Three outstanding athletes and a tremendous coach will be added this year to the Clear Fork Valley Athletic Hall of Fame.

Ceremonies are scheduled for “Hall of Fame Classic Weekend” of September 6 and 7, with introductions before the Friday night home football game with Granville and the induction on Saturday night at the school auditorium.

Matthew Blubaugh helped take the Clear Fork wrestling program to a new level. He was the 1992 J.C. Gorman “Bill Flanagan” Most Valuable Wrestler. He is the only Colt to ever be so honored. He was a three time J.C. Gorman champion. During his four years as a varsity wrestler, Blubaugh was a two time state qualifier and twice Clear Fork MVP.

Dan Sparks was Clear Fork’s head football coach from 1988 to 2000, leading the Colts to a 93-45 record during that span. His teams won four Mohican Area Conference championships and made seven playoff appearances. He coached 18 All-Ohio Players in the valley.

One of those players was Bryan Thorne, who was the first Colt running back to put together back to back 1,000 yard seasons. He was twice Honorable Mention All-Ohio as well as first team all conference and as named the top offensive player by his teammates. Thorne played in the North Central Ohio Football coaches association McDonald’s All Star game. He was also part of a Clear Fork 4x400 relay team that finished third in the state indoors.

Significant progress is being made on upgrades to the Clear Fork High School football field, including the installation of a turf playing surface with a completion date of August 1.

The project, which includes the resurfacing of the running track and improvements to the lights, is expected to cost around $730,000.

Athletic Director Jeff Gottfried says this is not just a school project, but a community project as many businesses, including Jamison Well Drilling are involved. “We had some very, very active boosters that kind of took the bull by the horns. Chris Laux was really the main guy, he is our assistant girls’ soccer coach, but just a big, big booster of all of the athletic programs. He kind of spearheaded the launch, but we had a lot support from other businesses that they made some phone calls to ahead of time. It just seemed like once that word got out and got rolling a lot of interest was developed. It was amazing how quickly those pledges came in and we were able to generate interest. There are a lot of positive thoughts in the valley to do something big,” he said.

Work on the project has been taking place for about three weeks now and Gottfried says baring interference from the weather everything seems right on schedule to be completed a couple months. “We have had a lot of progress already. We broke ground basically on May 6. That was the start date of Terra Valley Excavating getting in there and doing some work with that. There are a lot of people involved. Brennstuhl Construction is doing some concrete work for it, a lot of in kind like stuff. They are hoping to have some gravel put on it, if not this week, the week after. Once that gravel gets graded in and packed in, they should be laying some carpet. They are hoping to have their process done right around the Fourth of July,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “Also, at the same time we are going to resurface the track because that is in need of a new surface. We are also going to upgrade the lights up there at the stadium, so it is going to be a major facelift up there and hopefully by August 1 we are ready to roll.”

There are the obvious benefits to the school’s football and soccer programs, but Gottfried says don’t forget that all students in the district will profit from the upgrades. “You can go all of the way to the educational part of it. I was talking with coach Riddle the other day. He is out there on the softball diamond playing softball in phys-ed class. I said this is probably the last year you will have to go out there and do that and tracking in all that dirt from the ballfield and he said you are right we can just go up there and throw some bases down on that carpet and it is a lot closer to the school and cleaner. It will get used every single day. He was talking about the advantages of being able to go out there and play soccer and do some frisbee football and just different things like that. The band can go up there and practice from time to time. From speaking to other AD’s that do have the turf they say it doesn’t get used enough. It is amazing how quickly you can find things to do on it,” said Gottfried.

Published 5/28/19

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In dramatic fashion, Lima Shawnee beat Clear Fork (3-2) in 10 innings in a district semifinal played at Kenton High School on Thursday evening.

Kale Ebling’s RBI single with two outs gave the Indians the win.

Clear Fork took a (1-0) lead in top of the fourth when A.J. Blubaugh singled, he had three hits on the day, stole a base and scored on a sacrifice fly by Brandon Patterson. It became (2-0) when Brad Johnson went deep with a home run over the left centerfield fence in the fifth.

Mitch Dulin started and went five innings of shutout baseball allowing three hits and striking out five. He was relieved by Dylan Jewell in the sixth and he got through that inning allowing just a hit.

Shawnee started the bottom of the seventh when A.J. Brown hit the ball in the hole between short and third where it was backhanded by Blubaugh and his throw appeared to beat Brown, but he was called safe. The Indians got a two out hit from Jacob Cowan and the two runners moved up on a wild pitch. They scored when Logan Maxwell singled on an 0-2 pitch.

Clear Fork coach Joe Staab says his kids gave great effort, but missed some opportunities. “We came out and competed hard for 10 innings (Thursday) and had opportunities to win the game and just weren’t able to take advantage when needed. You have to execute in a championship game if you are going to win them,” said Staab.

Jewell threw 74 pitches and he was removed with two out in the ninth by Blubaugh.

Clear Fork left the bases loaded in the fourth and the ninth and stranded 11 base runners on the day. Staab says they just couldn’t get the clutch hit. “We left a lot of guys on base. We had opportunities to come up and get that big hit and it just didn’t swing in our favor,” he said.

Despite the loss, it was an outstanding season for the Colts, who were co-champs in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference. “It has been a good season. It is not the season we wanted to end with for our seniors, but these seniors found themselves in the district tournament four straight years. That is a great honor for them. I don’t know how many classes that can saw they have been to four straight district tournaments and three straight district championship games. It wasn’t the way we wanted to send them out, but they competed hard all year,” said Staab.

Published 5/24/19

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This week, Clear Fork tennis player Noah Brown will do something no other kid in his school’s history has ever done when he plays in the in the boys’ state tennis tournament at the Linder Family Tennis Center in Mason.

Brown will play Pierce Elliott of Preble Shawnee in a first round match in division two on Friday after finishing third in the district tournament last week in Bowling Green.

He also won the singles title in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, the Colts also took the team title, and earned a sectional title two weeks ago at Shelby.

Brown has been an outstanding player the last three years, but he feels he is better this year. “I am better this year because I work harder, harder and harder on the court and at the fieldhouse lifting and running. A lot of motivation was there and I tried my best and my dream was achieved,” said Brown.

You must have a good serve, ground stokes and be able cover the net if you are going to get to this level, but Brown says the best part of his game is he enjoys tennis and it shows. “The best part of my game is having fun,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “I say that because tennis is such a mental game and with having fun on the court I can pour out my true personality. You don’t practice that, it is just yourself, and the results show and on top of that you have a good time along the way. It’s so much fun.”

Brown, a senior at Clear Fork, will play tennis at the next level as well at a small college in West Virginia.

“I am going to play at Salem International University in Salem, West Virginia. It’s about 45 minutes from Morgantown,” he said.

Published 5/21/19

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In likely the best softball conference in North Central Ohio, there is going to be at least co-champs and maybe tri-champs.

Clear Fork (19-6,11-3) did its job by beating Marion Hardin (17-0) on Tuesday and (16-0) on Wednesday. Ontario completed a sweep of Marion Pleasant with a (9-8) win over the Lady Spartans on Wednesday. They had beaten them (2-0) on Monday. Clear Fork and Pleasant finish with (11-3) conference records, Ontario (10-3) must beat Galion on Saturday.

Lady Colts coach Jeff Gottfried says the “MOAC” is an outstanding softball conference. “There have been some high and some lows and somewhere in between. It has been exciting to say the least to be part of competitive wise. There have been lots of good ballgames, some good plays being made by both teams, no matter who the opponents have been. It is what you expect. It is good high school sports and kids going at it and coaches as well and good handshakes after the ball games and a lot of respect for a lot of teams. It has been a nice 2019 season,” he said.

Harding finishes with no conference wins, but Gottfried says his team had to have focus and they did. “We knew we were going into tournament week and we knew we had a chance. We talked about that even last week when we lost our first game with Pleasant. I said we just made things a whole lot tougher on ourselves, but it is not over until it is over. We have talked about that every game. It is also the same way with the season, I said we have to win, we have to win out and we have to get some help. Sometimes the gods aren’t on your side, but this week the softball gods were on our side, not only in our games, but also in the Pleasant-Ontario series,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Ontario is a good team. They weren’t any slouches by any means when we played them and I knew Pleasant would have their hands full. The big game for them was winning on the road down there to get that game on Monday, that really helped them. Having the home game (Wednesday) they got the last swings of the bat and where able to come out with a victory. We took care of the things on our end and it is just a nice feeling.”

Maybe their biggest win of the year came last Thursday when they beat Pleasant (6-3,) handing them their first conference loss, after losing (8-4) the day before at Pleasant.

Gottfried says his kids never gave up. “At the time it was real big for us. I don’t know, it is always that day after effect, some teams are flat. I feel like Pleasant was flat that night. I don’t know if they celebrated because they knew they had a guaranteed share of the conference, it’s hard telling. I thought our kids came out with some focus. We told them we have a chance. Don’t rule yourselves out. You just have to play and if nothing else don’t let them beat you on your own field. So, that’s what we did. We took care of business there and it kid of got us rolling. We had a tough one on Monday. We got down early to Madison, but came back and showed some good fight. Those are the kinds of teams you want to play at this time of year getting ready for the tournament season,” said Gottfried.

Clear Fork hosts Edison (13-7) on Friday in a sectional final game. The Lady Colts beat Edison (11-10) last year in a sectional game and Gottfried feels Friday will be just as competitive. “We have Edison again. They had us a year ago. When the draw came out, they had the opportunity to go different places and they came right at us. They had to win a game to get to us. Their coach is confident in their team and they have a nice team. They are very well coached and they will give us a good fight. Last year, down here it was a one run ballgame and I fully expect a tight game again this year. Tournament time it is one and done. The seniors play extra hard and you hope the underclassmen play just as hard to go along with them to keep their season going,” said Gottfried.

Published 5/09/19

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Mitch Dulin pitched six strong innings and helped himself with a hit and two RBI as Clear Fork sowed up no less than a share of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference baseball title with a (7-3) win over Marion Harding Tuesday evening at American Legion Field.

They can claim it outright with a win at Marion Harding on Wednesday. If they do, the Colts would win the conference in football, boys’ basketball and baseball.

“We have ourselves a piece. Mitch came out and did a great job on the mound competing for us. He pitched to contact and gave us everything he had. We were able to get him some run support and play some defense behind him,” said coach Joe Staab.

The Presidents loaded the bases on three hits in the top of the first inning, but Dulin got Sam Mitchell to pop up to end the threat. He gave up nine hits, but he only walked one and threw less than 70 pitches on the day. “He was pretty efficient on the mound and that is what happens when he is able to throw strikes and they are putting the ball in play and we aren’t kicking the ball around behind him,” Staab told Swankonsports.com after the win, “When we are able to field the ball, throw the baseball and play good defense behind good pitching, good things are going to happen. We have to make sure our offense continues to roll.”

The Colts had only one error.

A.J. Blubaugh singled with one out in the bottom of the first, advanced on wild pitch, and scored on Dulin’s single to give Clear Fork a (1-0) lead. It became (2-0) in the bottom of the second when Caden Flynn and Brad Johnson executed a double steal with Johnson scoring.

Marion Harding would tie it (2-2) in the fifth when Gabe Detwiler doubled in a run and then scored on a wild pitch. However, the Colts retook the lead (3-2) when Flynn and Blubaugh started the bottom of fifth with singles and Flynn scored on Dulin’s sacrifice fly.

Staab says it is big to respond like that. “That is the most important when a team scores you have to try and score. You have to win every inning. It is a simple game, you are going to win the ball game. Hopefully, that is our approach, especially if we throw up a zero we definitely want to tack on the next inning,” he said.

Clear Fork failed to add more in the fifth when they botched a suicide squeeze and had a runner thrown out at the plate trying to score form second on a single. “We missed some signs. We missed some executions. When we have a runner on third base with less than two outs, we have to definitely make sure that we plate that run. It’s too important,” said Staab.

The Colts had two hits, stole four bases, they had nine in all, and Harding had two errors and a passed ball, which led to four Clear Fork runs in the sixth and pretty much put the game away.

Staab says they were able to put some pressure on Harding. “In the sixth inning we were fortunate to get some things rolling and capitalize on a couple of passed balls and a couple of their mistakes. When you have guys on and are putting pressure on the defense. Putting enough pressure for them to make mistakes, if you are able to execute and capitalize on that, it is a good day for you,” said Staab.

Published 5/08/19

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Clear Fork maintained a slim one game lead on Ontario, Galion and Buckeye Valley in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference baseball standings with an (11-8) win over Marion Pleasant on Wednesday evening.

Ontario and Galion were to play each other on Wednesday, but didn’t due to rain and wet field conditions. Buckeye Valley is leading Shelby (9-0) in a game that was suspended.

The Colts only scored 4 runs last week in three games, they even beat Ontario is a game where they had no hits, but Wednesday coach Joe Staab says they had a better plan at the plate. “(Wednesday) we showed a better approach at the plate and put the ball in play harder. Went up there with a little more confidence. We were able to get the job done offensively. I think we had more hits (Wednesday) than we had the last two weeks combined, so that was something that was nice to see,” he said.

Clear Fork (13-5,8-3), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, still has three “MOAC” games to play and they are probably going to have to win them all to be outright champion. They are supposed to host Pleasant (8-11,4-7) on Thursday, but the weather doesn’t look good. They play Marion Harding (11-8,5-5) May 7 and 8.

Staab hopes the hitting they got on Wednesday carries through to next week and beyond. “Hopefully, we can build off that at the plate. I understand some times there are a couple of kids go into a slump, but it seems like the entire lineup went into a slump at the exact same time,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night after the win, “It is hard to win a game when you are either getting no hit or one hit in a game. That is kind of where we stood. (Wednesday) we broke out of that a little bit and hopefully that is something that will continue on in the upcoming games.”

Speaking of rain, that has been a factor over the last week, including Wednesday when it rained pretty much the last three innings. Staab says you can’t let that bother you. “There are different frustrations with the ball being wet or just the conditions, especially on the mound. It was something that both teams had to deal with. It is nothing you can complain about. You just have to come out and be mentally focused and stay mentally tough and go out there and compete. We were fortunately able to do that (Wednesday.) It got a little messy towards the end of the game, but we able to keep a lead. Our offense was what helped us,” said Staab.

Published 5/02/19

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Back to back wins over arch rival Ontario this week has kept the Clear Fork Lady Colts in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference softball race, two games behind leader Marion Pleasant.

They play Pleasant twice next week.

Ashtynn Roberts shut out Ontario (6-0) on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Lady Colts scored five times in the third inning to take control and were able to hold off Ontario (7-5) at home.

Ontario scored on a passed ball and a single by Carleigh Pearson to take a (2-0) lead in the first.

However, the Lady Colts got busy in the third on a two run single by Carson Crowner and RBI singles by Courtney Palmer, Brook Robinson and Hallie Gottfried to take a (5-2) lead.

Ontario cut it to (5-4) in the fifth on RBI hits by Halle Ciroli and Corinne Fanello.

Again, Clear Fork responded with two in their half of the sixth on a RBI hit by Roberts and a run on an Ontario error.

The final run of the game Wednesday came on a Ciroli homer in the seventh.

Veteran Clear Fork coach Jeff Gottfried says this week they were able to pick up two very important wins. “I think you can call them gut check wins. We had to kind of dig deep and look ourselves in the mirror and say what do we need to do to make things happen and end up on the top end of the scoreboard. We were able to do it the last two nights. It was a struggle (Tuesday) night with a lot of wind blowing in, so we had to kind of small ball it to scratch across a couple of runs and (Wednesday) night we had a big inning,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening after the win, “We got down 2-0 in the first and were able to put a five spot on the board in the third. It took us all three pitchers to get us through the ball game (Wednesday.) We have talked about it all year it takes the whole staff and not just one kid to carry the load for us with as young a pitching staff as we have. They all kind of stepped in and did their part and it is nice to get a quality win.”

There are five really good softball teams in the “MOAC” with Pleasant, Clear Fork, Ontario, Galion, who beat Clear Fork twice last week, and River Valley.

Gottfried says you have to play well if your going to win in this conference. “North Union was a part of it a year ago and they were head and shoulders above everybody else and we were all kind of fighting for second place. Now that they are out of the conference it is still a very, very good softball conference. You have to bring your “A” game every single night or the team in the other dugout is good enough to beat you. We put ourselves in a good position with two weeks to go. We control our own destiny with two losses. We have given ourselves a chance with two weeks to go,” he said.

Clear Fork (16-4,8-2) plays at home against Marion Pleasant (17-2,10-0) next Tuesday and then travels to Pleasant the next day.

Gottfried says they have given themselves a chance to get back level with the Lady Spartans, who would then play Ontario the final week of the regular season, while Clear Fork plays last place Marion Harding.

Clear Fork has the ability to score with their bunting and speed or their power and Gottfried says that gives them some options. “We have a very balanced lineup. We have kids in the middle that can drive in some runs. Hit some doubles, triples, and homers. We also have some speed at the top end and the bottom end. We are a threat to score some runs, even though lately we have struggled to score some runs. Once we get rolling it’s high school athletics and once the momentum gets flowing on your side it seems like nobody can make an out. It is nice to see that big five run inning (Wednesday) it has been a while since we have had a crooked number like that,” said Gottfried.

Published 4/25/19

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What a difference 24 hours makes.

Tuesday, Clear Fork lost (6-2) Ontario a fell into a four way tie for first place in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with Ontario, Galion, and Buckeye Valley.

On Wednesday, the Colts beat Ontario (2-1) at American Legion Field, Shelby beat Galion (10-2) and Marion Harding beat Buckeye Valley (3-1) and the Colts stand alone in the top spot in the conference.

And the way they won was pretty unusual as well. They beat Ontario Wednesday without the benefit of a hit. Their runs came on passed balls.

Coach Joe Staab says they played well enough in the other phases to come out on top. “We had no hits at the plate. Credit to Ontario’s pitching, who threw strikes, kept us off balance, and had us uncomfortable in the batter’s box. Fortunately, we were able to pitch it well enough and play defense well enough to keep us in the ballgame. We scratched a couple of runs and were able to come away with the win,” said Staab.’

Staab is still a young man, in his late 20’s, but he has played and coached a lot of baseball. He says this was a new experience for him. “I have not been on a side where two passed balls count as your runs and not recording a hit. I haven’t seen that very often, but fortunately enough we were able to pitch it well enough and play defense and keep us in the game. We were able to take advantage of a couple of mistakes and were able to come away on top in this one,” he said.

Pitching and defense were the difference for the Colts. Starting pitcher Mitch Dulin is coming back from Tommy John surgery in the fall of 2017 and Staab says he was a bulldog on Wednesday evening. “Mitch went five innings for us an did really well. He kept us in the game the whole time. He had some situations where he was dealing with some adversity with the bases loaded or runners in scoring position. We were able to have them put the ball in play and get out of it. We were able to keep him on the mound out there. Through the first couple of innings his pitch count was pretty low, but in those innings where they started to threaten us it started to climb. He was able to give us five strong innings,” said Staab.

Dylan Jewell finished up by pitching the last two innings.

Clear Fork (11-4,7-3), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, plays Marion Pleasant next week and Marion Harding on the final two weeks of the regular season.

Staab says everything is up to them. “We control our own destiny. It is a situation where you don’t have to worry about what other people have to do or worry about another team beating somebody, all you have to do is come out and control you own destiny and come out and play you best baseball and win. If you are competing for a league championship you have to win. There is nothing else we can really do, the ball is in our court,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “ If we show up and play our best seven innings and compete for seven innings that is all we can ask, but if we don’t compete for seven innings then it is not going to be a conversation our name is going to be in.”

Published 4/25/19

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Lefthander Noah Creed went the distance and Ontario scored four times in the first inning and went on to defeat Clear Fork (6-2) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference baseball game on Tuesday evening and in the process moved into a share of first place in the conference.

Shelby helped out by beating Galion (7-3) on Tuesday. Ontario, Clear Fork, and Galion share the “MOAC” lead.

Creed tossed a two hitter for the Warriors, only getting in serious trouble in the sixth.

The Warriors got on the board with four in the first on a RBI single by Griffin Shaver and three run single to right by Sam Sayre, both coming with two outs off Clear Fork starter A.J. Blubaugh.

Ontario coach Jeff Fisher says it was Creed’s best performance on the mound at the varsity level. “The name of the day was Noah Creed. It was one of those things that he is a guy that has pitched in the past, but it was little league and 13-U. Guys like him and others on our staff have taken some time to kind of get their feet wet and go beyond that,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “So, you didn’t necessarily see the warts and it was a tough start there previous to (Tuesday) night. The biggest thing is he wants the ball and is a competitor and when it comes to baseball he is a winner.”

Creed struck out three and he induced 12 ground balls, of which the Warriors fielded almost flawlessly. “That has been the one consistent thing every night out we have been pretty solid there. We might flip a couple, it is high school, but on the whole I wouldn’t trade my defense for any other group,” said Fisher.

Creed himself had the two Ontario errors on the day.

Third baseman Matt Weaver had four assists in the game. Fisher says he has been outstanding. “Matt Weaver is another guy that is a comeback kid and boy he can pick it. It is one of those things where you have to complete the play and (Tuesday) he made every throw. He makes sometimes the difficult plays look routine and the routine ones for the most part we have made those,” said Fisher.

Ontario added two runs in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI ground out by Shaver and Caden Armstrong’s straight steal of home to make it (6-0) Warriors. The Colts only hit the ball out of the infield four times on the day, three of those coming in their two run sixth.

Coach Joe Staab says they weren’t ready to play. “We didn’t break a no hitter until the sixth inning. Credit their pitcher, he was pitching to contact and throwing the ball across the plate. I feel like we just didn’t come with enough urgency and energy to come and play the baseball game,” said Staab.

Offensively, the first inning was key for the Warriors. Fisher says they waited on their pitch. “Getting his pitch count up was big. We came away with four, but even if we didn’t score I thought it was a good inning. It is important to score first and go from there,” he said.

Staab feels if they had not botched a strikeout, wild pitch, attempt the throw the runner out at first play, they would have been out of the inning. “They got three runs off that base hit, but even just getting to that situation they kept it going. I think A.J. had close to a 30 pitch inning the first inning. We should have been out of that inning in possibly 10 pitches,” he said.

Defense has been a trouble spot of the Colts this season.

Ontario (9-6,6-3) is at Clear Fork (10-4,6-3), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll, on Wednesday for the second game of the series.

Fisher believes they are playing with more confidence. “We have been scoring with two outs most of the year. The thing about it is I think our guys and becoming more fearless, not matter what role they are in they are excepting it. Listen, we got kicked down at Myrtle Beach, it wasn’t pretty, we are hopeful this kind of no fear mentality continues,” said Fisher.

Published 4/24/19

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Ryan Utz’s grand slam home run punctuated a seven run seventh inning and Galion railed to beat Clear Fork (7-5) and take first place to itself in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference.

Galion had eight errors, two of them in the first inning, giving Clear Fork a (1-0) lead, but coach Phil Jackson says they never game up. “That was an amazing seventh inning. Win or lose that was a great game to be a part of. I was already proud of our kids for never giving up and fighting the whole time,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We just found a way to win with good at bats at the end. Good things happen when you get baserunners and they go to their bullpen. We had confidence.”

