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Shadyside taking aim at regional title Friday against Newark Catholic

Photo/KRISTIN MAZGAJ SHADYSIDE JUNIOR running back Wyatt Reiman follows the lead blocking of senior fullback Jacob Visnic during last Friday’s game against River. Reiman and Visnic have both had big postseasons in helping to lead the Tigers to this week’s Division VII, Region 27 championship game against Newark Catholic, which will be played at White Field in Newark.

SHADYSIDE — If Shadyside is to qualify for its fifth state semifinal appearance all-time, it must do something no other Tigers squad has been able to … defeat Newark Catholic.

The seventh-seeded Tigers and No. 3 Greenwave will match 6-3 records Friday night when they clash in the Division VII, Region 27 championship contest on the artificial surface at White Field in Newark. The winner moves on to the state semifinals.

Shadyside and Newark Catholic have met five times, with the Licking Countians winning all five games by a combined score of 205-83, including 40-0 in a second-round playoff encounter last season at Meadowbrook High School in Byesville. They have also met in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2009.

“We haven’t really brought it up,” veteran Shadyside head coach Mark Holenka said of the 2019 playoff tilt. “We played lousy. They played really well. It’s a different season.”

This will be Shadyside’s 12th regional championship game appearance, with Holenka and former head coach Ty Fleming evenly dividing the appearances. The Tigers, who are 4-7 all-time at this level of competition, have made the state semifinals in 1989, 2001, 2006 and 2010, advancing to the state finals the latter two times.

“They do a lot of the same things. They’ve got an established program that they adhere to to do what they do,” Holenka said of the Greenwave. “Offensively, they setup the pass through the run. Defensively, they get after the football.”

Both teams had slow starts to the season but have come on strong down the stretch when it means the most.

Shadyside was 1-3 after four weeks with losses to D-V schools Martins Ferry (22-16) and Bellaire (20-13) and West Virginia Class A power Wheeling Central (35-17). However, the Tigers have turned in five consecutive outstanding performances in victories over East Hardy (21-7) and River (27-25) to close out the regular season. They have playoff wins over Frontier (48-14), at No. 2 East Knox (14-0) and at No. 5 River (42-9) last week. They also defeated Magnolia (50-20) in week 3.

“I realized last week that we are still a hungry football team,” Holenka said of the Tigers second win in four weeks over their Ohio 7 rivals. “Last year I’m not sure, but this is a different team. We’re moving up the ladder.”

Holenka said the turnaround to the season can be attributed to the continued improvement of the offensive and defensive lines.

“Our two lines have improved tremendously from the beginning of the season,” Holenka explained. “That’s a credit to (assistant) coaches Chase Grinch and Jeff Campbell on the offensive side and John Grinch and Alex Krupa on the defensive side. It’s also a testament to the kids for hanging in there and allowing themselves to be coached.”

Only one senior — tackle Larry Honeywell — mans the offensive front. Junior Kristopher Tsoras is the other tackle, while classmates Gage Joseph and Jacob Brown are the guards. Junior Logan Crozier anchors the middle at center.

Defensively, Tsoras and sophomore Andrew Brown are the ends, with Gage Joseph and senior Camden Brown at the tackles.

Holenka said junior Ryan Florence will see action on both fronts. He missed last week with an injury.

Shadyside is led offensively by junior tailback Wyatt Reiman who has rushed for 928 yards and a dozen TDs on 162 carries. He lugged the leather 23 times for 139 yards last week and scored a TD. Senior fullback Jacob Visnic has picked up 420 yards and recorded nine six-pointers while also serving as a very good lead blocker.

Quarterback Rhys Francis only completed four passes last week but they went for 150 yards and two touchdowns. He is 56-133 for 1,122 yards and eight TDs. He has been intercepted five times. The junior has also run for 157 yards and two scores.

Classmate Mason Vannest has turned into the Tigers playmaker on the outside with 24 receptions for 570 yards and five touchdowns. He averages nearly 24 yards a catch. Reiman and Visnic have each caught seven aerials, while Karl Tsoras, Alec Shepherd and Jordan Joseph each hauling in six.

“Offensively, they have a lot of incredibly talented athletes,” Newark Catholic head coach Ryan Aiello said of the Tigers. “Last year will have no bearing on this game. They will be well-coached and very disciplined.”

VanNest handles the punting and placement chores, while Jordan Joseph has took over the kickoff duties.

Defensively, Visnic, Reiman and freshman Andrew Osman comprise an outstanding group of linebackers. The secondary consists of VanNest, Jordan Joseph, Shepherd and Francis, who ran an interception back for six last week. He has five picks. Jordan Joseph has three.

“They are equally talented on the defensive side of the ball,” Aiello added. “Their back end is as good as we’ve faced.”

Newark Catholic lost three of its first five but have reeled off four straight wins in which it has outscored the opposition 167-38, with half of those defensive points coming last week in a 35-19 upset of top-ranked Trimble.

Junior Cole Canter is the Greenwave quarterback. He has completed 72 of 127 passes for 1,080 yards and 13 touchdowns while also running for 147 yards and five more scores. His favorite targets are classmates Tanner Elwell (19-365-3tds) and Brandon Buchanan (16-257-5). Sophomore Kyle Langenbrunner is the leading rusher with 397 yards and eight TDs on 77 carries. Junior Tristan Gorius has 239 stripes and five TDs on 55 totes.

The defensive leaders are senior defensive end Drew Hess and senior linebacker Ryan Poly, who returned an interception to seal last week’s win.

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