Wolverines turn over Warriors, win 41-34

Ellwood City football was in another battle this past week as the Wolverines were looking to break another streak of 6 losses in a series, this time against the Mohawk Warriors - and they didn’t disappoint. The Wolverines held on in the late going to pick up the crucial victory 41-34.

First quarter action started in favor of the Wolverines as it took just 3 minutes for the Wolverines to score as #12 Chris Smiley completed a nice screen play to wide receiver #1 Dom Hogue who scampered up through the middle with miss tackles across the board, scoring the 49 yard touchdown pass. The PAT by #19 Caitlin Kreitzer was good to give the early 7-0 lead to EC.

The Wolverines doubled up the Warriors near the end of the quarter as Mohawk was not able to capitlize on field position several times in the first half. EC’s #2 Elijah Palmer-McCane took the rock and scored right up the middle from 2 yards out to cap off another great drive by the Wolverines. PAT was good again to make the first quarter lead 14-0.

But the quick-strike offense of the Warriors were able to bounce back and own the second quarter. Mid second quarter #26 Sam List finished off a crucial drive by the Warriors from 2 yards out. The PAT by #5 Blake Logan was good to cut the lead down to 7. The Warriors didn’t take long to score again, as another kickoff blunder very similar to the one EC had against Neshannock just the week prior, gave the ball back to the Mohawk offense who took just over a minute to score, this time via the 18 yard touchdown pass from #4 Bobby Fadden to #84 Jaxson Chapman. PAT was good by Logan to even the score at 14.

With all momentum shifted back to the Warriors, the game started to look very similar to last year’s game when the Wolverines kept pace in the first half, but lost momentum right before halftime to lose the game. But this is not last year’s Wolverines as proven so far on the year. Somehow, someway, the Wolverines clawed back into the game with a late score at the 1:35 mark before halftime. This time another great wide receiver pass and play from Smiley to #5 Dailonn Currie went for 35 yards down the sideline. The PAT was good to make the score 21-14.

But not to be outdone, the Warriors found a way in back-to-back years to score points with the clock hitting zero at halftime. This time around the Warriors were able to march down the field right before halftime to set up a 36 yard fieldgoal by Logan. The attempt was good as the clock hit zero, reading 21-17 in favor of the Wolverines.

First half action saw 6 scores, three by each team and with the halftime stats being fairly even. The Wolverines outgained the Warriors 111 to 35 in the first quarter to then the script being flipped in favor of the Warriors 160 to 153 at halftime. Penalties were kept to a minimum, but one thing would change on the night in favor of the Wolverines in the second half - turnovers.

If you follow Ellwood City Sports, time and time again we mention how turnovers are drive killers, momentum killers shall we say. Tonight, turnovers would be in favor of the Wolverines - 3 crucial interceptions and 1 fumble recovery kept the Warriors offense from having big plays all night while keeping the quick scoring offense off sequence.

One score after another was answered in the third quarter - Warriors took their first lead of the night at the 6:10 mark of the third quarter. A great catch by Logan from Fadden put up 6 points while Logan was good again on the PAT. After the 24-21 lead by Mohaw, Ellwood City answered back with their own touchdown, this time by EPM from 9 yards out. Once again the lead change back to the Wolverines heading into the fourth quarter 28-24.

The lead wouldn’t change the rest of the way, but the Warriors offense would keep it close to the last horn. A 39 yard fieldgoal by Logan early in the quarter gave hope for the Warriors, but in reality it was a win for the Wolverines to keep the scoring drive short of the endzone. Just a minute later, the Wolverines answered with another touchdown, this time their biggest play of the night by EPM from 61 yards out. PAT was failed this time, keeping the Warrior hopes alive now at 34-27.

The first half individually for the Wolverines on defense was owned by none other than #44 Trent Schilling who had a fumble recovery and interception. The second half defensive battle was won by #6 Gavin Partridge who had two timely interceptions on the night, both stopping the Warriors drives in their tracks. One of those interceptions by Patridge also included a 4th quarter return of 63 yards, which propelled the Wolverines to score their final touchdown of the night, again by EPM from 3 yards out. PAT this time was good giving the Wolverines their second 14 point lead of the night.

And that interception and touchdown was needed. The Warriors did not give up all night long, scoring with just 14 seconds left on the clock, this time by #26 Sam List running up the middle from 3 yards out. PAT was good to make the score 41-34. The Warriors attempted the on-side kick, but the hands team of Ellwood City just sat on the ball to maintain posession. Finally, the Wolverines took the final snap and Smiley kneeled down in victory position, giving the Wolverines a HUGE victory in the W column.

Defense was the name of the game for about three quarters, with the Wolverines holding a slight edge in every category including turnovers. Finally, the fourth quarter opened everything up, giving EC officially 305 yards on 58 plays for the night. Meanwhile, Mohawk officially ended with 232 yards on 60 plays. Both teams at one point were below a 2.0 average per carry, but List and EPM did eventually have a couple big runs to improve on the average.

First downs, rushing, passing, penalties, even conversions on the night were very similar. The difference - turnovers. Ellwood City forced 4 turnovers on the night, which not only held the Warriors off of the scoreboard, but more importantly, set up the Wolverines offense with short yardage to go for points.

Palmer-McCane finished the night with 27 carries for 139 yards along with 4 touchdowns. The 4 touchdowns by EPM gave him a total of 40 career touchdowns, a record that continues to increase each week along with his career rushing record of over 3,000 yards. Smiley finished the game with 11 completions on 21 attempts, but had 206 yards and 2 passing touchdowns to get the wide receivers back into the offensive system. Smiley joins EPM over the career 3,000 yard mark, specifically in passing yards.

The Wolverines will now travel to take on the Freedom Bulldogs 1-1 (0-1) on Friday with game time slated for 7:00 PM. The Wolverines will now be looking to go 4-0 to start the season, the first time that could happen since 1997. Pregame on Ellwood City Sports is set for 6:45 PM.