Galion worked three walks and Clear Fork had an error and a wild pitch leading to three Galion runs in the seventh before the slam. Jackson says they got some good at bats and made the Clear Fork pitchers throw strikes. “That was the plan going in to make them work ahead and if they can’t then we are in the driver’s seat. Even earlier against Mitch (Dulin) he kept us off balance and we were putting the ball in play. There weren’t a crazy ton of strikeouts, but the at bats got better and better as they game went on and that was the difference in the end,” said Jackson.

Clear Fork’s Dylan Jewell entered the game in relief and in an attempt to get the save but, Utz unloaded on a high fastball on his fist pitch. “That was the first home run of my high school career and it couldn’t have come at a better time,” said Utz.

Jackson adds that Utz and Jewell have a lot of familiarity. “These kids know each other. The played fall ball together in Galion. Jewell played for us at Galion and I sure there is a little extra rivalry, but he is a very good pitcher and I am sure we are going to see him (Wednesday.) Ryan jumped on that first pitch and that was special,” said Jackson.

Clear Fork coach Joe Staab says failed to make the plays they needed to have in that fateful seventh inning. “Credit goes to Galion, coach Jackson, and their team, for competing for the full game. We came out and just made too many mistakes in that inning and they took advantage of it,” he said.

The Colts leading (1-0) scored three times in the fifth on an RBI double by Brandon Patterson and two run single by Caden Flynn. They added another in the sixth to make it (5-0) heading to the seventh and appeared to be in control.

Mitch Dulin started the game for Clear Fork and he went to first five allowing one hit, one walk and striking our six.

Staab then went to the bullpen with David Ballinger to start the sixth. Staab says Dulin did what was asked of him. “He did his job. He was at his number of pitches that he was given. He gave us a great game. He did his part and his time was done,” said Staab.

Dulin had Tommy John surgery in the fall of 2017 and did not pitch at all last spring.

Ballinger struck out two and retired the Tigers 1-2-3 in the sixth, but the seventh was another story as he walked three and gave up a couple hits before giving way to Jewell.

Clear Fork also left some runners on, stranding 12 runners in the game. “We had a number of opportunities to tack on more insurance runs and win the game. We had guys on base. We just weren’t competing well at the plate and couldn’t that big hit that we have been getting. We had some opportunities to win and weren’t able to take advantage,” said Staab.

Galion (11-1,6-1), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, hosts Clear Fork (9-2,5-2), #2 in our poll, on Wednesday at their place.

Jackson says they better be ready. “That is what spring sports are all about, especially varsity baseball, you just never know. You never know, you just show up to the park ready to play and you hope it’s enough,” he said.

Published 4/17/19

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Jerry and Jan Marshall, former teachers in the Clear Fork Valley Schools, moved to Colorado Springs last year to be closer to their son Steve and his family, but they have never forgotten where they came from.

If there is anyone who follows Colt sports from far away more than the Marshalls, I don’t know who they are and this past weekend they got the rare opportunity to see a couple of alumni in Colorado Springs.

Lane Leedy is the coach of the Black Hills State Yellow Jackets women’s softball team and Darian Gottfried is a sophomore this year for coach Leedy. Darian is one of the Yellow Jackets pitchers, seeing most of her action in relief this season.

Well, the Marshalls were able to make it to the Sunday’s game and Leedy says it was quite the surprise. “We were in the third inning of our fourth game of the weekend and I turned around and Jerry Marshall’s face is one of a kind and he was smiling at me just standing right behind the dugout. He said, hey coach. For anybody seeing people that you don’t always see in special places like Colorado Springs or far off lands is a shock at first and then your heart gets warm and fuzzy and all wonderful. They are just such great people and love the valley so much,” she told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “Their support has always been there for me no matter what part of my journey I have been on. Whether I was a collegiate athlete or now as a collegiate coach. Anytime you see him he knows exactly what you are doing and how you are doing it. It is an amazing thing. I think the most endearing part was they just knew we were down there and they showed up. It was an awesome moment.”

Jan has been dealing with some serious health issues over the last couple of years and Lane says she didn’t know if she would be able to see her this time, but low and behold when the game ended, there she was. “It has been a year since I have seen them. They came to our series last year at UCCS. This one was a surprise to me and I don’t surprise really well. I like to consider myself a pretty tough cookie and pretty good at keeping my emotions in check and this one got to me, especially because I didn’t think I was going to get to see Jan, or Mrs. Marshall as everyone else knows her, and the next think I know Darian and Jerry are bringing her down to the field and it was just overwhelming. Yes, I got emotional and I don’t like to admit it, but yeah, it was a moment I won’t ever forget,” said Leedy.

I can’t blame her, I got a little teary eyed just writing this and I wasn’t even there.

There has not been a couple that has shown more love for the students, myself among them, that have come through Clear Fork Schools than the Marshalls.

Published 4/16/19

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Clear Fork put together its third win of the week as they beat Hillsdale (6-2) in non-conference baseball game on Thursday in the valley.

Pitching depth has been a key for the Colts this season and coach Joe Staab says that was evident again on Thursday. “We were fortunate enough that our pitchers were able to come out and throw strikes and pound the zone and be efficient on the mound and we were able to play good defense behind them,” he said.

Defense was erratic early on for the Colts, but Staab says they have been able to improve in that area. “The defense has gotten better. We are starting to get some guys some consistent reps playing at the speed of the varsity game and things like that and not pressing so much. Just fielding and throwing the baseball, so things are starting to click,” he said.

With only one loss it has been a good season so far for the Colts, but Staab says they can get better. He says they need to execute for a full seven innings in the ballgame. “Just competing for seven innings. That is the biggest thing we need to work on. Bringing the urgency and bringing the game to the other team for seven innings straight and not taking an inning off or playing only four or five out of seven innings. Just competing for a full game,” Staab told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night.

Clear Fork (7-1), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, plays host to Lexington and Clyde on Saturday at their place. Staab says a tough schedule benefits them. “One thing that is really nice is baseball in this area is so competitive. There are a lot of good teams and quality teams, quality coaches and programs. It is nice with the teams in this area that we are able to compete and keep that tough schedule going on,” said Staab.

Published 4/12/19

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Clear Fork went to River Valley and beat the Vikings (7-3) on Wednesday to remain in a share of first place with Galion in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference baseball standings.

Galion beat Marion Harding (10-5) on Wednesday. The co-leaders play each other twice next week. Ontario knocked Buckeye Valley out of a share of first place by basting the Barons (16-5) on Wednesday.

Clear Fork coach Joe Staab says they have to keep their focus. “We just have to keep playing better baseball day by day. Keep things clicking as a team and finding ways to win,” he said.

Staab admits that focus wasn’t there at the beginning the game at River Valley on Wednesday. “It took us a little bit. I took us a few innings to get it going (Wednesday) and then we had a big inning,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “In the beginning of the game we were kicking the ball around a little and kind of playing on our heels and didn’t bring the game to them like we did on (Tuesday.) It was a good learning experience that you just can’t sleep on anyone in the game of baseball. You have to show up and compete for seven innings.”

The Colts hammered River Valley (14-2) on Tuesday at home.

Clear Fork (6-1,5-1), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, plays Hillsdale of the Wayne County League on Thursday and then Lexington and Clyde on Saturday in non-conference games.

Staab believes his team continues to get better in all three phases of the game. “I think things are starting to click. Our pitchers are throwing strikes and pitching to contact. We are starting to play defense behind them. At the plate we are starting to get a better aggressive mentality and having more confidence. All we can do each day is compete game in and game out and the wins and losses will take care of themselves. We just have to control what we can control,” said Staab.

Coming into this week Clear Fork pitchers A.J. Blubaugh and Mitch Dulin both had 0.00 ERA’s and starter Brad Johnson and reliver Dylan Jewell both pitched well at River Valley on Wednesday.

Staab believes their pitchers are going to give them a chance to win every night out. “We thought at the beginning of the year that we had a pitching staff that was going to be able to keep us in games and it would be up to our offense and defense to win those games and so far it is holding up true. Games that we have won we have had good pitching, we have been able to scratch some runs, and make some plays behind them,” he said.

Published 4/11/19

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Clear Fork maintained its share of the lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference softball standings with a big (3-0) win over River Valley at home on Tuesday evening.

Sophomore Maddy Wine went all seven innings allowing only two hits and striking out five on the night.

Coach Jeff Gottfried says it was an important win for the Lady Colts. “You have a two game series with every team in the conference. We started this one at home. As I explained to the girls you have to defend home turf. It is always going to be tuff going on the road, so if you get a chance to start at home like we did (Tuesday) night we have to take care of business. We did a great job defensively and our pitching was just outstanding. We scored enough runs, scratched a few across and make it stand up,” he said.

Clear Fork (9-0,5-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com softball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at River Valley (6-3,3-2), #2 in our poll, on Wednesday. Ontario beat Buckeye Valley (14-2) and Marion Pleasant downed Shelby (6-2) to remain in a share of first with Clear Fork.

Carson Crowner started the bottom of the first with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly by Brooke Robinson. Hallie Miller provided some insurance with a two run homer in the sixth.

Gottfried says the took advantage of their opportunities on Tuesday. “The wind was blowing straight in from leftfield and I knew conditions there were not going to bode well for a high scoring game and I knew they were a solid team with solid pitching. We lead off the game with a double and I am playing small ball, we have to get a run on the board. We were able to lay down a bunt single and we get a sac fly out of it. We only got one run, but that gave us a start,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “We were able to make it hold up until the sixth inning. We got another lead off base hit and (Hallie) Miller got into one and into the wind got it over the fence. Our pitching and defense was solid all night long.”

Wine was tremendous on Tuesday and Gottfried says they played very good defense behind her as well. “The biggest thing was to make the other team hit their way on and hopefully not make too many mistakes defensively. We only had one error on the night and actually turned a 5-4-3 double play. Our kids were just very solid. Kaitlin Wuertz in right field made some nice plays. She had an outfield assist on a fielder’s choice. It should have been a base hit, but she attacked the ball hard and threw the girl out at second base and caught a ball down the line. I was just pleased with how we played as an entire team,” said Gottfried.

Published 4/10/19

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Clear Fork did it with speed, power and pitching on Wednesday as they hammered Buckeye Valley (13-3) in six innings in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Wednesday played in the valley.

The Lady Colts (7-0,4-0) got home runs from Carson Crowner and Haylie Miller plus six stolen bases in the game and they maintain a share of first place in the conference with Ontario, a (13-3) winner over Shelby and Marion Pleasant, who beat Marion Harding (11-1) on Wednesday. Galion handed River Valley their first conference loss (6-5) in the other game.

Freshman Ashtyn Roberts went the distance for the Lady Colts, striking out seven and giving up just one walk. She allowed three runs, two of them earned, on eight hits.

Crowner opened the game with a home run over the left centerfield fence to lead off the bottom of the first and Lady Colts added two more to take a (3-0) lead. “It’s nice to see the offense break out in the first inning and get three runs on the board. It kind of allows you to relax a little bit, especially playing at home. They are really comfortable playing here. It was nice to tack on runs after that as well. We kept scoring all of the way to the end, putting up 13 for the game, which was really pleasing,” said Clear Fork coach Jeff Gottfried.

It was (8-1) Clear Fork after three innings, as the Lady Colts put up five in the third with runs scoring on a wild pitch, a passed ball and a double steal.

Gottfried says they want to be aggressive. “That is our style, we know that. We don’t want to go base to base, we are thinking two bases every single time. Sometimes you can force defenses to make some mistakes when you do that. That’s our style and that is the way we do it,” he said.

Kaitlin Wuertz and Crowner also had RBI in the third.

Crowner was spectacular on Wednesday with four hits, the homer, a double and two singles. She stole three bases and made some nice plays in centerfield too. “She is our tone setter at the top of the order. People think she is tagging up and leaving early, no she is just that fast. She sets the tone for our team and just let’s everybody know we are going to get after it. She is very good at that and she has been doing it for three years,” said Gottfried.

Roberts isn’t very big, but she throws hard and keeps the ball down. Gottfried says he has no problem giving the ball to a kid in her first year in high school. “We have all the confidence in the world in her. She has two saves on the year. We feel we have a good 1-2 combo with Maddy Wine as a sophomore and Ashtyn as a freshman. We will throw them out there in the fire. We are going to score some runs for them, we will have to, because they are going to give up some runs. Like I said, getting ahead allows them to relax a little bit. I though she handled herself really well,” said Gottfried.

Published 4/04/19

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Clear Fork maintained a share of first place in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference by beating Buckeye Valley (7-3) on Wednesday in a game that was played at Ohio Wesleyan University.

The Colts are tied for first with Galion, who beat River Valley (2-1) on Wednesday.

Clear Fork had lost (7-2) to Barons on Tuesday and coach Joe Staab says it was important for them to get right back on the beam. “We know that this year the conference is going to be very competitive and if you lose the first one, the one thing you can’t do is get swept. The boys did a good job of bouncing back and competing well (Wednesday) night and we were able to walk away with the win,” said Staab.

The Colts play River Valley in their conference series next week.

Clear Fook has three pitchers with ERA’s under two in A.J. Blubaugh, Mitch Dulin and Brad Johnson. Staab says they have good stuff, but wants them to stay ahead in counts. “If our pitchers are throwing strikes and we are playing defense behind them we are going to give ourselves a chance. We just have to make sure our pitchers are pitching to contact and not overthrowing. Starting out with first pitch strikes and getting in good pitcher’s counts and not working behind from 2-0 or 3-1 counts,” he said.

Staab says they don’t always have to make the perfect pitch, depending on the situation. “It is more of a mental game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “You have to let them trust their stuff and not necessarily try to overpower anybody and use their defense instead of going out there and trying to fan 10 or 12, try and pitch to contact and keep your defense engaged in the game and drive you pitch count lower by trying not to strike everybody out.”

Clear Fork leadoff hitter Caden Flynn is hitting around .500 with four stolen bases. He announced on Wednesday that he will be playing football next fall at Marietta College. He was one of the better wide outs and kick returners in North Central Ohio last fall.

Staab says with Flynn and Johnson, who has six steals, they can put some pressure on other teams. “That is the thing with us this year, we have to go up to the plate and have confidence. We not going to necessarily have guys that are going to put the ball over outfielders’ heads. We are just going up there trying to make solid contact and put the ball in play hard and see what happens,” he said.

Published 4/04/19

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Brad Johnson’s two out, two run single in the top of the seventh inning gave Clear Fork a (6-4) win over Shelby in another hotly contested Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Wednesday.

They had beaten Shelby (10-9) on Tuesday, scoring in the seventh to win. “Fortunately enough, we have a few guys that are rallying together. We have gotten three wins that haven’t been too pretty. We have to keep battling. We have to put together seven quality innings of baseball,” said Clear Fork coach Joe Staab.

Cayden Flynn walked and A.J. Blubaugh got an infield hit to start the seventh and they came home on Johnson’s game winner. “He did a really good job stepping up. He had a big hit (Tuesday.) He hadn’t been too great at the plate (Wednesday,) but stuck with it and had a focus in the seventh inning came up with a big, clutch hit for us,” said Staab.

Clear Fork scored three runs in the top of the first inning, two unearned, but Shelby batted around in the second to take a (4-3) lead. The Colts tied it (4-4) in the fifth when Flynn scored on a ball it by Dylan Jewell, headed to Heidelberg next year to play college baseball, and then booted by the Whippets.

Whippets coach Jon Amicone says to lose games like this are tough, but he knows his team will respond. “It is about as brutal as it gets. You lose with two outs in the seventh two nights in a row it is a tough pill to swallow. Like I told our guys after the game (Wednesday) I am extremely impressed with their competitive nature and how focused they are and two games does not make a season. We didn’t execute,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “We didn’t execute the bunt in the sixth. Three unearned runs against a Clear Fork team you are just not going to win. Clear Fork eventually with their bats is going to get you. When you think Clear Fork, you think offense. I was proud of Blaze’s (Caudill) effort. He threw a lot of strikes for us and competed extremely hard, but they just got that one extra hit, just like (Tuesday) night.”

Blubaugh came in in the fourth to relieve starter Mitch Dulin and kept the Whippets off the scoreboard the rest of the way. He fielded Shelby bunts twice in the sixth and threw runners out at third base, defusing a possible Shelby rally. He struck out the last two batters of the game. “We have four seniors that are very talented on the mound. We are going to look to them in these conference games and look to develop some other guys and get them some innings. We are going to have to ride our horses in the conference,” said Staab.

Errors hurt the Colts on Wednesday, especially in the Whippets big second inning and Staab says they have to fix that. “We are near 20 errors in three games. We have to do a better job of taking care of the baseball. Coach Amicone did a great job, he has a great program and a great team. They brought the game to us both games. When you set back and play on your heels and not take the game to them the game doesn’t work out in your favor. We have to do a better job of playing seven quality innings of baseball,” he said.

Maybe the best part of the Colts so far has been their resiliency. “We are still competing late in the game even when we are behind. If we are able to play better baseball and have better defense behind good pitching we will be on the better side of things,” he said.

Published 3/28/19

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Clear Fork had 19 hits and scored in every inning and they hammered Shelby (16-4) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference softball game played Wednesday evening at Shelby.

Ninth place hitter Kaitlin Wuertz had five singles, Maddy Wine had four with three RBI and leadoff hitter Carson Crowner had three hits, two of them doubles, and four RBI of the Lady Colts.

Clear Fork scored six runs in the first two innings and coach Jeff Gottfried says they were able to keep the pressure on. “Looking back at the scrimmages last week, I wasn’t sure we were going to score five in any game and we have been in double digits all three games. I told the girls in the circle there when you score runs every inning it is hard for a team to come back. It is just constant pressure. The crooked numbers make it stand out too. We have gotten a good start. We have won two in the conference and that is the most important thing. We told them we have to finish off the week. We have two more games to keep getting better every day,” said Gottfried.

The Lady Colts scored eight runs in the last three innings.

Shelby (1-3,0-2) scored twice in the second and cut the deficit to (6-3,) but coach Natalie Huggins says they are going through some of the growing pains that young teams do. “It just part of the growing pains we are going through right now. We have underclassmen up the middle. We have an underclassman behind the plate. We don’t have very many kids in the same position that we did last year. Clear Fork is a great team, they are a perennial powerhouse, we know that. We knew we were going to face a great team,” she told Swankonsports.com after the game, “We weren’t thrilled when we got our schedule and found out we were going to open the “MOAC” with them. That’s fine, we want to face top competition. To be the best, you have to beat the best and we didn’t beat the best (Wednesday) night. Hats off the Clear Fork, Jeff and Kerri always have them ready to play. We are alright, we just have to work through some things and grow up a little bit.”

Before the season started Gottfried felt he had three pitchers he could turn too and two saw action of Wednesday. Maddy Wine started the game and went two innings and was relieved by freshman Ashtynn Roberts who went the final five innings, giving up only three hits and struck out seven. “Maddy started the game out and they saw her for about five innings (Tuesday.) So, I felt early on they were on her. Ashton is going to keep the ball down a little more and she did (Wednesday) night and got some good ground balls. She pitched really well for a freshman,” said Gottfried.

Clear Fork (3-0,2-0) hosts Highland Thursday and Lexington on Friday in non-conference games. Their league series next week is against Buckeye Valley.

Gottfried says they have to grow too. “Just everything. Defensively, we have to communicate a little better on things. We have misjudged a few fly balls here and there. The biggest thing is getting ahead in the count. We pitched behind in the count a few times and we got hit hard. The kids know that, the most important pitch is strike one. They are having fun, but don’t give any at bats away and just keep working at the craft,” he said.

Published 3/28/19

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Clear Fork has advanced to the state tournament in two of the last three years and they lost in the division two district final last year.

This year they can be pretty good too.

“We have some talent returning. We have got some kids that can play. Hopefully, we have some underclassmen step up and have a good year,” said coach Joe Staab.

Senior A.J. Blubaugh is headed to Wisconsin-Milwaukee next year as a pitcher, but Staab says he will still do a lot of catching for the Colts. “Last year, we really needed A.J. behind the plate and this year we have a couple of underclassmen that came in that we think can do a good job behind the plate,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “A.J. I think is still going to be our conference guy behind the plate, but we want to work him out from being a catcher as much as we can, so he is definitely going to get a lot more innings on the mound. One thing is when you have a pitcher like A.J. that goes from different arm slots and has some good velocity you also have to find a kid that can catch him.”

With or without Blubaugh on the mound, Staab says the Colts are going to have a lot of depth on their staff. “We have some good pitchers. We have four seniors that can really do well on the mound. They compete really well and give you a chance to win a game when they are on the mound. We have four seniors that are pretty talented and then a couple underclassmen that are going to be in the mix also,” he said.

When it comes to hitting the ball, Staab says that is kind of a work in progress. “Right now, we have gotten a lot of work in the barn. We will see in the scrimmages and the beginning of the season to see what we can do to string some hits together and put some runs on the board,” he said.

Ontario is the defending Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champion, but Staab feels they can be a factor in the “MOAC” this season, the Colts, of course, won the title in football and boys’ basketball. “I think that if our pitchers can throw strikes and pitch to contact and we don’t kick the ball around like we did sometimes last year that we have a good chance to be in the mix and be in the race. There are going to be some very, very good teams returning with Ontario and Buckeye Valley, I think they are going to be very strong this year, then they added Shelby to the league. It is going to be a competitive league. We just have to show up and play the best seven innings that we can,” said Staab.

Published 3/19/19

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The young kids that played for Clear Fork on the softball diamond last year are a year older and they are better and that is going to a plus for the Lady Colts.

However, coach Jeff Gottfried says they have some positions that need to be filled too. He likes what sees. “With our squad we have a lot of returning players from a year ago, but as I have told them it is a new year. It is time to reset the reset button and create a new identity. We had some seniors that played some vital roles for us a year ago. We had a first baseman, third baseman, as well as an outfielder that were starters, so those three are gone. Those positions will have to be replaced. I think our kids are a little bit older. You are more mature and I see some differences in terms of attitudes and things like that. Things are started, even before the year, headed in the right direction. I am really pleased with that so far,” he said.

There is a preseason for spring sports, but many times it takes place almost exclusively inside and Gottfried says players have to be ready to make that transition. “We start in February and you look outside and there is six inches of snow on the ground and it is 15 degrees out and you are thinking what the heck are we doing. All of the sudden the weather is going to break for you are you have to be ready for it because the calendar says you are supposed to be playing games whether you look outside and it looks that way or not. The preparation, at least in the northern states is very difficult for us, because everything is done indoors. Some have better facilities that others. We make the best of what we have. We have to share things with our basketball programs, baseball, softball, track. I know when we started the first week track season started we had everybody inside because it was too cold for them to get out on the track. You have to kind of make the best of the situations. Get better every single day. Just something little, whether its is ground balls or hitting mechanics. Make yourself better today than you were yesterday and when the season starts hopefully you are ready to go,” said Gottfried.

