SARAHSVILLE — Buckeye Local attempted to play keep-away and it worked pretty well in the first half against host Shenandoah, but the Zeps came up with a handful of big plays that resulted in a 41-6 second half runaway to make for a successful Homecoming Game on Friday.

Shenandoah, which bounced back from its only loss at the hands of Shadyside a week ago, scored on its first possession of the game and just before halftime to take a 14-0 upperhand, but then turned four big plays into a 27-point third quarter to boost its record to 5-1 while sending Buckeye Local to its fifth loss in six outings.

The Zeps, who entered the weekend second in the OHSAA Division VII, Region 27 computer ratings, traveled 65 yards in 10 snaps on their first series, with senior Kendal Sherman gaining 17 and 15 yards on the ground and connecting for a 19-yard pass to senior Aden Laipply to fuel the drive.

Talented junior back Briar Portman finished it off with gains of 10 and nine yards to set up a walk-in, one-yard TD at the 7:04 mark of the first quarter. Senior Easton Hitchens nailed the point-after kick and the hosts were on top, 7-0.

Buckeye Local lost the ball via a fumble on its first possession, with Shenandoah senior Jason Flaitz recovering, and the Panthers’ next series had them knocking on the door after converting two fourth-down plays, but the Zeps’ defense rose to the challenge and stopped the next fourth-down try three yards short of the goal line.

Late in the half, the Zeps moved quickly from their 29-yard line to get some breathing room, with the big play a 34-yard hookup from Sherman to wide-open junior Cade Denius.

The Zeps faced a fourth-down at the Buckeye Local 22-yard line with less than a minute until the intermission when Sherman found Portman for “six” out of a four-wide left formation, and Hitchens’ PAT made it 14-0.

Shenandoah struck quickly in the third period, with Sherman flipping a short toss to Denius who skirted the left sideline for a 71-yard TD, and Hitchens again converted the extra-point to push the Zeps’ lead to 21-0 at the 9:52 mark.

The Panthers stayed within striking range by responding with a 69-yard scoring drive which featured a 17-yard gainer by Robert Smith and a personal foul against Shenandoah, and the payoff game on Buckeye Local’s only pass completion of the night – a 21-yard toss from junior Hayden Taylor to senior Corban Westfall. The two-point pass fell incomplete, but the Panthers were within 21-6 with 5:38 remaining in the third chapter.

Things went south in a hurry for Coach Roger Herbert’s Panthers as the Zeps scored three time via big plays before the quarter ended – first on a 38-yard TD run by Portman at the 5:13 mark; next on a 56-yard “pick-six” by Denius at 3:12, and finally on a 46-yard pass from Sherman to 6-8 junior Shakur Payton with 58 seconds remaining.

Hitchens was successful after the first two scores in the flurry as the lead ballooned to 41-6 and started the running clock, but his final attempt was blocked to end a lengthy string of makes.

“They basically lined up to try to slow the game down and grind the clock,” said Shenandoah coach Jesse Wells, “but I thought defensively we did a good job except for one blown coverage.

“Offensively, I thought we distributed the ball well and made some big plays,” he added.

The Zeps finished with 318 total yards, including 196 passing and 122 rushing. Sherman was 6-of-10 with three TDs and Portman led the ground game with 11 carries for 80 yards and three total TDs (two rushing, one receiving).

Buckeye Local closed with 152 yards of offense, with 131 rushing and 21 passing. Robert Smith had 13 carries for 70 yards and the tandem of Taylor and senior Seth Richardson were just 1-of-6 with one interception.

Shenandoah faces a familiar foe on Friday when traveling to Woodsfield to take on Monroe Central in a match-up of former Pioneer Valley Conference rivals while Buckeye Local is at home against Beaver Local.

“We’ve just got to keep going week by week,” said Coach Wells. “It’s easy to look ahead, but the reality is you have to play week to week and now we’ve got to get ready for Monroe Central.”