CADIZ — One week after winning its first playoff game in program history, Harrison Central’s magical season came to an end on Friday night with a 56-35 setback to visiting Garrettsville Garfield in the Ohio Division V, Region 17 quarterfinals at Wagner Field.

The G-Men scored two touchdowns on their first four offensive plays and never relinquished the lead, despite a great fight from the Huskies.

“They are a really good football team and we knew that coming in,” Harrison Central coach Anthony Hayes said. “Our kids battled back the whole game and never gave up. They showed a lot of heart. Our kids did something this year that nobody else here has ever done and that’s win a playoff game, so it’s a pretty satisfying season.”

Harrison Central pulled to within 35-19 with 5:03 remaining in the third but a G-Men touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter put the game out of reach for good.

“We said, ‘Let’s get to within two scores,’ and we thought if we did that we’d make it a ballgame,” Hayes said. “But, they answered the bell so credit to them.”

Garfield quarterback Eric Geddes completed four passes, three of which were touchdowns, for 155 yards.

The rest of his damage was done on the ground where he galloped for 109 yards and a score.

He was joined in the backfield by running back Keegan Sell, who ran for 86 yards and three more touchdowns to spark a dominant rushing performance by the G-Men.

“They did a nice job of running the football, which opened up passes and big plays for them,” Hayes said. “We had some blown coverages three or four times and you can’t do that against good teams.”

Garfield showcased the rushing attack on the first and third plays of the game as Geddes opened the game with a 25-yard burst and Sell followed with a 32-yard touchdown run less than a minute into the action.

After a Huskies’ three-and-out, that success on the ground quickly transitioned to success through the air as Gaddes faked a rollout to the right, stopped and found a wide-open Leo Grandizio downfield for an easy 59-yard touchdown connection and a 14-0 Garfield lead less than 3 minutes into the game.

However, the Huskies didn’t back down.

On their ensuing drive, they marched 80 yards and the drive culminated with a 57-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Hayden Cassidy to Cam McAfee, who simply outran the defensive backs.

Grandizio added his second TD grab late in the opening stanza to create a 21-7 cushion but after a fumble on a bad snap gave the Huskies great field position inside the Garfield 15, Cassidy delivered his second TD pass of the night with a 14-yard strike to Clayton Vermillion to cut the deficit to 21-13 with 11:48 left in the half.

It was the running game of Garfield that secured the momentum late in the first half though as Sell and Geddes each found the end zone before halftime to give the G-Men a 35-13 advantage at the break.

The Huskies looked rejuvenated on their second possession of the second half as Jacob Quito hauled in a one-handed grab for 25 yards and McAfee added an 18-yard reception to set up a 32-yard Cassidy to Quito touchdown pass to bring Harrison Central to within 35-19 with 5:03 to go in the third.

That was as close as the game would get though as Harrison turned the ball over on downs on its own side of the field and Sell found paydirt on the first play of the final frame to remove all doubt.

Grandizio and Geddes hooked up on the same play they scored on in the first half, this time from 54 yards out, to extend the lead to 49-19.

Parker Hutton and Brennan Engstrom each recorded touchdowns for the Huskies in the fourth, while Devin Bates scored the final TD for Garfield.

“Our seniors showed great leadership (Friday),” Hayes said. “I’m proud of this team’s character and their guts. Our senior class set a new standard here. It’s not about getting to the playoffs or winning a playoff game anymore. It’s “how many can we win?”

While the Huskies didn’t get much going on the ground, Cassidy had a night to remember through the air as he finished with 296 yards and four touchdowns. His top target was McAfee, who tallied 177 yards on nine receptions that included a score.

“We knew coming in they would be stout in the box and we thought we had the advantage throwing the football,” Hayes said. “I thought our athletes in space would be a little better than theirs but we thought up front we might have a little bit of trouble.”

Regardless of the final outcome, Hayes was thrilled with the season his senior-led squad etched in stone and was also proud of his coaching staff.

“My coaching staff has done a fantastic job,” Hayes said. “We have the best coaching staff in the area. These guys do a fantastic job of getting these kids ready to play. I couldn’t be more proud of a group of coaches.”