This spring, Gottfried believes they can rely on more than one pitcher and that is going to help a lot. “We are still young in that capacity. I don’t have a senior on our pitching staff, but what we do have is some experience. Last year, I had some younger kids throwing. Specifically, Mattie Wine was probably our workhorse and she was a freshman, definitely wet behind the ears and kind of dear in the headlight looks quite a few times. She is going to go into this year a whole lot more comfortable in that spot. I have a junior also on our pitching staff in Felicity Murphy and she got some experience in out tournament game. She pitched predominantly JV for us last year and we got to the tournament game and we needed some help there and we threw her out there. She had played travel ball for me for years, so she was very comfortable playing for me, it was just a unique situation where she hadn’t pitched on varsity all year. She did very well, so she has that experience,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We have a newcomer on our varsity staff in Ashton Roberts, a freshman, and she has played some travel ball as well. It will be all new for her like it was for Mattie Wine a year ago. I feel like we have a staff this year. Last year, was okay, we are going to go raw as we can be and kind of ride somebody as long as we can. I feel like we can use all three of those kids. They will help each other as the season goes along, I have no doubt in that.”

Published 3/15/19

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Clear Fork, the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champion, plays Mansfield Senior, the co-champion of the Ohio Cardinal Conference, is a division two sectional final on Friday night at Bucyrus High School.

The Colts (19-4), #4 in the final Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, beat Bellevue (63-56) in a semifinal on Wednesday night. Mansfield Senior (18-4), #2 in our poll, followed that up with a (73-24) destruction of Port Clinton.

Mansfield Senior played 15 guys on Wednesday night and Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel says they have tremendous depth. “They have a lot of guys. Whoever they start, when they sub, they don’t lose a whole lot either. They bring more speed off the bench, more athleticism, and similar styled guys they have that start. That is a concern, obviously, but it something we are just going to have to deal with on Friday,” he said.

The Tygers forced Port Clinton into 28 turnovers on Wednesday night. Bechtel says his kids have to be strong and decisive with the ball. “We have to be strong with the basketball. You have to know anytime you catch it, they are going to be on you right away. When you do catch the basketball, we have to focused on what we want to do with the basketball, whether it is dribble or pass it, be ready to score it. The offensive glass is a huge part of what they do and how successful they have been over the years,” said Bechtel.

A lot of the Mansfield Senior players have similar skills, but Quan Hilory, a first team all-district coaches association selection, is a little different. Bechtel says he has great range on his jump shot. “He shoots the ball deep, so we have to make sure we locate him at all times, and make sure we get an hand up, because when your hands are down, he will release it. It doesn’t matter if he is five, six, even seven feet behind the arc. So, we just have to make sure we know where is at, making sure he is shooting over a contested hand. Then we have to go out and rebound that basketball,” he said.

Mansfield Senior beat Clear Fork (67-57) in last year’s tournament, plus the Clear Fork players have a lot of other experiences playing the Tygers. Bechtel says maybe the most important things is to be able to adjust to their speed. “I just feel being familiar with them the biggest adjustment we will have to make in the first initial two to three minutes at the beginning the game is adjusting to their speed. Their closing speed, how they close out, how they are up on you right away. That will be a huge key, how we adjust,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “You can’t simulate that practice. I don’t think we have really seen that all year. We have had a lot of guys get up and pressure us, just not the way Senior High is used to doing it. I think our guys are going to be prepared. They are going to be ready for the challenge. We hope we end up with more points than they do.”

Published 3/01/19

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A.J. Blubaugh scored 17 of his game high 19 points in the first 13 minutes of the game and the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champion Clear Fork Colts outlasted Bellevue (63-56) in a sectional semifinal game in division two on Wednesday night at Bucyrus High School.

Clear Fork (19-4) will play Mansfield Senior (18-4) in the sectional final Friday night at Bucyrus. Vermilion (17-5) and Shelby (12-11) play the first game on Friday night.

They held leads of six (8-2) after a Gannon Seifert three with 6:14 to play in the first quarter, (22-16) on a Blubaugh hoop with 4:23 to play in the half, (24-18) on two free throws by Seifert, and finally seven (32-25) on a Brady Tedrow basket with :12 seconds to play in the half, but they could never pull away.

In fact, Bellevue took a (39-38) lead with 2:53 in the third on a Caleb Marshall lay in and expanded it to three (42-39) on a three by Garrett Vickery with 2:17 to play in the quarter before Clear Fork went on a 5-0 run to take a (44-42) lead after three.

Clear Fork never lost its cool and scored the first two field goals of the fourth quarter and never trailed again. “It is hard tell the young guys or the high school kids that records really don’t matter. They know what the records are of other teams and just telling them it is going to be a dogfight every single night in the tournament because records aren’t in the equation anymore, it is just survive and advance,” said Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel.

It has been an injury filled season for Bellevue (6-17,) but coach Ed Rich was very proud of his charges on Wednesday night. “My kids played extremely hard. I love when we play like that. We have played pretty hard, we have just taken some on the chin. It was nice to be able to stay in one. We did put a scare into them for a little bit. I am proud of my kids and I am proud of how we played,” said Rich.

Marshall had 17 to pace the Redmen, who played without their best player in guard Trey Ruhlman, due to injury.

Blubaugh was outstanding for the Colts, but again spent significant time on the bench due to foul trouble. However, his team was able to survive without him and Bechtel says his replacement sophomore Merritt Burgholder really stepped up. “I thought Merritt gave us great minutes off the bench. He had a couple of issues there commutating. His energy level was real high for us and I thought that helped carry us to get A.J. back on the floor,” he said.

When Bellevue took the lead in the second half they appeared to be going into an offense to reduce the number of possessions, but Clear Fork switched to a zone. “It was just one of those things where they kind of went to that Carolina that they run and they had to call timeout, so we went ahead and changed our defense to kind of take that out of the equation and it ended up paying off for us,” he said.

Seifert has 12 and Brennan South and Jared Schaefer both had 10 for the Colts.

They had to execute in a tight game in the second half against Bellevue and Bechtel thinks that is a plus for Friday night. “I was glad it was a tight game just because that is the way the tournament it going to be. It’s grind them out every single possession and we expect the same thing Friday night,” he said.

Mansfield Senior buried Port Clinton (73-24) in the second game on Wednesday night.

Bechtel says they know what they are up against. “Mansfield is Mansfield. When you think for Mansfield Tygers, what do you think of? Boys’ basketball, so I think our kids are going to be up for the challenge. Mansfield Senior will be ready as well. I hope our kids just come out there and fight,” he said.

Published 2/28/19

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Clear Fork, the outright champ of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, plays Bellevue, of the Lake Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference, in a sectional semifinal in division two on Wednesday night at Bucyrus High School.

Ironically the two schools have also played in the football playoffs and the baseball tournament in the last 15 months. Bellevue won the football game and Clear Fork the baseball game. So, in a way this is the rubber match.

The Colts beat Galion (58-44) last Saturday to complete play in the “MOAC” and they beat Pleasant and Ontario by two games.

Plus, their 18 regular season wins is a school record. “18 games is a great accomplishment. It was great throughout those first 22, now we are going to have to push that aside and records really don’t matter. You just have to go into each tournament game as prepared as possible and be ready to take on everything that is thrown your way and hopefully our guys are going to be up to that challenge,” said coach Steven Bechtel.

Bellevue (6-16) has been hurt by injuries this season, well really just to one player, their best player, guard Trey Ruhlman, who has been in and out the lineup this season.

Bechtel says Ruhlman just makes them a lot better. “They are a lot better, they are a lot different just because of what he can do with the basketball in his hands or even when he doesn’t have the basketball in his hands. He is just that type of player that can make everybody around him so much better. If he does play, we will be ready for that, if he doesn’t play we will be ready for that as well. We just have to do a great job on our side. When we get there and the ball goes in the air we will know for sure,” said Bechtel.

Now, it is not that Bellevue doesn’t have any good players without Ruhlman. Bechtel says that is far from the case, especially Caleb Marshall. “He is very athletic. He does a lot of things really, really well. He is kind of a focal point for them. Even if Ruhlman plays a lot of stuff goes through him. They have some very good role players as well. (Garrett) Vickery is very good at what he does. They have some guys that come off the bench,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “(Chase) Eisenhauer handles the ball for them when Ruhlman isn’t in. They are a dangerous team because their regular season is thrown out as well. It’s that second season and everybody sort of starts fresh. That’s one good thing about basketball and we just have to be ready to go.”

Clear Fork has enjoyed a lot of success in many of their sports lately and Bechtel says they have been in pressure situations in those sports and more notably on the basketball floor and that is going to help them. “I think a lot of the pressure situations we have been in whether we were at home or on the road this year and in past years too. So, we have a very veteran basketball team. We have some youth as well that are mixed in there a little bit and it will be their first true test in the tournament to see how they respond. I like our chances, I love our basketball team. I don’t doubt we are going to show up and play really, really well. I just hope at the end of the night we have more points than them,” said Bechtel.

Published 2/27/19

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Clear Fork has already wrapped up its first outright confernce title in 40 years as they have claimed the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference championship.

That actually happened when Ontario beat second place Marion Pleasant (50-46) last Friday, a night Clear Fork did not play.

Coach Steven Bechtel says there is no doubt they earned that title. “I don’t think we backed into it in any way. We won our first 10 and we couldn’t finish it with Ontario and we couldn’t finish it with Pleasant, but I don’t think we backed into it because we did all of that work early on then unfortunately we had a couple of speed bumps in the road. We want to go over there and play tournament basketball. We want to use Galion as that little warm up for the tournament and we want to go over there and play really well and be fortunate to come away with the victory too,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork (17-4,11-2), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at Galion (8-12,3-9) on Saturday night. The Tigers rallied to beat Buckeye Valley in their last conference game (66-63) last Thursday. They downed Crestline (76-66) in a non-conference game on Tuesday.

Isaiah Alsip scored 15 points in the last minute of the game to beat Buckeye Valley last week and he had 31 he first time these two teams played, a (76-62) win by the Colts on December 19. Bechtel says they must force him to take tougher shots. “He is very explosive and he can score in bunches. We are going to have our hands full. We are going to have to make sure we do a much better job just making him earn his baskets, maybe not giving him as many easy looks as he had the last time against us. We just have to make sure that we don’t let anybody else go out there and have a huge night either,” he said.

Alsip can score form everywhere and that makes him harder to guard, according to Bechtel. “He has a great midrange game. He can shoot the three and get to the basket. He scores in a variety of different ways off the dribble, spot ups, anything he needs to do to help his team he is willing to do that at the offensive end. They really need him to step up that way. We are just going to have to come out and play really, really well,” said Bechtel.

Bechtel says it is kind of good fortune that this game is Saturday against Galion or they would be going 13 days without playing a game. “This is a makeup game, so technically we should not have this game. It was supposed to be play on January 31. We do have the whole week off, but fortunately we get to play Saturday,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “They play Friday night (against Shelby) and then Saturday as well. For us it is good that we get a chance to prepare, a chance to really get into practice and work on some of things that we need to get better at as we move further down the road here. We just have to go out and make sure we are ready to play on Saturday.”

Published 2/20/19

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Prince might have been partying like it was 1999, but the basketball faithful in the Clear Fork Valley are partying like it was 2002, that was the last time the Colts claimed a share of a conference title, until Thursday night.

Even Dennis Van Houten, was passed away in December, and who’s Indians helmet still occupies his seat behind the baseline was probably throwing a few down in that basketball arena in the sky.

The Colts beat Marion Harding (58-46) on Thursday night to claim a share. They can win it outright if they beat Galion next Saturday or if Marion Pleasant loses at Ontario on Friday night.

Clear Fork (17-4,11-2) never trailed in the game, but it seemed like they could never feel easy either. “It was definitely worth it. We played in spurts I thought. You have to give Marion a lot of credit. They came in here and they kept fighting, they kept executing. We just couldn’t get rid of them. Don does a great job over there. I credit those guys for a lot of that,” he said.

They scored the first six points of the game, two of the baskets from A.J. Blubaugh, and held a (15-7) advantage of after the first quarter.

They stretched the lead to as many as 13 in the second quarter (28-15) after a three by Brennan South with 3:10 to play in the half.

Harding could get no closer than nine in the second (48-39) with 4:11 left in the game, but the Colts responded with a couple of field goals by South.

Bechtel says his kids are good under pressure. “We are a veteran basketball team. We expect that when it does get to that crunch time we are going to make good decisions. We are going to take care of the basketball and get scores when we need them too,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “It was kind of just refocus them. The night was exciting. It was senior night and everything that way, so there was a lot of stuff going on too. They stepped up and made plays down the stretch and we were fortunate enough to win.”

Harding (7-14,7-7) could not get a lot going on offense and coach Don Worstell says they couldn’t cash in on the shots they created. “I thought our kids played really hard (Thursday) night. I was pleased with the effort. We just struggled to put the ball in the basket. Clear Fork is a very skilled team, very well coached, if you give them an open look, they are going to put it in the hole and it counts up on the scoreboard. I thought we executed things very well. We got a lot of clean looks we just didn’t shoot the ball very well,” he said.

Clear Fork tried to press, but really didn’t force a lot of turnovers from the Presidents. Bechtel says they were trying to get the pace of the game moving. “We knew they wanted to slow the tempo down and we wanted it a little bit faster, especially against those guys. We thought that was a way we could have more success. We just wanted to get the tempo up there and press. They did a great job in handling it and we were able to get some easy baskets a few times,” he said.

South led Clear Fork with 15 points, Blubaugh had 12 and Jay Swainhart 11.

The last time Clear Fork won an outright conference title? Yeah, it was 1979. That’s right, 40 years ago. Current Newark Superintendent Doug Ute was an all-state guard and Lexington assistant coach Jay Guth was the second leading scorer. Me? I was in junior high and that should tell you right away how long ago that was.

Clear Fork will get that opportunity on February 23 when they travel to Galion.

Bechtel says they are going to prepare hard for that game. “We want to go out and get them all, but that would be great. We have a week ahead of us to prepare for Galion. With what they have, they have a lot of weapons, so we will have to make sure we are ready to go. We will treat it kind of like a tournament game,” said Bechtel.

They had two previous opportunities put it way and Bechtel with an expression of relief on his face. “It feels really, really good. I am so proud and so happy for those guys. Not only those guys, but all of the other guys that have played for us too,” he said.

Published 2/15/19

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Hopefully, the third time is the charm for the Clear Fork Colts.

Thursday night, we be their third opportunity to get no less than a share of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title. They were not able to do it in losing to Ontario and second place Marion Pleasant in their last two chances.

They host Marion Harding on Thursday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

Coach Steve Bechtel says it’s about them going out and playing well. “I don’t know what’s been the problem, obviously, we have played two really tough opponents. We have another tough one coming in on Thursday,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “We just have to make sure we are taking care of what we can take care of coming out with a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of effort. Hopefully, being at home that will help push us over the edge.”

In their last two conference games the Colts lost to Ontario (61-52) and Marion Pleasant (64-59) last Friday. Bechtel says they didn’t play badly, just not well enough. “The Ontario night I think we played well, we just didn’t shoot it very well that night. Against Pleasant will played well enough to win, we just didn’t make enough plays down the stretch to come away with the victory there. So, hopefully on Thursday we come out with a lot of energy and a lot of focus and be ready to go,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork (16-4,10-2), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, is at home for Marion Harding (7-13,7-6) on Thursday night. It was (57-35) Colts on January 11 in their first meeting. Harding lost Tuesday night (61-30) to Olentangy. They beat River Valley (50-43) in their last league game last Friday.

Bechtel says the Presidents have some guys that can play. “They are a very talented basketball team. They are well coached and very athletic. They can put the ball on the floor really, really well. The Meyers kid is a very good shooter, so we have to make sure we do a great job of keeping them in front, contesting their shooters and making everything as tough as possible,” he said.

Now, judging by their scores, the Presidents need to control the tempo if they are going to win, an example is when they beat Shelby (37-35) last week. It would seem if this game gets into the 60’s or even 50’s, Harding is going to have a tough time winning.

Bechtel says they certainly want to get out and run. “I think tempo is real big, especially for us. We want to go fast. We will try and push the tempo, whether that means defensively or offensively and just try and keep it where we want to be. A lot faster that I think they want,” he said.

Published 2/13/19

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Clear Fork won the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference in football this fall and they would like to repeat that by capturing the flag in a boys’ basketball as well.

Their roster is full of kids that were a big part of the success on that football team.

They are going to need to beat the same team they did this fall in Marion Pleasant, two games behind the Colts going into their matchup at Pleasant on Friday night.

After losing for the first time in league play last week to Ontario (61-52) on Saturday, Clear Fork responded with a (71-37) win at Loudonville on Tuesday in non-conference action.

Coach Steve Bechtel says they got back to being efficient on offense. “We shot the ball extremely well (Tuesday) night. I think 62 percent overall. When you are shooting the ball that well you are going to be able to put up some points. They weren’t all layups or anything, a lot from the perimeter as well. We were just making shots all over the place,” said Bechtel.

There have not had many losses this season, but Bechtel says it was important to get back on the winning track. “Just getting back on the winning track is nice. Going down there and executing the way we did. We were very unselfish and shared the basketball a lot. Just went down there and took care of business and now we can focus everything on Pleasant,” he said.

Clear Fork (16-3,10-1), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, travels to Pleasant (13-5,8-3) on Friday night. It was (64-46) Colts at Les Hauenstein Gym on January 5. The Colts also were the only team to win at Pleasant last year.

Bechtel says they are going to need to contain the Pleasant runs to win on the road. “It was tough the first time. We just pulled away there in the third and fourth quarter. We have to go down there and play our game. We have to understand they are going to make some runs. We just have to make those as small as possible,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We have to go a great job at all of the little things that are involved in a basketball game. We have our hands full. We know we are going to get their best game. I think the kids are going to be ready to go.”

Pleasant has some excellent scorers in Nick Kimmel, Ethan Warner and Gage Williams, but Bechtel says they have other guys that can score too. “They have their big three that we really have to focus on a lot, but they have a lot of good role players that play their role really, really well. They do spread the floor. We are going to have to make sure we sit down defensively and are really locked in,” he said.

In terms of the league title, Bechtel says they don’t talk about that much, they just talk about winning the game at hand. “We don’t mention a whole lot about it. We just want to make sure we are getting better and that we are focused on what we need to do to go down there and compete and just put ourselves in position to win the basketball game. That would be the cherry on top to get a league title,” said Bechtel.

Published 2/07/19

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Ontario handed Clear Fork its first loss of the season within the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference as they outplayed the Colts in every way Saturday night in beating them (61-52) at Les Hauenstein Gym.

The Colts hit three three pointers in their first four possessions to take a (9-0) led with 6:11 to play in the first quarter, but the Warriors responded with a (10-0) run of their own to lead (10-9) with 2:30 left in the first after a Shaquan Coburn three pointer. Clear Fork led (14-11) after one.

A seesaw second quarter ended in a (28-28) tie after Brennan South made a free throw for Clear Fork (15-3,10-1) with no time on the clock.

Ontario finished the third quarter on a (10-2) run fueled by three pointers by Coburn and Griffin Shaver and four points by Jon Nagel off the bench to lead (43-34) after three.

The Warriors never trailed in the final quarter. The closest the Colts could get was seven (56-49) after an A.J. Blubaugh banked in three with 44 seconds left.

Ontario (7-7,6-4) has not shot the ball well over the last month, but they did on Saturday night making shots all over the gym. “We got good looks. The other part of it is we were willing to make the extra pass and maybe turn down a good shot into get a better shot or a great shot. We just executed,” said Ontario coach Joe Balogh.

Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel thought they didn’t defend too badly, but the Warriors made some tough shots. “They hit a lot of contested shots. I thought our defense at times was really, really good. They had a lot of open looks that they knocked down too. They executed really, really well when they had to,” he said.

Ontario guards Coburn and Shaver both finished with 17 points for the Warriors.

Balogh thought they did an outstanding job on defense of forcing the Colts to take some shots from places they did want to. “We did a great job of executing on both ends of the floor, both offensively and defensively. We changed up between man and zone. We did a pretty good job of finding shooters and force them to shoot shots maybe they didn’t want to shoot. We were able to be affective and rebound the ball. We won it down the stretch by making free throws,” said Balogh.

Ontario made seven of eight free throws in the final 1:22 to put the game away.

Bechtel says after the first two minutes of the game they could never find the rhythm again. “I think it as just one of those nights where we didn’t really have anyone that really stepped up and really shot it well from the perimeter. I thought we kind of settled we hit those first three threes of the game and then I think we kind of fell in love with the arc a little bit,” he said.

South had 23 to lead all scorers.

Ontario also seemed to make some hustle plays by getting to some loose balls.

Balogh, a winner of over 530 games in more than 30 seasons at Ontario, says he is really happy for this group of kids, who have worked very hard this year and were finally rewarded with a big win. “I am just really happy for our kids. This have been a group that has worked extremely hard. We have had some tough losses. Your choice is do you give up or you fight and our kids have kept fighting. What we have got to do now is try and build on this,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “We have three games next week and eight games the next three weeks. So, there is no rest for the weary. I am excited we were able to come down here and get the win.”

Clear Fork still has a two game lead over Pleasant in the “MOAC” standings. The Spartans, the defending champs, routed River Valley (72-48) on Saturday. Clear Fork must travel to Pleasant on Friday night with another chance to earn no less than a share of the title.

“I think it is going to be a great learning experience. We will have to push forward through this. We will just have to rebound on Tuesday,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork is at Loudonville (8-9) for a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

Ontario still has eight games to play his month before the regular season ends. Balogh says they hope to build on the win over Clear Fork. “We got a little bit healthier. Jayden Price was back and gave us some minutes. John Nagel is a JV player and came off the bench and had four points for us and got some rebounds. We were able to rest some guys because it is difficult to play five guys for 32 minutes. We are hoping maybe Ethan Keller can get back here in the next week. Our goal when we started the second half of the league was to win the second half of the league. We are 2-1 right now, so that is what we are going to try and do and see what happens. Hopefully, playing well here in three weeks,” said Balogh.

Published 2/02/19

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Clear Fork had a breakthrough season last year in which they won 17 games, but they want to accomplish some this year that got away from them… the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title.

They can earn no less than a share of it with a win on Saturday night at home against rival Ontario.

Their game with Galion, originally scheduled for Thursday night, has been called off due to the cold, and rescheduled for February 23, the last day of the regular season.

The Colts put themselves in that position with a thrilling (69-65) double overtime win over Buckeye Valley on Tuesday night.

Jared Schaefer tied the game with some crucial free throws at the end of regulation and then Colts won it at the foul line. “We were fortunate there at the end to hit two big free throws to tie it. They came back in that first overtime and hit a three right at the buzzer as the time is running out. We were fortunate enough to seal the game away then at the free throw line in the second overtime. We had a lot of guys really step up. Off the bench, Ethan Delaney gave us some huge minutes. Merritt Burgholder gave us some huge minutes. The regular guys kind of went out there and did their thing. A.J. (Blubaugh) had a huge night and so did Brennan (South.) Everybody contributed and we were fortunate enough to come away with a win,” said Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel.

