hills coach Don Bailey had the perfect game plan against his son Brandon’s Richland squad, and the players to execute it.

Running back Scott Mehall had three scores, including one of quarterback Zack Glessner’s trio of touchdown passes, in the Rangers’ 34-8 Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference victory over the Rams on senior night at G.H. Miller Field on Friday.

The Rangers softened up the Rams’ defense with the running of Mehall and then took advantage of Glessner’s strong arm.

As a matter of fact, Forest Hills (8-1) went deep on its first offense play after forcing the Rams (4-5) to punt.

“We wanted them to be thinking that we will throw it if we had the opportunity,” said Don Bailey, who is in his 35th season coaching the Rangers. “We’ve been running the ball a good bit the last couple of weeks, and felt (Friday night) that the way their safeties played up that we had a chance to throw the ball downfield.”

Glessner just missed his intended target, overthrowing a deep post pattern.

“That was our game plan coming in to the week,” Glessner said. “Run the ball at them and pass when we needed to. Whenever we needed to pass, to pass the ball and complete it.”

Glessner found his range later in the same drive, hitting Tyler Rosenberger with a 42-yard catch and run.

“We knew we were going to come out with that play the first time,” said Glessner of one of his three incompletions. “In films, we saw their safeties were playing up, so we figured we’d try to beat them deep on the first play. I just overthrew it a little bit.”

Patrick Donoughe booted the first of four point-after attempts but missed on the fifth, which would have set the clock in motion with 10:15 left in the third quarter.

Glessner added touchdown strikes of 58 and 54 yards, going 4-of-7 for 147 yards in a little more than 24 minutes of action.

“We put some of those plays in this week,” Don Bailey said. “They were putting nine in the box. They play a 5-2 and bring their safeties up, so the middle was little bit soft.”

Mehall had 147 yards on 16 carriers, including a 13-yard run up the gut and a 43-yard scamper for a score. Mehall also hauled in a 54-yard screen pass in which he bolted down the Richland sideline while eluding a pair of defenders before diving into the end zone.

The Forest Hills defense limited the state’s leading passer, Gino Ramires, to 64 yards through the air. The junior quarterback was 11-of-26 passing with two interceptions before giving way to Ryan Sylvia, who was later relieved by Jordan Cinko.

The Rams didn’t get on the scoreboard until 1:01 was left in the fourth quarter when Cinko hit Eric Montag streaking down the left sideline. Montag caught the ball just outside the goal line and managed to barely get in the end zone. Cinko ran in the two-point try to set the final.

“From the kickoff on, it was a tough one,” Brandon Bailey said. “They had an outstanding game plan and we didn’t focus well enough on offense to move the ball. We had to stop the run, but they were able to sneak over the top.”