McGUFFEY — Visiting Waynesfield-Goshen served notice to the Northwest Central Conference by trouncing defending champion Upper Scioto Valley 42-14 in the league opener Friday night.
W-G improved to 4-0 and 1-0 in NWCC play with the lopsided victory, while USV dropped to 2-2 (0-1 NWCC) with the defeat.
“Defensively we played really well,” said Tiger head coach Shane Wireman. “We did a very good job of containing (Alex) Sanders most of the night.
“We were able to string together stops early, and our offense capitalized on those stops by putting points on the board,” he noted.
Waynesfield stopped USV early on downs at their 23-yard line.
The blue-and-gold drove 77 yards and scored on a 40-yard touchdown aerial from junior quarterback Drew Breitigam to Dalton Jordan.
The point after kick by Lane Steineke put W-G on top 7-0 with 5:17 left in the first period. The Tiger defense forced USV to punt the next two possessions but started inside their own 20 each time.
Drew Breitigam then shook off a tackler and completed a 91-yard catch and carry touchdown pass to speedy Jayden Elliott. The PAT kick extended the lead to 14-0 with 9:30 left in the half.
Jordan then intercepted a Maddox Underwood pass, starting W-G up at its own 35.
Breitigam ripped off a 30-yard run to the Ram four. Aiden Biederman then capped the 65-yard drive with a four-yard scoring run at the 7:11 mark.
Steineke’s extra point stretched the lead to 21-0.
The Tiger defense again stopped USV and forced a punt, taking over at their own 38. W-G drove 62 yards and hit paydirt on a fourth and goal pass to the corner from Breitigam to Jordan.
With 1:48 left in the half, the visitors led 28-0.
“Jumping out to a 28-0 lead against a rival on the road was huge for our confidence,” Wireman noted.
USV drove to score its first points on an 11-yard Underwood touchdown run with 12 seconds left in the half. The Rams converted a two-point conversion to pull within 28-8.
But just before intermission, Breitigam connected with Jordan on a 40-yard TD aerial as the half expired to stun USV and rebuild the lead to 35-8.
Biederman burst through the middle and outran the Ram defense for a 97-yard TD with 1:59 to go in the third period. The extra point kick extended the final margin to 42-8.
USV tacked on a one-yard TD plunge to close the scoring.
Drew Breitigam threw four touchdown passes, three to Jordan.
Biederman rushed for two TDs and 130 yards.
“It was a nice quality win for the program,” summed up Wireman.
Waynesfield hosts NWCC foe Marion Elgin (2-2, 1-0 NWCC) next Friday. The Comets blasted Perry Friday, 42-8.
The stingy Tiger defense has allowed just 21 points in four games. W-G has outscored its opposition, 137-21.
“We will enjoy this win tonight and get started on Elgin Saturday morning,” Wireman noted.