This group of players just seems to know how to win and Bechtel says they just continued to give great effort all night on Tuesday. “They knew the situation that needed to be executed and I thought they did a great job of doing that. Yeah, we would have loved to have won it in regulation or even after the first overtime, but it took two. They just continued to fight. They never give up on each other or anything that way. They just continue to keep fighting and we were fortunate (Tuesday) night,” he said.

Clear Fork (15-2,10-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays host to Ontario (6-7,5-4) on Saturday night. The Warriors have lost three of their last four and have suffered through some injury concerns.

However, Ontario, who was actually the school that ended the Colts title dreams last year, is always well prepared. Bechtel says they have a lot of kids capable of making shots, especially their guards. “They are always very fundamentally sound. They have some guys that can score. (Griffin) Shaver is really good, (Kolton) Kurtz has shot the ball really well, (Shaquan) Coburn has shot the ball well, and they have their big guys inside. We know we are going to have to earn every basket and we just have to make it as tough on them to score as possible,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork won the first game at Ontario (52-40) on January 3.

It has been more than 15 years since the Colts have gotten a piece of a conference title in boys’ basketball. Bechtel says they aren’t talking about that. He says they just want to continue to play well. “We haven’t even talked about anything clinching, sharing, anything like that. We are just trying to take it one game at a time. I know that is what every coach says, but it is true,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We knew after (Tuesday) night that we aren’t going to play Thursday and all, enjoy that win (Tuesday) night, and now all of our focus goes on Ontario. Just trying to get better in each and every possession and every game, so that we can move forward in the league and toward tournament as well.”

Published 1/31/19

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Clear Fork outscored Lucas (27-6) in the middle two quarters and went on to beat the Cubs (52-38) in a non-conference game between conference leaders on Saturday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

Lucas led (17-12) after the first quarter, but they only scored two points in the second quarter and trailed by five (24-19) at the break.

Clear Fork took the lead for good (18-17) on Jay Swainhart’s hoop with 3:12 remaining until halftime.

Colts coach Steven Bechtel feels their switching to a zone defense in the second quarter helped to limit the Cubs. “Honestly coming off that game (Friday) night and spending a lot of energy just getting up for a Saturday night non-conference game is big. We knew how good Lucas was and we knew we had to come out with a good effort. Just fighting that I think was big. The zone I think really affected them, they only scored two points in the second quarter. Then we were able to get after it back to our man to man in the third quarter,” he said.

Lucas coach Taylor Iceman admits they didn’t attack that zone like they should have. “That was a good move on their part. We didn’t handle it correctly. They are 14-2 and we forced them out of what they do and that’s a great thing because they have thrived on that to this point. We knew if we handled that correctly we could do that. It didn’t help having Logan (Niswander) in foul trouble. That takes away our inside presence, especially against a zone. The game plan was to get the ball inbounds, square up to the basket, see the floor, and see the double coming. We didn’t do a good job when they were in the zone of getting a rebound, getting it out, and pushing it in transition and getting ahead of that zone,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “It was a great move by coach Bechtel, it slowed us down a little bit. We were still playing solid defense, it was a five point game at the half, and they come back to their run and jump stuff. I told our guys it wasn’t that they went back to that zone because they were so great at it. They went back to what they do and we didn’t handle it real well because we were frustrated at that point. It stinks to play a good team like that and be in the position we were in and then kind of give it away. That is a good team and if we handle it correctly and learn from it. I am confident in our guys. That is a great environment to play in.”

Leading by five starting the third quarter, the Colts scored 15 of the next 17 points, punctuated by a Brennan South over the shoulder pass to A.J. Blubaugh, who then threw it down with the right hand to give Clear Fork an 18 point lead (39-21) with 3:58 to play in the third quarter.

Bechtel says they emphasized getting down the floor and not allowing Lucas to limit the possessions. “I think that was a big key there in the third quarter. We told them made or missed basket keeping pushing the basketball. We knew they wanted to slow us down a little bit. You could see that on rebounds with them getting after our rebounder a little bit. We were fortunate to get out and get some easy scores there,” he said.

Blubaugh led Clear Fork with 17 points on Saturday night. Brady Tedrow and Gannon Seifert added 10 each for the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference leaders.

Bechtel was subbing a lot after a tough conference win Friday night (71-66) over River Valley. “We want to extend our depth because we know as the season keeps going and in the tournament that would be key. Getting those guys experience now not only for this year, but for next year too, that would be really helpful,” he said.

The Colts built their lead to as much as 25 (52-27) on Tedrow’s two free throws with 3:29 to play in the game.

Lucas (10-4,) in first place in the Mid-Buckeye Conference, has had an excellent season and Iceman hopes they grow from the loss. “My point of emphasis in (the locker room) was that I didn’t like how we handled everything. We have everything in front of us. They are a really good team. They are similar to us. I used them as an example, in their minds we are an inferior team to them. They got down early and they stayed with it. They changed up a little bit, but then they put their foot on our throats there and finished it off, whereas, we are notorious for letting teams hang around and make it closer than it should. It stinks to lose one like that, especially when we were in the situation we were in, but hopefully we can learn from it and get better,” said Iceman.

Logan Niswander led the Cubs with 21 points, 10 in the first quarter.

Clear Fork (14-2) leads the “MOAC” by three games with five to play. They have a chance to wrap up a league title this week with games against Buckeye Valley on Tuesday, Galion on Thursday and Ontario on Saturday.

Bechtel says they need to get some rest this weekend. “Three games, three league games. So, a lot of big games ahead of us. I told them to get off their legs and get some rest. We will be back in on Monday and ready for Tuesday,” he said.

Published 1/26/19

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Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference leader Clear Fork plays on the road at River Valley on Friday night against a Vikings team that almost beat them in a first round game.

Right now, the Colts hold a one game lead on Marion Pleasant, who plays Shelby on Friday night.

Tuesday night, the Colts beat Fredericktown (81-62) in a non-conference game, junior guard Brennan South had 29 points in the win.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they were ready to play. “We explained to them before we went over there and before the game that it is a Tuesday night, snow day, non-conference game, and how are we going to come out? How are we going to react? I was pretty pleased with the way that we responded. We got off to a pretty good start,” he told Swankonsports.com Wednesday, “We kind of let them back in the game a little bit. We were giving other guys an opportunity to play and to step up and show what they can do in a varsity basketball game trying to extend our bench a little bit. Just proud of the way the guys responded and we were fortunate enough to come away with a victory.”

Clear Fork (12-2,8-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at River Valley (5-9,1-7,) the last place team in the “MOAC” on Friday night. However, the first time they played the Colts were fortunate to win (52-50) on December 15. Two weeks ago, River Valley beat Shelby (67-66,) a team Clear Fork beat (62-58) last week.

Bechtel knows it will be a tough game, especially on the road. “This will be a huge challenge. You have to throw out the records in this one. They are a very talented basketball team. Their record really doesn’t explain how good of a basketball team they are. They have solid guard play. They have an inside presence. Their capability to shoot the basketball is really, really good, so we are going to have to be sharp and the defensive end,” said Bechtel.

The Vikings have scored more than 100 points in a game this year and they like to kick up the tempo. Bechtel says they like to play fast too, but maybe not that fast. “I think we tried to slow the tempo down just a little bit that last one because I didn’t think I wanted to play at the frantic pace that they did. We like to push the tempo, but we like to be in control as well. I’m not sure exactly how that will play out. I’m sure they want to push the basketball, we want to push the basketball. We just have to make sure we get solid possessions and get stops defensively,” he said.

Lucas (9-3,) the Mid-Buckeye Conference leader, plays at Clear Fork on Saturday night in non-conference play. Bechtel says he knows they will be a challenge too, but their focus is on River Valley. “They will come out with a chip on their shoulder. They are a solid basketball team. The are very well coached. They will come in and give us their very best. Right now, we are just focused on River Valley and come Saturday whatever we have left in the tank, that is what we will throw at Lucas,” he said.

Published 1/24/19

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Clear Fork maintained its two game lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference as they held of a vigorous Shelby rally and beat the Whippets (62-58) on Thursday night at Shelby High School.

The Colts held as big as an 18 point lead in the first half (37-19) on a Jared Schaefer basket with :12 to play until halftime, but the Whippets came out of the locker room on fire and scored 15 of the first 20 points of the third quarter to cut their deficit to (42-34) with 2:25 left in the quarter after a Uriah Schwemley goal.

Thing got even more interesting in the final quarter as Shelby tied the game at (49-49) after Tanner Stephens scored with 4:09 to play. They took their first and only lead on a Schwemley hoop (53-52) with 3:04 left in the contest.

Clear Fork (11-2,8-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, responded each time. After the Whippets tied them game Jay Swainhart buried a three out of the left corner. Then after Shelby took the lead, Brennan South took the inbounds pass and went coast to coast in just over 10 seconds to give the Colts a lead (54-53) that they would never relinquish.

“We had to be gutsy. We had to show a lot of poise. We had some veteran leadership that really stepped up. Jay (Swainhart) hitting that corner three. Brennan (South) taking it coast to coast a few times, hitting some free throws, and getting those key rebounds and that type of thing,” said Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel.

South, who was deadly for the perimeter, finished with 21 points for Clear Fork. Schaefer added 12.

T.J. Pugh had 21 for the Whippets, 13 in the second half, as the Whippets really hurt Clear Fork in the paint, especially with A.J. Blubaugh on the bench with four fouls.

Bechtel decided to go with a 2-3 zone and it worked pretty well for the Colts. “I think they were doing a great job of getting it where they needed to. (Pugh) is an exceptional talent. We went to a 2-3 to try and mix them up a little bit. I know they hit a couple of threes there late. We wanted to change the momentum and we were able to rebound out of that at the end,” he said.

Shelby coach Troy Schwemley says they talked in the huddle about how to execute against the zone. “With our guard oriented lineup it takes a lot of the things we like to run away. I tried to run something for Uriah and T.J. inside, but it is probably not as affective as we like it. That is something that we have to be interchangeable and be able to run a couple of things with different personnel. That was a good switch by them,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “Out of that timeout when we hit that three, I think Uriah said they are going to be in a zone and I said just execute it and run it. You can still screen. For the most part you can still run your same plays against a zone, you just have to shift the way you run them. We kicked it out to Grant and he drilled a three. That was one of those moments when, hey, we might have figured something out.”

Gossom’s three with :28 seconds left cut it to two (60-58,) but the Whippets could get no closer as Schaefer scored on a break away for the final basket.

Clear Fork looked very sharp in the first half of the game, leading by as may as 19 an holding a double figure lead for the entire second quarter. Bechtel says they were able to get a lot of open shots. “We want the ball reversal, we want people moving, we want the ball moving, and it does create easy or open looks and we were fortunate to knock those down early,” he said.

Shelby (7-7,3-5) has lost it last three, but Schwemley felt a lot better after the second half and feels they have something to build on. “Pound of the effort. We have to find a way to win a game like that to try and build our confidence a little bit, but we were more positive in the locker room and personally I feel better with how we battled in the second half,” he said.

Clear Fork holds a two game lead on Marion Pleasant, who rallied to beat Galion (61-54) in overtime on Thursday night.

Bechtel says he knew Shelby would make a run at them and he is proud of the way his kids responded. “Shelby is a great program, all of the rich tradition, all of the years they have won over here. I told them at halftime we were going to get their best in that second half and we had to really go out and be gutsy and just step up and play the way we are capable of,” he said.

Published 1/18/19

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Clear Fork, the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference leader, plays at Shelby on Thursday night as they begin the second half of the conference round robin.

They host Buckeye Valley on Saturday afternoon at 1:30, that game has been moved from an evening start.

Last Friday, Clear Fork beat Marion Harding (57-35) on Friday night to maintain a two game lead on Pleasant.

It was (23-7) after the first quarter and coach Steven Bechtel says they had stressed the need for a quick start. “I think anytime we are on the road you want to try and get off to a good start because you are not comfortable with the surroundings. I thought we did a great job. Then we stayed on it to increase our lead into halftime and throughout the third quarter as well,” said Bechtel.

Brennan South had 18 points against Harding, but five other Colts had at least six. Bechtel says that depth leads to the fact they haven’t seen a lot of junk defenses this year. “Mansfield Christian played a little bit of a triangle and two on one or two possessions. We have seen a lot of zone. It is something where every week in practice we go over and we constantly prepare for anything, the press, any kind of zone, just to keep the kids sharp,” he said.

Perimeter shooting has been spotty for the Colts this year, but Bechtel says they have found other ways to score and that shooting has been coming around too. “I thought going into this year that we were going to pretty much live and die by the three. We have been very good at playing in games when our outside perimeter shooting has not been great. We have been able to score inside and get easy baskets off of our defense. I hope this is a sign our perimeter shooting is coming back, which makes us a little bit more dangerous,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork (10-2,7-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at Shelby (7-6,3-4) on Thursday night. They beat the Whippets (55-48) on December 7. Shelby is coming off two tough losses last week to River Valley (67-66) on Friday in league play and Willard (67-58) in non-conference action on Saturday.

However, Bechtel calls the Whippets very dangerous. “They are a very talented basketball team. I think they can score in a variety of ways. When they are on they are on. We will prepare for their very best. We are not sure if the (Hunter) Hoffman kid is going to be back or not. We will prepare just like he is going to be back in the lineup and ready to go. We have a huge challenge in front of us over there at Shelby on Thursday,” he said.

Shelby will have a considerable size advantage against the Colts and Bechtel says they possess a lot of skill too. “No just their size, but their overall athleticism, their skill, they shoot the ball very well, but they also have guys that can score inside, they have a lot of guys that can put the ball on the floor, and their defense. They are pretty relentless defensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “I am sure we are going to get their very best when we go over there on Thursday, so we are going to have to make sure we are sharp and focused and be prepared to have a very tough basketball game.”

Published 1/15/19

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Clear Fork leads the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference standings by two games over Marion Pleasant, Ontario and Marion Harding and they travel to Harding to meet the Presidents on Friday night in a league game.

Friday night concludes the first round of league play.

The Colts lost for the first time since November on Tuesday night, when they were defeated (73-65) by Wooster Triway in a non-conference game.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they learned no matter how talented you are you have to play well for 32 minutes. “I think we learned a lot about ourselves. We realized that when you go into an opponent’s place and they are pretty good we have to show up and play four quarters. We didn’t play the greatest in the second quarter. I was really proud of the guys and the way they battled back. We put ourselves in position at the end, we just couldn’t make enough plays to come up with the victory,” he said.

Clear Fork (9-2,6-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at Marion Harding (4-6,4-2) on Friday night. The Presidents beat Buckeye Valley (53-52) last Thursday and River Valley (53-48) on Saturday in league games.

Bechtel says Harding does a lot of things well. “They are always very athletic and well coached. They get after you defensively. They run a lot of different things offensively and when they run them they run them very, very well. This is a huge game it is on the road finishing up the first round of the league. Hopefully, we go down there are play pretty well,” he said.

A two game lead would seem to be petty large six games in into the schedule, but Bechtel knows better. “I think the league is very balanced. We are fortunate we have made it this far without a blemish. Hopefully, that can continue (Friday) night. After this, we start all over again and those teams are very, very good and they are going to be a lot better than they were the first time and we have to be ready to accept every little challenge that comes our way and respond accordingly,” he said.

The outcome in basketball more than any sport is dictated by where it is played. Bechtel says this game is on the road and it is a factor. “It is a long bus ride. We are going to be there for a while because we have to sit through the freshmen and then the JV game. It is on the road, so you don’t have your home court, you don’t have your home fans right there, there are a little bit different surroundings. It is the game of basketball. We have to make sure we go out and do what we are capable of doing and do it at a high level and try and make sure we keep them under control and in front of us so we can put ourselves in position to win the game in the fourth quarter,” said Bechtel

Published 1/11/19

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A.J. Blubaugh scored 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds as Clear Fork took a two game lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference standings as they blasted Marion Pleasant (64-46) on Saturday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

The Colts took the lead with good at (5-3) on Jared Schaefer’s three with 6:55 remaining in the first quarter. Schaefer scored 11 of his 12 points in the first stanza as the Colts raced to a (22-15) lead.

In preparation for the game, Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel says they emphasized a quick start. “We remember what happened here last year when it was 21-6 (Pleasant.) We wanted to get off to a good start. We knew that couldn’t happen because that is a quality basketball team. We just knew we had to get out and run and do what we do really well and we were fortunate to get some easy baskets early,” he said.

Clear Fork repeatedly beat the Spartans down the floor, sometimes with three quarter court passes for layups or open perimeter shots. The Colts took a 16 point lead (32-16) with 4:31 left in the half on Blubaugh’s three. Pleasant outscored then (10-2) the rest of the quarter and it was (34-26) at the intermission.

Pleasant coach Ben Snively says they had trouble containing Clear Fork’s speed. “There is no question about it. We talked about the lesson that River Valley gave us the other night. The same thing, we gave up 19 points early on. You can’t simulate the speed, we talked about it. I told my kids after the game, I’m not lying, I have been around the game now for 22, 23 years, they had five kids that ran hard and threw the ball down the floor,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “They were just everywhere, they beat us to lose balls. I just think it was a situation where they outplayed us in every facet of the game. There really isn’t anything that we can take positively out of that other than we learn from it and move on and we have another shot at them late in the season.”

Blubaugh, headed to Wisconsin-Milwaukee to play baseball next year, seemed to be there all night for the Colts with a big score, rebound, or coming up with a loose ball. “I know he had 20. The things he does for us are great. It just fits right into our scheme. We never know which guy if going to step up for us. Schaefer stepped up Thursday for us. A.J. had a huge night for us,” said Bechtel.

Pleasant cut their deficit to five (37-32) on Ethan Warner’s basket with 4:40 to play in the third quarter, but on the next possession the Spartans were whistled for a technical foul, one of two they got on the night, and Snively said that was a big turning point. “I will never blame any one person or any play that happened, but when we got within five that is when we got the “T” and it kind of turned the tide for us and it fired them up a little bit. They went on a run and we were just never able to recover from that point on,” he said.

Clear Fork finished the quarter on a (16-5) run where five different Colts scored. Balance has been a key for them all season.

The Colts has five threes on the night, Brady Tedrow had two of those, Schaefer, Blubaugh and Brennan South had one a piece.

Bechtel says this was one of their better perimeter shooting nights of the season. “I know we shot the ball fairly well in the first half, especially from the perimeter, which we haven’t done all year. That just helps and that opens up what we are able to do offensively. The guys share the basketball and it is a lot fun to coach and a lot of fun to watch. I just we can continue to keep it going,” he said.

Schaefer and Tedrow finished with 12 a piece, Gannon Seifert added 10 and South had eight as the Colts again has great balance. “They just share the basketball. I do get caught up watching sometimes because it is fun to watch. The kids love to play it that way. We like to play that way. They just jell with each other so well,” said Bechtel.

The win was the Colts (9-1,6-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, ninth in a row. They now own a two game lead in the “MOAC” standings over both Pleasant and Ontario. The Warriors beat Galion (67-58) Saturday night. Shelby, who trails by three, beat Buckeye Valley (73-65) on Saturday.

Published 1/05/19

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Clear Fork never trailed in beating Ontario (52-40) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Thursday night at the O-rena keeping the Colts unbeaten in the league and in first place by themselves in the conference.

A.J. Blubaugh’s 12 points led four Colts in double figures, Jared Schaefer, Brennan South and Brady Tedrow all had 11 for Clear Fork.

Ontario coach Joe Balogh says that kind of balance and that kind of experience is tough to defend. “Coming in I thought their strength was their balance. They put four guys in double figures (Thursday) night. They are good from that standpoint. All of those guys are experienced guys. They played on a really good team last year, so they know what it feels like to be successful. They are just continuing to build on what they did last year. A lot of credit to them, I thought they were really good defensively and made it really difficult for us to get shots,” said Balogh.

Blubaugh scored the first points of the game on a bank shot in the lane with 7:17 to play in the first quarter and the Colts raced to a 14 point lead (17-3) with 1:55 to play in that first quarter after a basket by South.

The Warriors made just over a quarter of their field goal attempts and Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel thought they made Ontario try some tough looks. “We knew they were so similar to us around the perimeter and their ability to put the ball on the floor and shoot the basketball as well we had to make them make contested shots all night long. I thought we did a great job in the half court in doing that,” he said.

Sophomore Griffin Shaver led Ontario with 12 points, but nobody else was in double digits. For the second straight game, the Warriors missed a lot of open shots.

Balogh says they must do a better job of getting the ball to shooters in good spots. “For us, we have to find a way to make shots. We missed some open shots again (Thursday) night. We have to try and get the ball in a couple of guys hands a little bit more and give them opportunities that they can get some open looks. We are not going to win many games shooting 28 percent from the field. I think some that was us, but a lot of it was just how well Clear Fork played,” he said.

Clear Fork led (26-18) at the break, but Ontario outscored the Colts (8-2) over the first 2:43 of the third quarter and cut the lead to two (28-26) on a three pointer by Kolten Kurtz with 6:17 to play in the third. However, Clear Fork responded with a (12-2) run themselves to end the quarter fueled by two old fashion three point plays by Blubaugh and solid defense.

Bechtel says good teams respond to a challenge. “It has huge, especially the way we started and had a lead early and kind of squandered it away a little bit. It was huge that we were able to respond their run with another run and extend that lead,” he said.

Scoring only two points over the last six minutes of the quarter, Balogh says they had too many wasted possessions. “I thought to start the second half we were really good. We had the ball and we talked about coming out and getting a score and a stop and another score and we did that. Once we got it to two then we had a couple of wasted possessions just from the standpoint that we didn’t value the basketball. In a couple of those possessions it was more our doing than Clear Fork’s doing,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “We try to throw the ball to a post when we are not aligned properly. We try and throw the ball to a guy running in transition and we throw the ball out of bounds. A team like Clear Fork they make you pay for those decisions. That’s what they were able to do. We were just never able to get back to it once we got it to two.”

The longtime Ontario coach, winner of more than 530 games, says they got themselves into too much of a whole early in the game. He says they didn’t respond to the game plan. “You talk about the first three minutes of the game and the first three minutes of the half. I thought the disappointment we had the first half was one of the big emphasis we had is we couldn’t give up easy baskets in transition and I think they had four or five transition baskets in the first half. I thought that hurt us,” said Balogh.

Clear Fork, with a lot of physical kids off the football field, had a 39-27 advantage on the boards. “I think (the rebounding) fairly good. As coaches we are going to nit pick at a couple of those. We want to eliminate those as much as possible. I thought we did a great job as a team in rebounding,” said Bechtel.

Ontario with a chance to square things in the conference now trails by two. Marion Pleasant, who railed to beat River Valley (62-53) on Thursday, trails by one.

The defending conference champions will be in the valley at Les Hauenstein Gym on Saturday night. “I really haven’t seen a whole lot about (of Pleasant) myself. They are extremely good. They have their three best players back. I know my assistant coach has seen them play. We will focus on them (Thursday) night when I get off the bus,” said Bechtel.

Published 1/04/19

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Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference leader Clear Fork plays at rival Ontario, a game back, in critical game in the conference, on Thursday night at the O-rena at Ontario High School.

The Colts own a seven game winning streak and coach Steven Bechtel says they are just trying to get better every day. “Just playing a little bit better with consistency. Trying to find the right mix of players, making sure you are giving kids breaks when they need them. Just trying to getter better each and every night. Attacking each opponent, it is just one game at a time. I know that is what every coach is trying to say too. We are just trying to approach each game one game at a time and trying to get better each time we get out there,” he said.

Clear Fork has eight guys with really quite a bit of varsity experience and Bechtel says that is a plus for them. “Just our overall experience in learning from our mistakes from last year or even previous games. If we didn’t take care of the ball very good here at the end of a quarter or at the end of half or whatever it was,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Just the experience they have gained over the last three or four years, especially those seniors and even our young kids getting them in situations where even you have to realize that each and every possession really counts, even that one in the first quarter, those first couple of possessions can come back and bite you. Having that experience and depth is really nice to have.”

Clear Fork (7-1,4-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll is at Ontario (4-3,3-1) on Thursday. The Warriors won their last league game (65-57) over River Valley on December 19. They lost to Lexington (50-43) last Saturday.

Bechtel says sophomore Griffin Shaver is really good, but the Warriors, like his team, has great depth. “I don’t like to talk about individuals, but Griffin Shaver, he is an exceptional young man and player and what he does out there is exceptional for Ontario. I think they are very similar to us in some sense of the matter. They have that one guy, but they have several guys that can hurt you. It is not that they have to rely totally on him. They have a lot of guys that can score the basketball. They can score inside, they can score outside. It looks like they can play just about anyway. If they want to play fast, they can play fast. If they need to slow it down, they will do the same thing,” said Bechtel.

Ontario likes to run a lot of screens to get their players open for shots and Bechtel says they will have to defend those. “We just have to make sure we approach each and every possession the same way. We know how to defend that action. We just have to make sure each time that they run, whether it is a ball screen or a down screen or a back screen, whatever the action is that we defend it properly because if not they are going to get a pretty good look and they have the quality basketball players that can score,” he said.

Published 1/03/19

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Clear Fork is a home for Madison in a non-conference game on Friday night. The Rams are one of only two “OCC” teams Clear Fork has kept on its schedule, Lexington in the other.

The Colts have won six straight games after a (60-31) destruction of Mansfield Christian last Saturday as part of the 419 Challenge at Ontario High School.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they continue to get better. “We have taken little baby steps. Little by little getting our legs back from the football season and those types of things. We are getting better each and every time we step on the floor,” he said.

The start to the season has been impressive for the Colts, but Bechtel says they have to keep pushing to get better. “We just want to take it one game at a time and continue to work on us. Also, as that game gets closer prepare for that opponent. Just kind of keep them going and if we need to add anything or maybe focus on something else. Just trying to keep their concentration level high,” he said.

Clear Fork (6-1), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at home at Les Haunstein Gym against Madison on Friday night. The Rams are coming off a (63-53) win over Galion as part of that same 419 Challenge on Saturday.

They have won two of their last three and Bechtel says the Rams are improving too. “They are same way, Coach (Tim) Mergel does a great job over there. They play extremely hard. I have been in his shoes where you are just kind of starting over with just a little bit of experience. They are gaining ground each and every time they are stepping on the floor. It will be a great challenge for us come Friday,” said Bechtel.

When it comes to tournament seeding this could be an important win against a division one school. Bechtel says it is fun playing the Rams. “It is a local game, it’s a local rivalry, it keeps that “OCC” thing going on a little bit. It is great to see coach Mergel each year. It has always been a great challenge, even last year as good as they were, I think we lost by four, it was a great basketball game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We are expecting the same thing, two teams going out there playing hard and hopefully we are able to come out on top.”

Published 12/28/18

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Before most fans settled into their seats it was (9-0) Clear Fork halfway through the first quarter, the lead was 23 points at the half and the die had been cast.

The Colts hammered Mansfield Christian (60-31) in he first four games played Saturday in the 419 Challenge at Ontario High School.

Every player on the Clear Fork bench got significant minutes, including Tacoma Orr, Kyle Glasener and Bruce Swainhart, who normally see must of their time in JV games. “With the guys that usually play JV, I didn’t have to worry about if this guy was going in this quarter or this guys was going in this quarter we just freely subbed them and get them some varsity experience just to see how they react and also get them to play with some older guys to gain some experience that way,” Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel told Swankonsports.com after the game Saturday afternoon.

The Colts (6-1), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, ran a little, pressed some and ran some half court sets to get shots. Their lead was as high as 31 points (58-27) with 2:44 left after Bruce Swainhart’s basket in the lane with 2:44 left.

Bechtel says his team can do a lot of things well. “We just want to approach each game. We will mix it up in how we do certain things. We just want to come out and play the way we are capable of,” he said.

Brennan South led Clear Fork with 14 points and did not play at all in the fourth quarter. A.J. Blubaugh and Ethan Delaney added 12 apiece in the win.

Noah Cyphers had eight Gavin Kiliany six for the Flames (0-8) on Saturday.

The Colts have put together a six game winning streak after an opening night loss to Lexington. Bechtel says they aren’t looking at records. “It is just one game at a time. We know that Madison is after Christmas. That will be a huge test for us as well,” he said.

Clear Fork plays host to Mansfield Madison (2-5) on Friday in a non-conference game. They return to Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference action on January 3 at Ontario and January 5 at home with Marion Pleasant.

The Colts were the only “MOAC” of the four to play at Ontario to win, but Bechtel says it is a very good league. “I know everybody said last year going into the “MOAC” it will be down. No, there are some very good basketball teams and some very good coaches and good individual players too,” said Bechtel.

Published 12/23/18

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Clear Fork had five kids in double figures Wednesday night and they outlasted Galion (76-62) in a boys’ basketball game in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference played at Les Hauenstein Gym.

Galion led (24-21) with 5:24 left in the second quarter, but the Colts outscored them (17-5) over the remainder of the quarter and led (38-29) at the half. The Tigers cut their deficit to seven (50-43) on two Isaiah Alsip free throws with 1:55 left in the third quarter, but the Colts sprinted to regain a 12-point lead with :59 left in the stanza after a field goal by Brady Tedrow. Again, in the fourth the Tigers cut into the lead, this time trimming it to four (55-51) with 6:29 to play. Again, the Colts went on a (13-0) run punctuated by two Jared Schaefer free throws to take a (68-51) lead with 3:09 left. The result was never in doubt thereafter.

Clear Fork, now all alone in first place in the “MOAC” after Buckeye Valley beat Pleasant (65-51) Wednesday night, did a lot of good things, but coach Steven Bechtel thought defense was the big difference, especially after halftime. “Defensively is where we kind of dug in in the second half a lot better. We adjusted what we were going to do against Alsip. He still had 31, but if you look at the scoring he had 31, but the other guys didn’t score a whole lot. We were balanced and that is key for us,” said Bechtel.

Galion’s Isaiah Alsip, who had 40 last week against River Valley, had 31 to lead all scorers on Wednesday night.

Tigers coach Matt Valentine says when they got close in the game they started turning the ball over too much. “We got in foul trouble early. It kind of hurt us with Gage Lackey out of the game and we aren’t really deep as it is right now. Seems like I can only play six kids. We hung in there and fought back and we cut it to four there and then just too many turnovers,” said Valentine.

15 of Alsip’s points came in the first nine minutes of the game. He only had five points in the middle two quarters. “A player like that he is exceptional. He can score off the dribble. He can set his feet and knock it in, just in transition he is a handful. We just had to make as many shots contested as possible,” said Bechtel.

Valentine says the Colts definitely tried to take the ball out of Alsip’s hands in the second half. “They were face guarding him coming out of halftime, so we tried to run him off some screens. He is pretty good at creating his shot. When they are falling things are well,” he said.

Brennan South led Clear Fork with 19 points, Gannon Siefert had 17, A.J. Blubaugh 13, Schaefer 11 and Brady Tedrow 10.

Bechtel says when they get that kind of depth in scoring they are a pretty good basketball team. “I didn’t realize we had five guys in double figures. It is just great. It shows we share the basketball. They just continue to share the basketball an that is what we want to do,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork pushed the tempo of the game all night and Bechtel says they thought an up and down kind of game was to their benefit. “We were a lot deeper we felt like. I knew that they could run. They showed it against River Valley. We were hoping that our defense was going to come through and it did down the stretch finally,” he said.

Published 12/20/18

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Clear Fork with two wins in conference play last week will host Galion in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Wednesday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

The Colts beat Buckeye Valley (56-43) on the road last Wednesday and then outlasted River Valley (52-50) at home on Saturday.

Coach Steven Bechtel says you have to be ready no matter who you play in the league. “Athleticism of the whole league is much improved from last year. Anybody can beat anybody. If you don’t bring your “A” game you can get beat on any given night no matter who it is. So, fortunately we were able to go down to Buckeye Valley and get a win. We squeaked by with River Valley. We made just enough plays there at the end,” said Bechtel.

It was not their best execution against River Valley on Saturday, but Bechtel says they found a way to win. “That is what we kind of said to the team afterwards that we didn’t play our greatest. We had some uncharacteristic errors possibly due to River Valley, but partially because we have 17 and 18-year-old kids. I told them we survived this kind of like the NCAA tournament, survive and advance,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “The biggest test is going to be when we show up on the road and play that way are we able to come away with a victory? We just have to continue to get better in all areas and focus on ourselves and hopefully play well against Galion.”

Clear Fork (4-1,3-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, hosts Galion (2-3,1-2) on Wednesday night. Galion spilt their conference games last week, beating River Valley (97-92) in overtime on Wednesday and losing (50-45) to Marion Harding on Saturday.

Isaiah Alsip scored 40 points in the overtime win over River Valley and Bechtel says he is explosive. “He is an exceptional talent with the things he can do with the basketball, whether it is off the dribble or just a spot up shooter. He is a complete player. He is got some guys around him that are athletic and they play to their roles really, really well. They are a very dangerous team just in the fact they can shoot the ball and their length and athleticism too,” said Bechtel.

This a home game for the Colts and a must win for them really if they are going to compete for the “MOAC” title. Bechtel knows the importance. “I think there are seven games we get at home in the league and those are the ones we have got to win. Hopefully, we can steal a few on the road and let the chips fall where they may I guess. The home court advantage hopefully we can hold court there,” he said.

Published 12/18/18

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Clear Fork has established itself as one of the contenders for the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference boys’ basketball title after a win last week over Shelby, but if they are to do so they must continue to play consistent basketball.

They play two schools that are vastly improved from last year in Buckeye Valley on Thursday and River Valley on Saturday.

Brennan South led five Colts with more than eight in scoring 13 points in a (54-48) win at home last Friday over Shelby.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they were solid in their game plan, which included a lot of zone defense and a somewhat slower pace to the game. “I was just so pleased with the way our kids responded. They executed our game plan really, really well. We made plays down the stretch. We made some timely free throws and got some big rebounds. We were up 12 at one time and we knew Shelby was going to make a run at us because they are a very talented basketball team. We just fortunate enough to make enough plays down the stretch to hold them off,” said Bechtel.

He says there is no time for celebration because the tasks at hand this week will be tough ones. “I know we have our hands full this week again. The league is really strong and we go down to a very tough place to play with a very determined and very good opponent in Buckeye Valley,” he said.

Clear Fork (2-1,1-0) is at Buckeye Valley (2-1,1-0) on Thursday night. The Barons outscored River Valley (85-83) last Friday night.

Bechtel says the Barons are athletic and they are tall and that can be a lethal combination. “They are very similar to way we played last year. They just have a lot more size that we do. They want to get up and down they floor. They want to pressure full court,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “They are aggressive defensively and they go to the glass relentlessly with their size. We are going to have to bring our “A” game down there and hopefully we can come away with a victory.
In games between contenders wins on the road are like gold. Bechtel hopes they can be good miners come Thursday. “We just have to make sure we go down there and if we could steal a victory that would be great. We just have to make sure we put ourselves in position late in that fourth quarter where we have the opportunity to win the basketball game,” he said.

In late game clutch situations you want to have veterans and the Colts have that. Bechtel hopes that pays off on Thursday. “That is the plan and I hope that is true. We are really confident in our players. I think they are going to be ready to go come Thursday and we do have a lot of veteran leadership. We just have to go down there and execute like we re capable of,” said Bechtel.

Published 12/12/18

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Clear Fork hosts Shelby is a key early season matchup between contenders in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference on Friday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

The Colts enter the game at (1-1) after losing to Lexington (66-49) last Thursday and then beating West Salem Northwestern (72-59) on Saturday in non-conference games.

Coach Steven Bechtel thought they improved a lot between those games last week. “I knew we were going to be a little rusty coming out against Lex and obviously as good as they were it was going to be a tall challenge. I thought we did a great job Friday of getting a practice in and preparing for Northwestern, another very good basketball team. We looked a lot better. We did better things than we had done on Thursday. That is what we are looking at now, trying to get better every single day,” he said.

Clear Fork only had its football guys in practice for about a week and Bechtel feels they are going to continue to improve throughout the season. “I think each game is going to present its own challenges, but I also think each game we are going to get better in certain areas. Unfortunately, we are playing some really good basketball teams here to start the season with Shelby and coming up with Buckeye Valley too. We have our hands full, but we are really focused on ourselves and trying to get ourselves where we need to be to compete this year,” said Bechtel.

Shelby (2-0,0-0) beat Mansfield Madison (83-61) last Friday and Lexington (69-57) on Saturday coming into league play.

Bechtel says they are big, but a different kind of big than Lexington. “They are a different size than a Lexington. I think they are a little more athletic. The Pugh kid is a 6’6” guard, so they present different challenges than Lexington did,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We are just going to have to be sharp with the basketball and defensively we are going to have to make them score on contested shots. We can’t give them any open looks.”

Clear Fork is known for its defense and Bechtel says that is going to be really big key for them on Friday. “That goes for every opponent that we play. The goal is to make them score over the top of us. No matter what defense anybody plays not too many basketball teams are every held scoreless. We just have to do a great job of contesting every shot an then coming down with the rebound and limiting them to one shot,” he said.

Published 12/07/18

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River Valley outscored Clear Fork (17-5) in the second quarter and they beat the Lady Colts (47-37) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Tuesday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

River Valley coach Tim Chiles says they calmed down in the second quarter. “We don’t have a lot of experience. We had started out 0-3 and just figuring out how to win and play together. I think once they felt that momentum going their way we were able to pull away and get that win we needed,” said Chiles.

Clear Fork (0-2,0-1) led (9-8) after the first quarter, but the Lady Vikings took the lead for good (11-9) on a three pointer by Taylor Hecker with 5:30 to go in the second quarter. Madi Lott led River Valley with nine points, all on threes, Hecker had eight.

Clear Fork coach Randy Pore says they had too many turnovers and that hurt them Tuesday night and it going to hurt them all season if they don’t clean that up. “Too many turnovers. We did the same thing against Shelby. It seems like we pick and choose when we handle the ball poorly. That is one thing that is going to hold us back during the season and is going hold us under .500. I think if we can handle the ball, I see us being an above .500 team,” said Pore.

River Valley led by as many as 15 twice in the third quarter, the last coming at (36-21) at the end of the third. Clear Fork rallied back to cut it to six (41-35) on Valerie Golden’s hoop with 2:44 to play in the contest. Pore says he was proud of the late game push, but they have to be more consistent. “We were able to turn it on, we have to make sure we don’t turn it off. We have to keep it on all four quarters. I know the second quarter really hurt us when they took a double digit lead into halftime when we had a lead after the first quarter, so we have to find four quarters in a row,” he said.

Morgan Galeo led Clear Fork with nine points. Brooke Robinson and Kali Weikle both had eight.

River Valley (1-3,1-1) made nine of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter, including six of six in the final 1:13 of the game to secure their first win and Chiles says they stayed tough. “We have a good group. We stress free throws all of the time and finishing at the end of games. Give credit to them for making that run and credit our girls for being able to withstand it,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “I felt in the fourth quarter we kind of panicked a little bit when a couple of things didn’t go our way and they made some baskets. We had some turnovers. I told them in the locker room after the game that we continued to battle through it and found a way to win and that is what we need at this point.”

Published 12/05/18

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Lexington outscored Clear Fork by 17 points in the second and third quarters combined and went on to beat the Colts (66-49) in a non-conference boys’ basketball game on Thursday night at Les Hauensetin Gym.

Cade Stover, voted Mr. Football in Ohio this week, did not score in the first quarter, but finished with a game high 19, eight in the second quarter.

Lexington coach Scott Hamilton says they got back to what they do well. “I think when we came out and I made the comment to the guys we made two trips down the floor and I saw a lot of hearts beating and we were so jacked up and we just needed to calm down a little bit and really play the game that we play. We are an inside-outside team, we talked about before the game. If we throw it inside, we can score and kick it back out we can shoot. I give Clear Fork credit they were speeding us up a little bit and it was working early. I think once we settled down we were able to come back and be in better position at halftime,” said Hamilton.

Clear Fork built a (17-10) lead with :34 left in the first quarter on a free throw by Merritt Burgholder, but Lexington dominated the second quarter (17-5) taking the lead (21-20) on a free throw by Nick Sttehel with 5:18 to play in the second quarter and never gave it back for the rest of the game.

Colts coach Steven Bechtel says the Minutemen made some good adjustments to their pressure. “I think they decided to come out and play a little harder and that type of thing. I have to give them a lot of credit they adjusted to our pressure. I think we got a little tired, which we knew was going to happen because of the way we play. I was proud of our kids’ effort. We knew what their strength was and our weakness was. It showed a little bit,” he said.

Maybe still trying to get their basketball legs after a long football season, Clear Fork shot 38% for the game and just over 30% for the final three quarters.

Brennen South led the Colts with 12 points, but only three of them, all on free throws, came after the first quarter. “I think some of the switching that we did in the second half kind of mixed him up a little bit. He was coming off those ball screens and we weren’t defending it really well and he was open. We knew he could shoot the ball, I didn’t know he has 26 foot range, but he hit a couple of big shots that hurt us, but I thought we did a decent job in the second half on him,” said Hamilton.

Lexington had a big advantage with their height and length and they were able to keep Clear Fork off the offensive boards. “They didn’t have any in the first half and five in the game. That was a focus with our size and athleticism we should win the boards, not necessarily dominate, but win the boards every night. (Thursday) night with so many guards on the floor it was 34-22 and I thought we should have had a better rebounding edge against these guys. It was one of those deals where it was out first night on the floor and you have to kind of take it with what it is. We are celebrating a win on the road,” said Hamilton.

Kyle Johnston, the cross county state champion, had 12 for Lexington. Josh Aiello added 10. Stover had 10 rebounds.

Jared Schaefer was not able to play for Clear Fork on Thursday night, he was home with a temperature of 104. Bechtel says they planned to use the football defensive back to guard Stover and that put some of their other guys in a tough spot. “That was a huge matchup for Brady (Tedrow) and anybody else that switched on him. We knew that going in. He is just a handful. Sometimes you have to tip your hat and hope the other guys don’t score,” he said.

With Schaefer not in there. Hamilton says it forced them to make some adjustments too. “It is one those deals where we know he is one of their tougher players. With that long football season, I feel bad for the kid that he couldn’t be out here (Thursday) night. We had him on the scouting report being one of the top guys we had to be aware of,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “When he did not play that allowed them to put another point guard in Siefert on the floor, which took Stover out to the three point line. It just disputed us right away early on, but I thought the guys hung in there. We were down eight in the first quarter and then we were able to battle it back. All the credit to the guys sticking in there.”

Published 11/30/18

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Getting a late start to the girls’ basketball season, Clear Fork hosts Shelby in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Saturday afternoon at Les Hauenstein Gym.

Highland wanted to cancel a game set for early this season due to a volleyball run, so the Lady Colts have to wait until Saturday to play.

First year coach Randy Pore says that is both good and bad. “We have had the extra week of practice, which is good in some ways because we have had some time to kind of scout and kind of get an idea of what our game plan is going to be. It also hurts us because Shelby comes in with two games under their belts. Having those bugs worked out early is a good think to have on your side,” said Pore.

Having five weeks to practice and scrimmage, Pore says they have really improved their intensity on the floor and that is going to make them a better team this year. “I really think just the overall intensity. We came in, and not saying we were soft, but not playing with a lot of emotion. We have really been pushing in practice just playing with emotion and physicality and just trying to play with that emotion to be better. I definitely think that is were we have improved the most of over the last several weeks,” he said.

Shelby (2-0,0-0) comes to the valley on Saturday. The Lady Whippets have wins over Madison (58-41) last Friday and Lexington (49-27) on Tuesday night.

Pore says they want to force the Lady Whippets to do things they don’t want to do. “We are going to get a good game here. They come in with two games already under their belts. They played very well against Madison and Lexington. They are coming off two wins,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We are really going to have our work cut out for us. We are going to have to change their game plan a little bit. I’m sure they will come in with an idea of what they want to do. We need to change things up a little bit and not let them get comfortable.”

Published 11/30/18

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Clear Fork and Lexington, expected to be two of the better boys’ basketball teams in North Central Ohio, meet on Thursday night at Les Hauenstein Gymnasium in non-conference play.

The Colts have had less time to prepare than a lot of teams due to their long run in the football playoffs, but coach Steven Bechtel feels pretty good about the way they are prepared for this week. “We feel pretty good with where we are at right now. Obviously, we are not going to be tournament ready. We just have to bring our “A” game, whatever our “A” game is on that night. We are counting on our veteran players and our experience to really help us throughout the weekend in these first few games till we get our feet underneath us. We are going to be counting on a lot of guys to really step up and play a lot of minutes for us,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork plays longtime small school power West Salem Northwestern on Saturday night.

Almost everyone with the exception of last year’s leading scorer Chance Barnett returns for the Colts and Bechtel says that experience should be a plus for them. “With our experience and our depth we are not reinventing the wheel when we go out there. We are going to do what we do really well and we are going to have to do it at a high level with Lexington and them coming off a great year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “They also have some holes they have fill too. We know what they are going to bring to the table. It is going to be, hopefully, a very exciting Thursday night here in the valley.”

Lexington is led by Ohio State football recruit Cade Stover and Bechtel says keeping him contained in any way if difficult to say the least. “Keeping him contained in any way, shape or form is going to be challenge with his athleticism and just his pure competitiveness. He didn’t sign at Ohio State just because he is a super athlete. He has that desire and he has that work ethic. So, it is going to be a great challenge for us. He has a vey good supporting cast to go around him as well,” said Bechtel.

Clear fork won 17 games last year and Lexington advanced to the division two state semifinals. Bechtel knows the Minutemen will come in with tremendous confidence. “I am sure they are expecting nothing less than going back there again. They are not going to broadcast that, but that should be their goal. They are very senior laden. They have guys that can shoot the basketball. They have guys that can put it on the floor. With their size they can do a lot of different things,” he said.

To have a chance to beat a very good team, Bechtel says they have to play their very best game. “I just think we have to play solid and what that means I’m not real sure just because it is game one and we do have so many question marks. We just have to play solid at both ends of the floor, take care of the basketball, get open looks, and hopefully we can knock down those open looks,” he said.

Published 11/28/18

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Clear Fork is coming off a very successful football season in which they won a league title and advanced to the regional finals and they expect to be able to take that to basketball season.

They had a very strong basketball season last year in which they win 17 games.

Many the Colts were on that football team and basketball coach Steven Bechtel says they bring a lot of leadership to the floor. “It has been an interesting, but fun experience in the fact that we have a lot of those kids that played football and I was really thrilled for them and the season that they had. You wish for them that they could have won another one and a couple of more after that. Unfortunately for that situation it didn’t happen, but we get to move on to basketball. Hopefully, all of the success they had in football can carry over and their leadership can just spill out onto our younger players,” he said.

With a number of guys back that played roundball last season, Bechtel says they are able to sort of hit the ground running. Even with the less practice time. “Whether they are playing football or basketball. It is not like we are going to reinvent the wheel we have a lot of guys back. They are competitors, so they don’t want to take an extra two weeks to practice. It is a great advantage for them, they get to come off of the football field and we get to go play a scrimmage this Saturday as well. A few practices and then right back at some competition. That is the type of kids that we have right now. It really benefits them and it is what they want to do,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork will play its two games on the opening week of the basketball season with Lexington and West Salem Northwestern.

One of the real positives of the group of guys the Colts have this year is their competitive nature, according to Bechtel. “It’s in anything. The shooting drills we do in practice, the one on one drills, anything that way, they want to compete. That is the name of the game. You have to compete in practice so you know they are ready for games and just like they had to all through the fall on the football field,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “They were competitors and that goes along with everybody else we have too that might have played football. Anybody that is playing a sport you want to go out there and you want to compete. It is just a great thing for us right now. The kids are going to go out there and work hard.”

Published 11/21/18

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Clear Fork plays in its third football regional final ever and its first in 29 years on Saturday night as they meet St. Mary’s Memorial in a third round game in division four at Bellefontaine High School.

Athletic Director Jeff Gottfried says it is to the benefit to both you and the school district to get your tickets ahead of time. “When you get to the regional playoffs it is all designated by the state, the ticket prices all through the regionals, the quarterfinals that we hosted, the semifinals and the finals, the ticket prices are $8 at the school, of that $8, $1.20 from that ticket does get kicked back to the schools in the OHSAA. So, it is a little bit of money to the school itself for the purchase of your ticket and not only that, but $8 is a $1 cheaper than what it is at the gate. If you buy it at the gate the night of the game it is going to be $9 and the OHSAA is going to get all of that. It is always nice if you are planning on going to get out there early, get to the school, and save yourself a dollar and out of your $8, $1.20 is going to go to the school,” said Gottfried.

Plus, on Thursday there will be some extra opportunity to buy presale tickets at the school’s athletic office, according to Gottfried. “We did something a little different this week as opposed to last week, our ticket sales were only during the school day, we felt like it was going to be okay because we had them for an extra day. I just picked up the tickets (Wednesday) and brought them back here at Noon and I just felt like we need to give our fans a greater opportunity to get here to the school, so we are going to extend our hours until seven o’clock (Thursday) night,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We do have to cut it off at one o’clock on Friday just because we have to make our deposits and get all of that stuff done to take our check to Bellefontaine for our presale money. So, there is some extra time for people that would be working and not be able to be here during school hours.”

Again, tickets will be on sale until 7 PM on Thursday night only. Gottfried admits that St. Mary’s Memorial has sold more presale tickets the first two playoff weeks than has Clear Fork. He hopes that changes this week.

Gottfried is the long time softball coach at Clear Fork, but this is his first year as AD. He says it has been a special fall. “It is what it is. The nice thing is there is a week between games and it gives you some time to get things done. I am sure with basketball season, or other sports, the turnaround is 24 or 48 hours with presale tickets and it makes it a lot more chaotic, but I have some great people here that are helping me. We are just trying to enjoy this as a school. It is the first time we have been in a regional final since ’89 and at that time there we only four teams, so we have already won more playoff games than we did that year and the year before in ’88. There are a lot of good things happening athletically here at Clear Fork High School,” he said.

Published 11/15/18

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The top two seeds in division four, region 14, square off on Saturday night at Bellefontaine High School, as Clear Fork locks horns with St. Mary’s Memorial.

Although, Clear Fork has never played Memorial, their coaching staff, and their players, have some familiarity with what they are about see.

Last week, despite three turnovers, the Colts (12-0) beat Lorain Clearview (26-8) in a regional semifinal at Wooster High School.

Coach Dave Carroll liked the way they moved the ball, but says they can’t afford those turnovers this week. “From the standpoint that we weren’t putting points on the board again and we were shooting ourselves in the foot. I think anytime you go out, they deferred and gave us the ball, and we just took it down the field and methodically put the ball in the end zone. I felt good and our kids felt good, we can block these guys, we got this. I think maybe it was a little bit of a shy of relief after last week of not being able to score and it possibly made us relax a little bit, I’m not sure. Every time we had the football, we were moving it. We had a pick, I think we were down about the 30 yard-line and made a poor decision with two guys on our one guy and should have thrown it out of bounds or ran and we threw a pick. I think when Schaefer fumbled it was a pass play that just wasn’t open and he held onto the ball instead of running it or getting rid of it and he got drilled and fumbled, I think we were inside the 50. Then the other one we were inside the five yard-line when Trevon (Trammell) fumbled. It could have been 28-0 at halftime because I believe their score came off of one of our turnovers. Once that kind of thing happens then momentum gets rolling, but we just let them hang around by making those mistakes. That is the thing we can not do anymore. I am surprised that we have had those kind of turnovers the last two weeks and we are still playing. We tell the kids you are not going to advance in the playoffs with those kind of turnovers. The higher the level you go the tougher the opponent becomes and the more important securing the ball becomes, so we are not going to be able to do those things,” said Carroll.

This will be the Colts fifth playoff game in the last two years and Carroll believes that kind of experience is a plus. “It reminds me of my first year back here at Clear Fork in ’09 none of those kids had ever been in the playoffs. It is just that giddy feeling, everything that goes with the playoffs. It is just the excitement that you are not used too and all of the extra attention that you get. After they went through what they went through last year and now you have two playoff games under your belt and the further you go the more attention you get, but the kids are used to it and you don’t get that head in the clouds an giddy feelings it is more motivating and just awesome to see everybody get excited than getting goofy about the thing because you have never done it before,” he said.

The Colts have never played St. Mary’s Memorial, but Carroll has and he has great respect for their coach Doug Frey. “I am really familiar with them when I was at Urbana that was our preview scrimmage every year to kick off the season and then we played them in the playoffs in 2002. It’s the same coach, Doug Frey, and he is one the best coaches I have ever seen and I have ever had the pleasure of going against. He coaches it like you are supposed to. He is an old school guy like me. He is very disciplined and his kids are always going to play hard with tremendous effort. They are going to come off the line and smack you and be very fundamentally sound,” he said.

Memorial (11-1) has scored 553 points this season, the Colts have scored 519, the Roughriders have scored 70 points in game, Clear Fork 69 in one. However, the way they go about it is very different. The Colts have two quarterbacks, Jared Schaefer and Brennan South who have passed for over a 1,000 yards. St. Mary’s Memorial is very much a running team.

Carroll says they are going to be physical and they are going to try and pound the ball at you. “They run a wing-T and over the first 11 games the quarterback had thrown for 500 yards, so it is very similar to Pleasant in style of play. They are going to run, run, run, run and do some play action pass here and there or throw if the situation warrants it. They want to run the ball and control the clock. They have scored a lot of points. They get out of the huddle and sprint up to the line, it is like a hurry up offense old school style,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “It is really neat to watch, a fun brand of football. Defensively, they don’t want to give up the big play. Their db’s are back in a zone or a loose man. They try and keep seven in the box. They want to shut down the run and not give you the big pass play. Very fundamentally sound on both sides of the ball and just very physical.”

Memorial beat a team out its same league, the Western Buckeye League, in Van Wert (55-20) last week. They had beaten them (38-6) in the regular season.

Carroll knows this going to be a tremendous challenge, but he does take some comfort having played Pleasant twice over the last two years, beating them on week nine both times. “Very similar type stuff as I said to Pleasant, the db’s have to get involved. They just put that much emphasis and that many people at the point of attack that everybody is invited to this party, safeties, corners, and everything else and the guys up front. The good news is we played a team this year and last that is very similar to this in Marion Pleasant. Linemen that come off the ball and smack you, backs that fly up in there and are quick. Just a little bit different formation wise. Everybody has to be in that mindset. In 2010, we played Genoa, a very similar type team, similar type offense, and we hadn’t seen anything like that prior to that game because nobody in the “OCC,” nobody that we had played, ran anything that came even close to what they did and I think that was a big disadvantage to us back then, but now we have went against this style of play with Pleasant. So, I think that gives us a little bit of an advantage a little bit of a leg up,” said Carroll.

Published 11/14/18

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Clear Fork has played in regional finals twice before, but they have never played 13 football games in a season before this year.

After beating Lorain Clearview (26-8) on Saturday night, the Colts (12-0) will play St. Mary’s Memorial (11-1) in a division four regional final at Bellefontaine AcuSport Stadium this Saturday night.

As you might imagine people in the valley are pretty stoked about that fact and they don’t even have to live there anymore. Jodi Squires, a 1985 Clear Fork grad, who now lives in nearby Fredericktown says, “Colt Pride is Valley wide! Go get them boys.” Or even wider in this case. You don’t even have to live on the mainland for that matter. “From North Pole, Alaska, wish the Colts the best of luck… all of the way,” says Dan Swank, who now lives in the “Land of the Midnight Sun.” There are a lot of Swanks in the Mansfield area, some are related to me and some are not. Dan is my older cousin, who once donned a Clear Fork uniform.

A lot of people are concerned that this game is going to be played in Bellefontaine, its about a 50 minute drive for Roughrider fans, almost two hours from Clear Fork.

The Ohio High School Athletic Association says the distance between schools is a factor, but not the only one, when it comes to choosing neutral sites for football playoff games. Seating capacity, quality of playing surface (think turf,) size of locker rooms, and field lighting are all considered.

Gary Mathes wants to know who made the OHSAA mad? Mark Francisco added the Clear Fork baseball team traveled to Elida and won regional titles (three of them in fact) and he says it “just makes the drive home all the sweeter.” Jim Lyon termed the choice of venue “interesting.”

Mike Uplinger, a Shelby fan, remembers “That’s strange. We played them in Marion last year. That’s a ways to travel.” Shelby beat St. Mary’s Memorial (47-7) last year in a regional semifinal. Marion Harding is not hosting a game this weekend.

My advice would be not to get too upset about the site of the game if you are a Clear Fork fan. The game is on Saturday and the bus carrying the team can leave anytime it wants since the players will not be in school. As far as fans are concerned I have covered Clear Fork teams from Akron to Castalia to Tiffin to Elida to Columbus and there are always big crowds and this one will be no different. Lyon agrees “Personally, I don’t care where our Colts play! The Clear Fork Valley travels well and we will make it feel like a home game.

Now, some have been more pragmatic fans and get down to the x’s and o’s. Clear Fork has really been its own worst enemy in its first two playoff games. They beat Bryan (20-6) in their first game. They have been remarkably similar really. The Colts have three turnovers in each and because of that didn’t get their offense in top gear until the fourth quarter each time when they put the game away.

Eric Marshall, who’s dad Harold was a pretty good coach until he got too old, is straight forward, “Can’t turn the ball over like they did this past Saturday again, I can tell you that.”

St. Mary’s Memorial was declared by the Cleveland Plain Dealer as the favorite to win this region before the playoffs started, but they did that last year too. The Roughriders have been very explosive this season as they have scored more than 60 points three times, beating Kenton (70-29) on week five of the season. They play in an excellent conference, the Western Buckeye League, where three teams made the playoffs this year. Their only loss came on week 10 to Wapakoneta (26-24) on a late field goal by the Redskins. Wapakoneta plays for a division three regional title on Friday.

Ryan Cooper, a graduate of former rival Lexington, talks turnovers too. “St. Mary’s WILL win if Clear Fork plays sloppy. Will be a low scoring defensive battle. Colts need to score quickly and maintain control of the game,” he said.

Published 11/12/18

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The Clear Fork Lady Colts are preparing for the season under a new coach, their third in four years, and they are showing some good signs.

They were (7-16) last season, their first in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference. They finished in seventh place in the league last year with a (2-12) conference record.

Coach Randy Pore says he has seen some good leadership and some hard work over the first two weeks of practice. “I know coming in from the summer we were going to have some good solid leadership from our senior and junior classes. We did lose four starters from last year, but we have six returning letter winners. So, we have a good core leadership and we also have some hard working sophomores and some freshmen as well that are pushing those girls. I am really happy with where we are at right now,” he said.

Pore has been the boys’ JV coach the last several years and he is still learning his personnel. He thinks they can be an improved team. “Not having watched a lot of game last year being with the boys, I didn’t have a lot of time to watch the games there. I think consistency is going to be a big part of our season. We have a lot of girls that are capable of putting up a lot of points on certain nights, but then the next night they might be shutout. I think once we get some consistency and our confidence going it is going to go a long way,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We had seven wins last year, we would love to get more than that, hopefully double digit wins. In the league last year we had two wins, so we definitely want to improve on that and I think we will.”

Clear Fork opens the season on December 1 against new conference member Shelby at home. Pore says that gives them some time to use scrimmages to allow some inexperienced players to sort of get their feet wet. “A lot of these girls even those they played varsity minutes last year they may not have gotten the majority of the minutes. These juniors especially they are getting a lot of playing time. A lot of them have not had 20 minutes of playing time at one time, so just getting in there and getting their minutes and getting their legs is going to be an important part of the scrimmages. Our first game is not until December 1. Our two games from last year we didn’t reschedule with those teams, so we have an extra week of practice,” said Pore.

Published 11/09/18

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Clear Fork plays Lorain Clearview in the playoffs for the second year in a row, this time in a second round game in division four, Saturday night at Follis Field at Wooster High School.

The Colts scored twice in the fourth quarter last week on pick six by Ashton Lyons and a short TD run by Brady Tedrow and they put away Bryan (20-6) in a regional quarterfinal.

Coach Dave Carroll says the play of the defense was just tremendous. “We were all really proud of our defense. We talked earlier in the season about some of those games that we won pretty handily, but we weren’t real impressed with our effort. It was kind of opposite of that Saturday night. Our kids just gave unbelievable effort getting after that quarterback. Our big boys, that wears them guys out going up the field after that quarterback play after play. They were relentless the entire game. Trevon Trammell had a great game, Gabe Blauser, the three big boys up inside (Hunter) Tollison and (James) Watts and (Michael) Chillemi. A team the week before threw for like 370 yards passing and we held them to 76 total passing yards. The defense was fantastic and those guys did a great job,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork (11-0) took a (7-6) lead in the second quarter on a TD Pass form Jared Schaefer to Kadin Flynn, but Carroll says on offense they were kind of their own worst enemy. “Offensively, I don’t think it was a lack of effort by any means because a lot of them are the same kids we just kept shooting ourselves in the foot with holding penalties, three interceptions, just not executing properly down in the red zone. We should have had three more scores. We were down inside the 10 three times and didn’t get it done. Hopefully, that was our bad offensive night of the season and we got it out of the way and now ready to get back to where we were,” he said.

Clearview beat Highland, the Knox Morrow Athletic League champ, last week (30-16) in their first playoff game. Clear Fork beat the Clippers (44-0) in a first round game last week.

Carroll says this year’s team is better and much more experienced. “They are still a 3-4 defense. They play a little bit more man coverage than what they did. They play a little more cover two zone. They will still do both. They slant and angle like they did last year. It is a lot of the same kids. I think seven starters on the defensive side are back. Offensively, they are still a run first kind of team. Probably a little more run first team this year. Last year, they had that big tall quarterback that zipped it around quite a bit. The difference is those guys are all back, so they are a year older and bigger, faster, stronger, and experienced. So, we told our kids on Monday to forget about last year because you are not playing last year’s team this is a much more experienced group that is way improved over last year,” said Carroll.

Clearview (10-1) is bringing a 10 winning streak into the game. Carroll says they will bring some confidence with them too. “They had a fantastic season once again. They lost their first game to a bigger school and have rattled off 10 wins since then. I am sure they have a boatload of confidence. I am sure they want a little revenge from last year’s game. I’m sure that is a little extra motivation for them. They have been riding the wave right now,” he said.

Follis Field has tuff and Carroll says his kids are excited about that, plus they had some offensive success when they played Wooster two years ago on that field. “Week 10 against Marion Harding we were on turf and Bellevue was also a turf field. We love that of course because we like to throw the ball and we like to get the ball to our kids out in space. We have some pretty fast guys. Turf helps everybody, but when you are fast it is really a plus to know you are going to have great footing and you can cut much better and do all of those things that those fast guys do. Out kids just start smiling when they know we are going to be on the Astroturf,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We are playing at Wooster, which is a very familiar place to us being an old “OCC” team that we played. Last time we were over there two years ago. Jared Schaefer had a monumental game, at the time he set the school passing record, he threw for 275 yards. We lost, it was a heck of a ballgame, back in 2016 when we lost all of those close games and played everybody tight. I think we had 450 yards of offense, but we didn’t quite finish the job and get them beat. His offensive performance and our offensive performance over there was pretty special, so we are hoping we can have another one like that again.”

Carroll outlines some keys to a win by the Colts and a lot of it is going to boil down to the point of attack. “Offensively, we have to block their front. They are a movement front, slant and angle front like we are, out of their 3-4 defense. They have a really big nose guard that we have to be able to handle. They have two good inside linebackers. They mix up man and zone defense, so we have to be able when they have press coverage, get off of that an get into our routes. We have to protect our quarterbacks up front. They do a decent amount of blitzing. Picking up the movement of the front can be difficult at times. Defensively, it has to start with the run with these guys. They have three different backs that they will use in the run game. They all run hard and they are pretty fast. They have a pretty decent pass game. It is a little more of a quick, slant like game. Some quick drag routes, but they can also chuck the fade down the field and some other things down the field, so we have to be solid there. Number one, we have to be really good against the run, especially on first and second down and hopefully get them in some third and long situations where we can pin our ears back and help our defensive back out in coverage. We have to be good on special teams because they have got some returners that can catch the ball and go,” said Carroll.

Published 11/08/18

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Clear Fork, the top seed in its division four playoff region, will be at home on Saturday night for Bryan, in a regional quarterfinal game at the Colt Corral.

The Colts have now been in the playoffs 14 times, including the last two years.

They earned an outright Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title and a perfect regular season with a (48-14) win at Marion Harding last Friday.

Coach Dave Carroll says, again, they had good focus. “Especially after the huge, emotional game with Pleasant. That was quite a battle physically and emotionally when you are playing what is becoming our new big rival and a really good program. You hope as a coach you are not going to have a let down after that in playing a team like Harding that had a record of 2-7 coming in. Our kids have been very good at focusing even when they know they are probably better than the team that they are going to play. That started back when we had our preview with Madison, we knew Madison was struggling and young because we did some seven on sevens with them, and our kids went out there and took care of business, the same thing with Fredericktown and a couple of other games. We had some turnovers and stuff. I attribute that not so much to a lack of focus, but it was pretty miserable out there with the cold and the wet. It is not an excuse, but if I had any complaints that would be it that we turned the ball over when we shouldn’t have,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork (10-0), #1 in the final Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, led the “MOAC” in total offense this year. Carroll says in the playoffs you just can not one dimensional. “We tend to believe the run game has always been important in our minds and I think everybody’s minds even as the passing game has become more prolific here in the later years of most programs. We are seeing more and more passing and higher and higher scores. We think that having a nice balance is good. Us old coaches think if you can throw the ball efficiently you have a chance to do some things possibly in the playoffs because most of the time you are going to face teams in whatever round of the playoffs that are going to be able to stop your run because they are going to have very similar sized kids up front, so it is going to be hard to run the football. Just like the NFL has developed into quite a passing fest through the years because it is just hard to block and push people around defensively you can stuff people’s run. We feel comfortable having that passing game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “We have two quarterbacks that can throw very well. My goal every game is to tell those guys we want a run game. We want to be able to block those guys up front. When we can run the football it just opens up the passing game. You can kind of do what you want and you can mix and match it and keep the defense off guard. That is always they case, like Pleasant, they had some big studs up front and the way they slant their defense they are going to load the box up. It makes it really hard to run, but 287 yards passing later we win the football game.”

Carroll, who just picked up win number 200 a couple of weeks ago, spent some of his career in Williams County, where Bryan is located. “I used to live a few miles down the road there was I was coach at Edon for four years. So, I was a Williams County resident there for a while. Never played Bryan when I was Edon, but we heard a lot about them and knew a lot about them. They have been good throughout the years in a lot of things. Maybe in ’12 and ’13 I believe they had a couple of undefeated seasons. They played Kenton up here at Arlin Field in the regional finals and lost a close one to them, so they have had good football,” said Carroll.

Bryan (7-3) broke a two game losing streak with a (41-7) win over Evergreen last week. They are led by a quarterback Nate Miller, who Carroll says can do anything the coach would ask. “They are a spread team. They are in the “NAOL” that has teams like Swanton, Wauseon, Evergreen, Archbold. There is some traditionally good football that comes out of that area. Their team this year, like a lot of spread teams kind of revolves around their quarterback, but these guys more than most because he has thrown for 1,800 plus yards and he is also the leading rusher at around 500 yards. I think the next rusher has a 100 and some. So, we have to do a great job against this kid,” he said.

Carroll says they have kind of faced kids like Miller, but not quite. He says they can’t let him get out of the pocket and they must protect against the draw. “They might be a little bit like Bellevue and a little bit like Galion. I would say those are probably the most similar two teams. Bellevue probably ran the football more. I would say this young man from Bryan is probably a better quarterback because Bellevue’s quarterback was just a sophomore and just didn’t have the experience yet throwing it all of the time. Galion’s quarterback was a pretty good runner and passer, so I would say he is probably a little closer to the kid from Galion. They don’t do a lot of designed run plays for the quarterback. They will run a draw, if they see you have four or five in the box, they will drop back and he is going to take off on the draw. At lot of his rushing yards are just him scrambling around when things break down in the pocket and he takes off. That is a big part of our game plan is we can not let him do that. We have to stop the draw and we can’t let him scramble around and get outside of our containment. If we can accomplish those two things that is more than half the battle. Of course, the guys in the back end really have to cover well,” said Carroll.

Published 10/31/18

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There are a number of things to accomplish for the Clear Fork football team this Friday, but primary among them is to beat Marion Harding because without that many of those other things go away.

By beating the Presidents, the Colts win back to back outright Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference titles, would have consecutive 10-0 regular seasons and might by the number one seed in their division four computer region for the second straight year.

That all became possible when Gabe Blauser kicked a field goal with just over 3:00 to play and the Colts beat Marion Pleasant (16-14) last week at the Colt Corral.

They were behind (14-7) at the half when Pleasant scored on the final play of the second quarter.

However, coach Dave Carroll says he wasn’t that worried, he had confidence in his kids. “I was proud of our kids throughout the entire game. Pleasant, I think most people that follow high football know their reputation, they were a regional final team last year. They are always good and this year is no exception. They have big, strong kids and they are fast on top of that. We took the lead, but it was brief, and then they tied it up and then they took the lead. Every time we had the ball we moved it. The first time we take it right down the field and we fumble in the red zone and we scored the next time. Another time we take it down and have a nice play the Kayden Flynn and we get a holding penalty that takes us out of there. Last year, was a little different. They stymied our offense last year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We did not drive the ball we scored on a couple of heaves in the air at the end of the game, so it was much different. I felt way more confident this year when we were down 14-7 than last year when we were down 14-0 and our offense really hadn’t done much of anything at that point. I knew our kids would fight and keeping going and our defense stepped up and shut them out in the second half and our offense got the points on the board. The rest is history, another classic.”

Clear Fork cut its deficit to (14-13) when Brennan South found Trevon Trammell on a 36-yard scoring pass early in the fourth quarter.

The Colts (9-0,6-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, play at Marion Harding (2-7,1-5) in “MOAC” action on Friday night. The Presidents won their first conference game of the season last week beating River Valley (19-18) last Friday.

Carroll says they do some nice things on offense. “They have some really nice athletes. They have a few of those kids back from last year’s team. They have had some very close games against a lot of the “MOAC” opponents. They struggled a little bit against Pleasant, but everybody else has too. They are very, very good at running the sweep, they have a lot of different versions to get the ball outside, different formation, motions, crackbacks and things like that. They are really proficient at running the boot pass. I think we have counted seven different ways from different formations. We run the boot pass, not as many different ways, where you are faking the run one way and booting the other way and bringing people across the field, bringing backs out of the backfield behind the line. Those are the two big areas that we have to defend well. They will chuck a fade up every once in a while, but we have gotten better and better at defending that over the course of the season,” said Carroll.

In a similar situation last year, Clear Fork beat Marion Harding (41-14) to close things out.

Carroll says they are a team that will show you a lot of things on defense. “They will give you a combination of zone and man. Our receivers have to be ready to get off that man coverage. We are struggling a little bit against that. Against Ontario, especially in the first half. We don’t see a lot of teams that get right up in your face like we do, our guys do that, and bump you and run with you, so we have to adjust to that. They will also play safe and have that four across umbrella. We have to find ways to get the ball in the end zone. Hopefully, get our run game going better than it was last week as well,” he said.

Clear Fork has averaged 47 points a game. Last week, we the only time they have scored less than 40 this year.

Now, with a lot on the line here, Carroll says it would be easy to get lost in the fray a little bit. He says they must have focus. “We are trying to get our kids to not think about that too much, just focus on your job beating Marion Harding. Obviously, that is the elephant in the room, back to back 10-0 seasons. I have had 10-0, 9-1 or 9-1, 10-0, but I have never had two 10-0’s back to back, Clear Fork has never had that, and obviously these kids have never had that. So, it is pretty special, but we have to guard against dreaming about that stuff or thinking about the playoffs and you let this slip away, what is in front of you. We are focusing on Marion Harding and what our job is against these guys,” said Carroll.

Published 10/26/18

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Clear Fork, the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champion, faces league foe Ontario, in the girls’ soccer division two district semifinals on Tuesday night at Madison High School.

The match was originally to be played at Clyde, but has been switched to Madison. It will be the second game of the night with kickoff at 7 PM.

The Lady Colts (13-3-2) beat Sandusky (10-0) in a sectional final last week at Clear Fork.

Coach Brittany Bechtel says they have been able to score goals this season. “We have been able to put the ball in the back of the net, knock on wood, every game. We have been able to take care of it on the offensive end. I am a firm believer in defense wins championships,” she told Swankonsports.com, “So, I really rally around the defense and make sure they are as strong as we can make them. If you can keep the ball out of the net the least you can do is tie and create a shootout, especially going into tournament. We have had a lot of different girls score. Kaylin (Helinski) is our leading scorer and she has definitely been that strong person when we have struggled to find the back of net and she finds a way.”

Helinski has 34 goals this season.

Bechtel has really been pleased with what her team has done on defense this year. She says they have been hard to score on. “I think we have 10 shutouts and only 11 goals scored on us. We have played three of the top teams in the state, so that is not a bad statistic. Kaylee (Krausman) doesn’t have the keeper saves that some other keepers may have and that is because she has a solid defense in front of her, but she has to be one of the best keepers in the state. She has had some just ridiculous, crazy saves, which we for sure goals,” she said.

Krausman has 104 saves this fall.

Clear Fork beat Ontario (10-7-1) in the regular season (2-1) on October 3 to secure the league title. Helinski had the game winner in the 49 th minute that night.

Bechtel looks for another competitive game on Tuesday night. “In the tournament we have not had that solid game yet. Ontario versus Clear Fork is the norm. We tend to match up year after year. Two great programs going at it. Those are the games the girls remember, whether they are winning or losing, those are the games you train for, that is the reason you are out in the summer, for both the programs,” she said.

Published 10/23/18

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It’s Clear Fork versus Marion Pleasant, round two, and at stake is the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title, and likely a home playoff berth.

The Colts are unbeaten (8-0,5-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, and Pleasant is (7-1,4-1), #5 in our small school division. A win by Clear Fork wraps up no less than a share of the league title and maybe an outright championship depending on what happens between Buckeye Valley and North Union.

Last week, the Colts belted Ontario (54-14) in a conference game. Trevon Trammell scored five times for Clear Fork.

It was (7-7) in the first quarter, but coach Dave Carroll was happy with how they responded, something they have done all year. “Our kids have faced a couple of times during the season when there was adversity thrown their way. Probably the first one was Bellevue, a pretty good program. The game went well for us right off the bat. Trevon opened up the game with a 95-yard touchdown run, but it was still a ballgame for a little while. Then North Union, I believe it was 14-14 at the half and our kids had to dig down and we found a way to stop them, to put points on the board and ended up having a great second half. It was very similar this game. Then you had the Galion game as well with that crazy first half and our kids once again responded and took care of business in the second quarter into the second half. Friday night, I think our defense really set the tone for the way the rest of the game was going to go when Ontario had a fourth and one and our defense stuffed them and the boys are like okay let’s put some points on the board and before you knew it, it was 34-7 going into the half. I would prefer we didn’t create some of those adverse situations and just take care of business from the get go, but this job would be pretty easy if that is the way it always went,” he said.

Last season, Clear Fork rallied late to beat Pleasant (20-17) in overtime.

Carroll says the Pleasant offense is physical, it is fast, and features a lot of kids that can make big plays. “They are extremely big up front. They have two linemen that are 305 pounds, listed in the program, other guys are 250, 260, etc., I think the smallest guy that you see all of the time is 225, that is about the smallest guy they have, they do play another tight end that is more athletic and not quite as big. What stands out for these guys, what always does for Pleasant, is their speed. The (Patrick) Blubaugh kid, the Wolfe kid, (Julien) Ladd, are very, very fast. They hit a hole they can be gone. We experienced that last year. Blubaugh hit that “iso” on us and the next thing you know he is standing the end zone celebrating. Then they have a couple of fullbacks that they put in there that are big boys, 200 plus pound kids that lead the way, but they can also carry the ball with the fullback dive and the trap. Ethan Warner in back at quarterback. He is a tall senior, about 6’5”, 6’6”. He doesn’t throw the ball a ton, but he can throw it. They are very depictive, they will run, run, run, and then play action pass on you,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “Then Ethan does a lot of quarterback keeps. They fake that inside run, they run in there so much, and he pulls it and runs around the end. He has got a lot of good yards on that. We have got to be really solid up front and be ready for a smash mouth, 1965 type football game, from the defensive standpoint. That secondary has to be extremely disciplined because they sneak guys out, and it looks exactly like the run play, and you have to have great eye discipline as a secondary guy against them.”

With all of the good things about their offense, Carroll believes the best part of the Pleasant team is its defense. “Defense I think is their best overall part of their game. Their defensive front is really good. (Brayden) Stark and (Alex) Enders, two kids that gave us fits last year. Their inside linebacker is their starter from last year. The two outside guys, Wolfe and Ladd, they are not the biggest guys, but they are quick and they are very aggressive. They like to blitz those outside guys a lot. They are not going to let you have the big play. They usually keep four across, two high safeties. So, they want to pressure you up front with a lot of slanting and angling, blitzing one of those outside backers most of the time and then they are going to keep that umbrella of a secondary, so you can’t break a long run or get a long pass on them. Their defense is very, very good, they are aggressive, they are quick, and our offensive personnel have their work cut out for them against these guys,” said Carroll.

The Clear Fork coach says to play in game like this with everything riding o its outcome is exciting, but the players have to maintain their focus. “This is what you hope that each and every year that you are in position for a game like this with the “MOAC” title on the line, with playoff implications where you are at as far as the computer rankings, the bragging rights, just all of those things, community pride. The possibility of having two 10 win seasons back to back. Just a lot of things like that that are really cool, but you can’t think about it too much. You just have to focus on your job. I have to focus all calling plays and putting my players in the best situation and they have focus on doing their job and not about all of the stuff that surrounds it. It is cool, we all know it is out there. Both teams are state ranked and in playoff contention. It’s a beautiful thing,” he said.

Last week, with the win over Ontario Carroll picked up win number 200 of his career. He says he has enjoyed the ride. “I am excited about it. It is a cool thing. Us guys that have been coaches for a long time. People that are in the coaching ranks, or are close to coaches understand what coaches, their assistants, their families, go through. Not that people in other professions don’t. In our coaching circles it is not always sunshine and rainbows it can get tough at times, it can get brutal at times, because the “Joe Average Fan” understands two words, wins and losses, and they prefer the first one. I have been able to be a head football coach for 30 years and I feel proud of that and I feel grateful that my wife and my children have stood by me during the tough times and been right there in the good times to celebrate as well. All of those players and coaches that have worked really hard on all of those teams it is cool to think back. A lot of great memories, a lot of great times. The head coach gets the accolades when you reach a milestone line, but it is all of those other people, the assistant coaches, that did all of that work, all of those players, they are the ones that got the wins,” said Carroll.

Published 10/17/18

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Clear Fork put up more than 600 yards of total offense last week against Galion and this week they travel to Ontario to meet the Warriors in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game.

They lead the conference standings by a game over Marion Pleasant and Buckeye Valley. The Barons handed Pleasant there first loss of the season (18-6) last Friday.

The Colts led (49-35) at halftime last week at home against Galion and then won the second half three scores to none for a (69-35) win over the Tigers. They stay all lone in the conference and move to the top spot in their computer region.

Trevon Trammell ran for 218 yards for the Colts week to put him over 700 for the season and the Colts also threw for more than 200 yards too.

Coach Dave Carroll says they even missed some opportunities. “It is fun when you get that much action on the offensive side of the ball. We had 377 rushing and 230 or 240 yards passing. Obviously, those offensive kids are having a lot of fun. It was the tale of two cities as we were a little frustrated in other areas. Even on offense, we thought, if you watched the game that we had a couple of passes dropped and a couple of passes overthrown that were possible big plays that could have been added on to that. We threw an interception coming out of our end zone. Some people question the call, but I say whatever because I knew exactly what Galion was going to do in that point and time. We got the ball down inside our own five and they were going to blitz the house, so we called our slip screen to Kayden Flynn and if we would have thrown the ball like we should have he has probably got a 98-yard touchdown. Our quarterback just underthrew it, he just kind of lobbed it. He knew as soon as he let it go, he told me when he came over the sidelines. It went right in their linebackers’ hands for a touchdown,” said Carroll.

Yes, they gave up some big plays on defense for really the first time this year, but Carroll says the offense and the special teams helped to add to that first half point total. “We also gave them a kick return way down into our territory, which led to one of their scores. Then I called for a on sides kick with two minutes left in the half. I wanted to try and get the ball back and try and get another score and we didn’t get it, so they got the ball in our territory. So, in three of those fives scores we definitely helped them out quite a bit,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “I give a ton of credit to coach Matt Dick and his staff over there they did a great job of game planning for what we do defensively and they did some things that caused us a little bit of confusion. Different formations, motions, they put in a speed option. None of these things they had done in the first six games. I told my brother (Mike) when you have teams changing stuff and game planning this extensively that is a heck of a compliment. It exposed a couple minor things that we can tweak as a coaching staff especially this late in the season when things are going so well.”

Clear Fork (7-0,4-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, plays at Copeland Stadium at Ontario against the Warriors (3-4,1-3) on Friday night. They lost (16-13) to River Valley last week.

Carroll says the Warriors are going to bring a lot of pressure. “Those kids are playing hard. Their defense flies around. They are very blitz oriented. They remind me a little bit of Buckeye Valley. This year they were the same way. They are going to be in different fronts. They will play a lot of man defense and they will blitz the heck our of you. They disrupt your run game and they put a lot of pressure on your quarterback to get rid of the ball fast. It is a very attacking defense that you just don’t see all of the time. You have to prepare up front. You have to get your running backs involved in protection. Quarterbacks can’t be taking all day back there. They have to speed their processes up, their reads and get rid of the football and know sometimes they are just going to have to take off and go with it. They will send more people than you can block. They will take chances on that. The good news for that is a lot times that defense lends itself to big plays in both the passing game and the running game, but you have got to hit it. Hit that crease in the run game, pick up those blitzes, and in the pass game you have to beat somebody when you are one on one. It will be a nice challenging night for our offense,” said Carroll.

When the Warriors have the ball, Carroll says they know their strengths and they are going to try and emphasize those. “They have not been a high power offense. They don’t have a tremendous amount of speed. This just my take from watching them on film, I think they are being really smart. They are lining up in the “I” a lot of times and running the football and getting their three yards and getting their five yards, not concerning so much in getting a big play. A lot of times they will mass protect and send one receiver out and protect their young quarterback and try and get some plays that way or if they are going to throw the ball down the field, do it quickly on a fade route or back out of the backfield real quick,” he said.

Carroll adds the Warriors are pretty good in the return game. “The one thing I have noticed that Chris Miller has them playing hard. They fly around, they hit you, they hustle. Owen Hatfield, number 11, that kid is amazing on kickoff and punt returns. Every game he is returning one or two. I know right now we are going to try our best, you never know about high school kickers or punters, but we are going to try our best not to kick the ball to that kid because he just makes people miss, he finds that little seem. I think he is like 5’6”, 130 pounds, but he is quicker than a cat, he is very elusive,” said Carroll.

Published 10/10/18

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Clear Fork takes an unbeaten record and the co-lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference into a matchup with Galion at the “Colt Corral” on Friday night.

They put together their 16 th regular season win a row last week in beating River Valley (48-6) in a league game in which they led (41-0) at the half.

Coach Dave Carroll says they had good focus against the Vikings. “I was really proud of the kids for once again coming out and being focused and taking care of business. We have been preaching over and over we try not to look at the team and their record and what not each Friday. It’s about how well can each of us play. How well each of us coach and get the highest level that we possibly can as a team. I think our kids are buying into that and so far, and knock on wood, it keeps going. It’s a little different this week because you are playing a team that is 4-2 and one of their losses is to an undefeated team,” he said.

Quarterbacks Jared Schaefer and Brennan South have combined to throw for over 1,100 yards and 13 touchdowns this season. Three players have rushed for over 140 yards this year, led by Trevon Trammell with 490 yards and nine touchdowns. This is with a second half running clock in four of their six games. The Colts have 24 rushing touchdowns.

Plus, Carroll says they have gotten improved play from second and third teamers this fall. “Our JV stated its season out getting its butt kicked, shouldn’t have been, but they did, it is what it is, by Bellevue, and since then they have preformed a lot better, not just in their JV games, but practice. We are able to get quite few kids reps. I think our coaches are doing a really good job of getting our backups reps in practice every day. We have two quarterbacks, and that is such a relief for a coach knowing that you have those two guys if God forbid something does happen. Then we also have a young man that is our third quarterback that we feel could play varsity in Brady Tedrow. He starts at corner for us. He goes in and plays some running back and slot, he is such a smart kid. Traditionally he has been a quarterback throughout his career. He has learned about three or four different spots and he is ready to go on offense as well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “It is always tough in the last 10, 15 years of high school to come up with five really solid linemen. To be good you have to be strong, you have to be able to move, and you have to be physically tough. We have some backup kids like Kolby Huvler and Brock Talbott that have been getting a lot of reps, they are nice sized kids, they were just inexperienced. Bruce Swainhart, Jay’s younger brother, big kid. As the season has gone on we have given them a lot of reps in practice, plus they are on our scout team, so they get banged around by he varsity guys which makes them better as well. So, we think those guys are really improving and much more confident if something did happen.”

Clear Fork (6-0,3-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, plays host to Galion (4-2,1-2,) the Tigers are coming off a (31-28) win over Marion Harding in the “MOAC” last week.

Carroll says the Tigers can do some things on offense, and some different things. “I think it all starts for them up front. Their two guards, I haven’t seen this in a long time, their right guard is 305 pounds and their left guard is 275 pounds, and they pull their guards. Their number one running play is counter trey, where they pull the guard and tackle, kicking out in the line. We tell our kids you better hit and close and hunker down because you have a couple of freight trains coming at you. We have some big boys and that ought to be a pretty good battle up there. Their quarterback is maybe the leading individual passer, our two combo guys passers as far as I know, the most yards passing, but he is right behind them I believe. Their running back, we saw him in track, is a 50 flat 400 guy, 11.5 100 meter, so he has some wheels. They have some receivers, number 2, number 1, two of the top leading receivers in the “MOAC.” So, they have been putting some points up and been getting some yardage through they air and on the ground. Our defense will really have to step it up,” said Carroll.

The Clear Fork coach says with their balance and their explosiveness they really aren’t sure what they will get from Galion on defense. “For us on offense, it is kind of a wait and see for us each week. Are they going to try and take away our pass? Are they going to try and take away our run? Or are they going to try and do a little bit of both? Some people have loaded the box. The last two weeks they loaded the box, so we have been able to throw it for quite a few yards. Thank God we are able to do both pretty affectively, so we will have to see how they are going to play their defense,”

Published 10/05/18

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Kaylin Helinski and Torri Curry scored goals and Clear Fork beat Ontario (2-1) to claim no less than a share of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference girls’ soccer title on Wednesday night.

Curry scored off a corner from MacKenzie Thorne click in the 14 th minute to give the Lady Colts the lead, but Ontario would tie it on a header by Aliana Reed four minutes before halftime.

Clear Fork coach Brittany Bechtel says that tying goal just made her kids play with more focus and energy. “You can either fuel the fire or it will deflate. With the kind of leadership we have on this team I was pretty sure it was going to fuel a fire and pick the team up, lift them up, and continue to press on like they had been and that is exactly like what continued to happen. They definitely weren’t deflated by it. They rose to occasion and they did their jobs,” she said.

Helinski coming down the left side knocked one in the right corner in the 51 st minute to give the Lady Colts the (2-1) lead.

They made it stand up, even with an Ontario shot coming across the front of their goal with less than a minute to play.

Obviously, Bechtel is happy with the win, but not with how they played defensively over the final 30 minutes. She felt they were too passive. “I know the girls tend to do that when they get up by one. Two of our other big games where we were up by one they tend to play a more defensive game after they score and we are in the second half, not the first half, but when we hit the second half and there is under 20 to play and that is still a lot of time, they tend in the last few games when we have been up by one, to kind of play in a more defensive mode. It hasn’t actually worked out for them. I try to continue to motivate them to play their game because when they play their game there is a better chance to keep possession of the ball and move the ball well and have the ball more in the middle half of our offensive end of the field,” she told Swankonsports.com after the win, “When they bunker down and play this defensive game they just kind of give that control away. They did that again (Wednesday.) They have done it three times that I have been very aware of it and two of the three haven’t gone so good, we ended up tying it. (Wednesday) they play a good solid defense and kept the ball out of the net. We have definitely talked about it and it is not something I prefer not to do, it is something they revert to. Hey, it worked out for us (Wednesday,) but it does give you a little bit of a heart attack when you are dealing with it they way they change their game.”

Clear Fork and Ontario are rivals and Bechtel says the win Wednesday night was pretty special. “There was a lot of meaning for this game. We have he sectional/district draw coming up. It was a “W” we needed in that area. It was a “W” we needed for “MOAC” championship. We shared it last year with them. So, there was a lot riding on the game on top of it is a rival. It’s a rival, but we haven’t been on top for the last couple of years. We have always been in every game, we have always been right there, but we have not been able to seal the deal. We have been there with 1:30 left and the game slips away. It has been so close or right on the edge every time. Being able to find that and hopefully gives some momentum moving forward,” said Bechtel.

Published 10/03/18

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Clear Fork, the “MOAC” co-leader, continues to do a lot of good things, but they can still get better and they get that chance on Friday night when they host the River Valley Vikings in a conference game.

Right now, the Colts stand second in their computer region in division four, but we have only played half of the regular season games.

Last week, they led (34-0) at the half and went on the pound Buckeye Valley (44-0) in a “MOAC” game.

Coach Dave Carroll says they were able to execute the game plan. “We knew going in, and we talked about this, Buckeye Valley is doing some different things this year with their defense. They are more high pressure with multiple fronts, a lot of blitzes, go back and forth with man and zone. In the past they have been predominantly a 4-4, cover three zone and that was what they were going to stay with no matter what. We knew it was going to be more challenging. It was going to be tougher to run the ball against them because they are going to put seven guys in the box a lot of times and blitz and move those guys. We did prepare all week for the blitz. I was worried we were going to wear our offensive lineman out mentally because we were just bringing it at them so much, but they did a great job of picking it up. We ended up just throwing the ball a lot. We had over 100 yards rushing. Probably a lot of it was by choice to throw the ball because we had prepared for it so much. Our quarterbacks did a nice job throwing the ball and receivers got open and caught the ball and made plays. It was a good night for us because we faced something different. Even though the score was somewhat lopsided it was a challenge to our offensive line especially and just our offense in general,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork threw for a school record 315 yards last week against Buckeye Valley. Jared Schaefer was 12-14 for 195 yards and two TD’s and Brennan South was 3 of 6 for 120 yards and a score. Caden Flynn caught three passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns.

Clear Fork (5-0,2-0), #2 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, is at home for River Valley (2-3,1-1) coming off a (24-7) win in the league last week over Galion.

Carroll says the Vikings have maybe the best linebacker in the league. “I think River Valley’s record is deceiving. They have some nice kids. They have decent size on the offensive line. They are big on the offensive line, the defensive line not as much, but they are quick and athletic. You have some guys have skilled numbers on the D-line, that is always scary. You have 35 and 6 and guys like that playing defensive line. They some athletes there. The quarterback can run it and throw it. They have two backs, one of them weighs 225 pounds, he is also a linebacker. This young man by the name of Mitchell Miracle, number 7, I truly believe just looking at it so far, even from last year, he might be the best linebacker in the “MOAC.” He is really good. He is 175 pounds and that kid hits harder than any kid I have seen all year. He flies to the football. He is just relentless. What coaches call a motor guy,” said Carroll.

He says River Valley is much improved from last year when they were 4-6 on the season. “You watch them against Madison they just lit them up and people say that has happened to Madison a lot. If you are a bad team you are probably not scoring 42-7 on anybody. They had a series of misfortunate events against Buckeye Valley that led to that loss, losing on the last play of the game. From my standpoint I think they are a much better football team than what their record indicates,” he said.

The Colts have won their last 15 regular season games, but Carroll says they can still get a lot better, most notably the consistency of their intensity level. “We have a lot of things to get better at. I said two weeks ago, it is about consistent effort out of all players at all times. Football is a game that is physically demanding, but when you break it down each play lasts six seconds, that is the average, some are less, some are a little more. You have 25 seconds, or more, in between each play. You have timeouts, you have huddles, you have halftimes. We tell them they are 15, 16, 17 years old and you might want to enjoy this because you are in the best shape of your life, it only goes downhill from here, as you and I can testify to. You will never regret going hard. We have to get all of our players buying into that philosophy,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We tell them we have speed, we have skill, we have some big boys up front, but that is going to be matched somewhere, sometime, and maybe it is this week, maybe it is the week after that, that talent level is going to be matched then it is going to come down to your effort and doing the little things right. We put that on our scouting report, little things are big, a little oxymoron. Every little step you take, the stance you get into, hand placement, what you are doing with your eyes. All of that stuff is crucial if you want to be really, really good. We are trying to get our kids to buy into that, some of them are, and hopefully gradually we are getting the whole group to buy into that. What is comes down to it is like anything else in life and we trying to lead them in the right direction and it is up to them to carry it out.”

Published 9/27/18

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Clear Fork has won its last 14 regular season games, that is the second longest streak in our coverage area, only Sandusky has won more.

They play at Buckeye Valley in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

Last Friday, they turned a 14-14 third quarter tie into a 42-14 rout of previously unbeaten North Union.

Coach Dave Carroll says his kids responded well to the challenge. “They were definitely a tough group of kids down there at North Union and very well coached. We kind of suspected what we got. That it was going to be a dogfight. Our kids, I think they expected that. When you don’t expect it is when you get in trouble when it actually happens. Our kids knew they were a good football team and they are going to play hard. Our kids responded just like you want them to,” he said.

When you are having as good a season as the Colts are there are many things they are doing well, but there are a couple areas that has gotten the coach’s attention due to their somewhat pleasantly surprising play.

Carroll says one is the defensive backfield. “I would probably say our secondary because we thought maybe one sophomore would get some playing time there, but we actually have two sophomores that are starting full time. I believe playing in the secondary in today’s world of football, now back when I played no, those guys were back there taking pictures and once in a while they would have to defend a pass and help tackle, but today’s world of spread and pass, pass, pass, and different coverages and so forth, it is one the hardest jobs that there is in football. I’m surprised that those guys are hanging in there and doing a good job. We have given up a few yards, but part of that is the way we play our defense. We play a lot of man to man and put those guys on an island,” said Carroll.

The coach also pointed to the play of one his middle linebackers on a defense that has only given up nine points a game. “The other one is, especially last week, our inside linebacker play. Losing a first team All-Ohio kid in Jacob Bailey, was tough to replace. Tacoma Orr has been filing in there. He is a junior, that was actually an outside linebacker the last two years and we were thinking that was were he was going to end up playing. We had another kid that was going to be an inside linebacker that wasn’t able to play this year, so he got stuck in there. He is kind of a thin kid, but man he is playing really well and against a team like North Union who is wing-T and running the trap and running off tackle he had a really, really nice game against them. So, pleasantly surprised there as well,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork (4-0,1-0), #2 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, plays at Buckeye Valley (1-3,1-0) in an “MOAC” game this week. The Barons won their first game of the season last week in beating River Valley (8-6) on Friday.

Buckeye Valley’s defense has been very good this year only once giving up more than three scores in a game and that came in a week two loss to (42-28) to Big Walnut. Carroll says the Barons will throw a lot at them. “They are huge. I don’t know what they have in the water down there, North Union the same way. Buckeye Valley not only do they get nice size, body weight kids, but they are 6’2”, 6’3”, 6’6”. I wish they would send some of those genes up this way, so we could get a few more of those 6’5” type kids. I am very concerned defensively because they are doing a lot more than they did last year. They were very good last and we had trouble, I just got done watching last year’s film, and we really struggled at the beginning of that football game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “They kind of shut us down it was punt, punt, punt. This year they have added to it they will go from a four man line to a five man line to a three man line with different coverages they will go man to man, cover 3, cover 4. They are blitzing a lot, which is always tough for high school kids up front to pick up. So, we have our work cut out for us offensively.”

Trent Davies, the leading rusher in the conference in 2017, does not return for the Barons, but quarterback Grant Owens does and Carroll calls him a threat. “Offensively that back, last year going into our game he had 750 yards. Obviously, he is not there, he was a senior. Their quarterback is back and he is very good. He as one of the leading passers last year in the league. They definitely lost some pretty good players from last year’s bunch on their offense,” he said.

Published 9/19/18

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Clear Fork likely faces its toughest test of the season so far as they host the North Union Wildcats in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game at “The Corral” on Friday night.

They remained unbeaten with a (49-10) destruction of Jonathan Alder last Friday.

Coach Dave Carroll says this is a team that has enormous potential. “We have some talented kids. Our biggest strength probably is our speed that people have trouble dealing with, especially offensively. Defensively, we have some really good linemen up front that make it really difficult for people to run the football,” he said.

The Colts also have win of (63-0) over Fredericktown and (40-12) victory over Bellevue, but Carroll is far from satisfied. He says the players have to give a more consistent effort. “We have won pretty handily in all three of our ballgames, but if you would have been in our film session on Saturday morning, you might be shocked because as a coaching staff we are not happy. That is the second time in three weeks that our film sessions weren’t butterflies and rainbows as Rocky once said. Because to me we are still trying to get though to our kids the most important thing is effort. There is always somebody that is going to have more talent than you, better looking than you, can sing better than you, whatever it may be, but you can beat people on effort. We are also trying to teach these guys that you can win some games right now just because you are faster than people and you have some big boys up front. If we would be fortunate enough to win enough games to get into the playoffs that isn’t going to cut it anymore because they are going have speed and they are going to have big boys up front and then it is going to come down to effort and who does things right,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “It is a unique battle that we have with this group because we are kind of battling ourselves right now more so than the opponent. Until we understand that giving everything that you have got each and every second of every play that is what is going to take us far then we have got problems. We are a pretty stubborn group, especially my brother and I, we are old school guys and we are not going to allow poor effort to go unnoticed. I know there are a lot of coaches that, hey, we won 49-10, that’s great, let’s have a cook out and we are not doing that because we know that that talent will be matched at some point and time and maybe it is this Friday with North Union, I don’t know they are pretty good. I know they are really big up front. I think they are going to be able to block our big boys and then we will see what we can do from there. That is probably shocking news for people to hear we are 3-0 and averaging 50 points a game and not giving up any points, but we are not even close to being satisfied as a coaching staff with our effort and paying attention to detail and doing things right because that wins big along with talent.”

Clear Fork (3-0), #2 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, plays at home against North Union (3-0) and winners over Fairfield Christian (72-7) last week.

Carroll says the Wildcats are really good up front, one kid in particular. “It starts with Colton Clark, number 54, offensive right tackle. I am going to go out on a limb and say it will be his third year in a row for being an All-Ohio football player. We have showed our kids this how you play football. This kid is huge and he has a motor. He doesn’t come off the field. He plays offense and defense and he goes hard all of the time. You don’t see him taking breaks and not playing hard if the ball goes to the other side. He makes play all over the place on defense. A lot of times on offense he will block two guys, sometimes three, a lot times he blocks two different guys because he flattens one and then goes and gets another. They rest of their boys and tall, 6’3”, 240, 250, type kids. Both of their guards I really like they can move and they can pull. The tight end is 6’6”,” said Carroll.

This will be North Union’s last year as part of the “MOAC” and Carroll says this a team that know how to play football. “They are a rural community that believes in toughness and that is the way they have played football through the years. Our kids aren’t really familiar with them other than playing them last year, but I am because I used to coach at Marion Pleasant and my brother is because he coached against them for years and they are tough, hard nosed kids like Clear Fork kids. So, not only are they big and strong, but they are going to battle and they are going to play football in a physical manner,” Carroll said.

Plus, the Wildcats are faster and more athletic than they were a year ago. “They have added some speed. Last year, they weren’t the fastest in the world, but they have this sophomore fullback that can get after it. Their tailback is back, his faster than he was last year. Their quarterback is back. They have the Harrah kid that is back, he is a wingback. He hurt his knee last year and wasn’t able to play. We have our work cut out for us. We are going to meet a team here that their biggest strength matches our biggest strength and that is up front,” he said.

Published 9/12/18

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It is another traditional football power for Clear Fork this week as they travel to Jonathan Alder to take on the Pioneers in non-conference action on week three of the season.

Last Friday, they beat Bellevue (40-12) on the road.

Coach Dave Carroll says they executed pretty well at a place where it isn’t easy to do. “I was really proud of our kids. We all know, and our kids know, that Bellevue year in and year out has a winning football team and they play hard nosed, tough football and they very disciplined. We knew we would have to go up there and work really hard a preform well. Our kids did that other than a couple of plays. We had a messed up punt snap and reaction to that punt snap. Other than that the game was played pretty well by our kids. We were happy with the improvement they made from week one to week two,” he said.

Clear Fork plays two quarterbacks in Jared Schaefer and Brennan South and Carroll says they can put a lot of kids on the field that can make big plays. “We had a decent amount of kids that were involved in it last year, but I think it is even more so this year. I think we are really solid at our spilt end positions, which we haven’t been for a while. A.J. Blubaugh that is tall and has the long arms and can catch about anything you can throw at him. Then you have Caden Flynn, who has just gotten faster and faster every year, he is a burner,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Of course, Travon (Trammell) has been solid for us, but we are using him more up the gut. He can go inside or outside. The we have Zach Homerick that runs the ball as well. All of those guys can catch the ball when we throw it. Both quarterbacks can run it. South had a nice sweep run for a touchdown and another pretty decent run. He is considered the passer of the two. On Friday night, Schaefer threw, overall they were 10 for 11 for 203 yards, but Schaefer threw for 154 yards. They can all do a lot of things. We are trying to get that offensive line better, they are big and they are doing a lot of good things, but we feel like we can get more from those guys.”

Jonathan Alder (1-1) has lost to Marysville (35-0) and beat Marion Harding (28-14) in its first two games.

Carroll says this is another traditional power they are playing. “They are well coached. Their coach has been there for a while. They have a great tradition. You probably remember the name Donnie Nickey, who played for the Buckeyes and played in the NFL is from Jonathan Alder. They were in the playoffs last year, they are just a solid program year in and year out. They do things right. You can just look at their kids on film and you know that they have been in the weight room. They hustle and they play the game the way you should. We have to go down there and play really good football and limit our mistakes, execute on offense and be very physical on defense. They like to throw the ball and throw it deep. They got some big plays, several big plays, against Marion Harding last week. Our db’s have go to be ready to go,” said Carroll.

The Clear Fork coach says they want to make the Pioneers a one dimensional football team if they can. “My brother (Mike) is our d-coordinator, his number one theory is we are going to stop your run, do the best just we can to stop your run, try and make you one dimensional. Then that helps those db’s out. We can predict what they are going to do a little easier and get heat on the quarterback to help those guys out and do some different things in the coverages when we know they are going to throw because they are unable to run. We are hoping we can continue with that,” he said.

Published 9/06/18

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Clear Fork is at Bellevue in what should be one of the better games in North Central Ohio on Friday night.

Bellevue beat the Colts last year in a regional semifinal game.

Clear Fork opened the campaign with a (63-0) shellacking of Fredericktown on Hall of Fame weekend.

Coach Dave Carroll was most impressed with their approach to the game. “I was proud of kids from the standpoint that they saw the film of Fredericktown going in and they knew they were struggling, that they were young and inexperienced. That sometimes with high school kids can be a problem because they think we will just show up and play half speed and win the game and all of that. We always tell the kids that is not who we are playing it is about how you play. It’s about playing Clear Fork football, about playing at our level no matter who it is. I was really proud of them I thought they did that. They came out and took care of business. I thought we were sharp in all phases offense, defense, special teams all did a nice job and our young kids went in there and did a nice job. Most of our young kids got to play other than our freshmen,” said Carroll.

Bellevue (0-1) lost to Canton Central Catholic (14-13) last week. They lost 75 percent of their starters from last year, but Carroll is not surprised they are good again. He says that is the course of action at Bellevue. “I would have said last January that Bellevue is going to be good again. I knew they graduated 16, 17 out of 22 starters, bit I also know Ed Nasonti and their coaching staff and the tradition and the way they love football up there. We talked about them before we played them last year, we played them ’09 through ’12, and it is the same thing. Those kids are in the weight room, they work hard in the off season, and then when they are juniors and seniors they are ready to play football. They are just always good. I don’t know when was the last time they have had a losing season, but you will have to look pretty far back. They just keep reloading every year. Even when they graduate a ton of kids like last year. They are a very good team again. Defensively, they are quick and get to the ball, they are physical. They just hustle in all areas of the game. They definitely lost some serious talent from last year in McPeak and Bryce Ray, both quarterbacks, the entire offensive line. Thy had some dandy players, but they have some nice kids playing well for them again this year,” said Carroll.

In terms of the way they run their offense, Carroll says there are some tweaks, but not a lot. “It is pretty much what they do. They seem to rely on the run a little bit more. Last year, they had two quarterbacks, two senior quarterbacks, that were really good. The one kid was a great runner and the other kid was a great passer, but they both could do both. They had Bryce Ray at running back, a 220 pound kid, that could fly. They had the McPeak kid at split end that was two time first team All-Ohio that is at Ashland University. So, they could do a lot of things really well last year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “I would say they are running the football more, probably running the football more inside, the quarterback doesn’t run quite as much, but he will run the football with draws and quarterback sweeps. The passing game maybe a little bit more possession type passing stuff with outs and hitches and curls and comebacks and things like that. Their go to receiver is 6’5”. He is not as fast as McPeak, but he is 6’5”, which poses a problem for high school corners. It is very similar to what they have been doing formation wise. Ed always has a million different formations trying to get you in a bad position, get you lost, and then he tries to out number you, and run it or throw it where he has a numbers advantage. It’s a lot of the same stuff.”

Published 8/30/18

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Taylor Thomas is among the best softball players to ever come through one of the best softball programs in North Central Ohio.

Whether it was in the circle or in the batter’s box.

She will be induced this weekend into the Clear Fork Valley Athletic Hall of Fame.

Taylor played all sports growing up, but she says there was really little doubt what she was going to be, it was kind of in her blood. “When I got to high school I narrowed it down to volleyball and softball, that way I could focus on softball in the winter. I did lessons and things like that. If you know my dad at all he did was baseball and softball, so growing up that is all I did. That was my first love because I did it all of the time. I don’t think I had much of a choice,” said Thomas.

Not only did she play for the Lady Colts, but she also stared for various travel softball teams over the years. She says she was almost always on the softball diamond. “I started when I was eight and I played until I was 18. I played every year, every summer. There were a couple of years that I tried to take off. We are going to take a break and relax this summer, no summer softball, but then a coach would call and say, hey, we really need a player, can Taylor play? So, then of course we would say yes. I played and traveled every weekend basically May through September every year for 10 years,” said Thomas.

When she was a junior and senior, Thomas was the Lady Colts number one pitcher, their ace, so to speak, she had 30 wins, including four no hitters. However, Taylor Thomas laid her claim to fame with her stick in her hands. She says hitting really got her pumped. “Pitching you were in control. I knew where the ball was going. I knew what was going on. I think I prefer hitting just because that’s how you win games. You win games by hitting and scoring runs and I was able to do that pretty well and help us win a lot of games. So, I would think hitting,” said Thomas.

Her stats back her up too. Her senior year she led the state 14 home runs, 62 RBI and 120 total bases.

The 1989 Clear Fork football team, one only two teams to have reached the regional finals, will be inducted into the Clear Fork Valley Athletic Hall of Fame this weekend.

The ’88 team also made the regional finals after beating Wellington in a first round game then losing to Loudonville.

Dan Sparks was the head coach of both of those teams and he says he arrived in the valley at just the right time. “Tom (Sargent) got the program going up a little bit. The team prior to that was pretty good. We made it to the playoffs and lost a real heartbreaker to our arch rivals in Loudonville. So, there was a rich tradition and high expectations for this group also,” he said.

In 1989, the Colts beat Allen East in a first round game and lost a squeaker to Versailles in the regional final.

Clear Fork won the Mohican Area Conference title in 1989. The program’s first conference title since 1978.

Sparks says they were a team that wanted pound the ball and pound you “It would have been awesome if a young football coach by the name of Dan Sparks could have put in some of today’s concepts with this group because we were a very, very talented football team,” he told Swankonsports.com, “We concentrated on a very strong defense and running the football. We had a lot of skilled athletes and a pretty strong quarterback also.”

Sparks credits quarterback Billy Wagner for often getting the team into the right play to take advantage of the opponent. “Billy Wagner kind of thought like me and that’s what made him a really good quarterback. He was able to see things on the field and say, hey, coach we need to try this and get some other people involved in the game,” he said.

He also says defensive coordinator Gary Beal took a young coach under his wing and showed him the ropes. He says Beal was a big part of why they were so good.

Anytime you are a team that wants to run the football you must have guys that can play in the trenches. Sparks says they made an important change in their offensive line. “That season we took a huge loss the first game of the season against Fredericktown and we made a huge line adjustment. We beat a good Highland team, we beat Ontario, and once our line started jelling and we started really clicking. We had a really solid offensive line once we jelled,” said Sparks.

One of the most memorable games from that season was the pasting the ’89 team gave Mansfield Senior and Hugh Douglas at Arlin Field.

Sparks also said it was key to be in the Mohican Area Conference with Wooster Triway, Loudonville and West Holmes. “We were finally in a conference. We were playing very good opponents. Once you get into the playoffs today maybe if you have a cupcake if you are the number one or two seed and you can get to the next round. When we played it was one playing four and they were really intense football games,” said Sparks.

Clear Fork kicks off its 2018 high school football season on Hall of Fame Weekend at home Friday night against the Fredericktown Freddies.

Veteran Clear Fork coach Dave Carroll says they have seen good progress during camp, however, he is very interested in how the kids perform that haven’t been on the varsity field very much. “We have seen steady improvement that was wanted from back in June through July and through two a days and through the three scrimmages. We have a couple of sophomores that are going be out on the field, some new players that are juniors as far as new to varsity competition. So, you are always curious to see how that is all going to turn out when the lights come on and its for real on Friday night. It is a little different in a scrimmage a little slower paced and coaches are out on the field for the most part. I am kind anxious to see how some of these younger ones are going to perform and see how our leaders are going to lead when the lights come on,” said Carroll.

Special teams can be a concern in the first game of the season because you don’t do it much in scrimmages due to a fear of injuries and really don’t practice it much. Carroll says that is where those inexperienced kids get on the field too. “I’m a little more concerned this year than say a season like last year with our special teams. Special teams can always be an issue in game one, game two because most coaches don’t spend as much time on special teams as you do offense and defense. Last year, we had a lot of our older kids were nice sized kids, that mid-range sized kid, that 200, 210 pound kid, that can run that you can put on a punt team or a kickoff team and they could also block on a punt team. Well, we don’t have as many of the kids in our older classes, so we are dipping into the sophomore class a little bit to find some of those kids that have the body to block and can still run down and cover,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “You always worry about that so you have to have those older kids out there giving them reminders, step here, do this, be checking that. That is where I think the most important part of our leadership is going to come in is helping those young kids making sure they are staying focused and disciplined and taking care of business on special teams and the ones that are out there playing on offense and defense as well.”

Fredericktown has a new coach in former Cardington boss Beau Wolford. Carroll says due to that, and some other circumstances, there are going to do a lot of unknowns on Friday. “It is a little bit of a mystery because they only did two scrimmages instead of three. It is a knew coach and we know a little bit of what he did at Cardington, but for the last how many years when we are playing Fredericktown you knew what you were getting with Will Hartley just like he knew what he was getting with Dave Carroll and now it is a whole knew ballgame. I am sure this guy has got a bag of tricks that we have no idea, we can’t go back three years in the film bank or the scouting repot to check out. We haven’t seen their kickoff return, we haven’t seen their punt return because they didn’t do those things and we didn’t see those things on film. There are some things that we just don’t know thus the mystery part of the deal. I am sure this guy has watched film on us against Fredericktown where he has a little advantage because he knows we run a double pass off our quick screen, we run the slip screen a lot, which can be a tricky play to defend. We don’t have that background knowledge of knowing what he does that he might not show in a scrimmage. We just have to be alert and be on our toes,” said Carroll.

He adds in this case that not even sure what number kids are wearing. “Another thing you get in the first game with any opponent you don’t get a roster, you don’t have that roster, that program, when you go scout them, that you do for game two, game three, etc., so you don’t even know number wise who the kids are,” he said.

Carroll says although their numbers are down, the Freddies have some players, especially Jack Fitzpatrick. “The Fitzpatrick kid is quite the football player. He started last year at tailback, but another mystery for us is he going to be their quarterback, is going to be a slotback or is he going to be at tailback. We have seen him at quarterback, but we saw their other kid get way more reps in the preview against Mapleton, it was the other kid that got all of the reps. When he was at quarterback in their first scrimmage he looked really good and we are preparing as if he is going to be their quarterback. There is going to be a lot of mystery, so our kids better be on there toes and be ready to play for anything and everything. We try to do that throughout the summer in camp. We try to go against different offenses, whether it be two back, three backs, spread stuff, empty stuff. So, that when we do see something that somebody may pull out of nowhere that we didn’t scout our kids have a base knowledge of how to handle that. Hopefully that training will kick in if they do come out with stuff that we weren’t able to rep against because we didn’t know,” said Carroll.

Published 8/22/18

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The induction of the 2018 class of the Clear Fork Valley Athletic Hall of Fame is scheduled for August 25 at the high school, with an introduction of the enshrines before the Clear Fork versus Fredericktown football game the night before.

Among those to me included in the hall of fame are the 1994 boys’ and girls’ cross country teams. Jenny Solomon is the only athlete with cross county on her resume to be in the hall of fame, so this is kind of a big night for the sport.

Don Thogmartin, maybe better known as a basketball coach and athletic director, was the head coach of the team.

He says these teams were very strong and pretty much unbeatable. “We knew they were going to be pretty good. There were some really good kids coming up through the junior high. Actually, 1993 was the first year that the really solid group came together and that was our first championship win. They won the league championship, both boys and girls, four straight years. In fact, over that period of time from 1993 to 1996 the same core group of runners was tremendous, the boys were 63-0 and the girls 59-0 in the conference. They really kind of dominated everything that went on in the league from that time. There were some kids coming up from the junior high that we thought were going to add quite a bit of depth and some stellar running ability and they really proved to be quite good over that time period,” said Thogmartin.

Both squads advanced to the regional meet.

Anytime you have success in sports you have to work hard, but Thogmartin says they wanted to make sure the kids had some fun too. “The thing about this group was we kind of got a lot of kids involved in cross country. My last year that I coached I think we had a total of 25 kids, both boys and girls combined on the two teams, and that was a pretty high number. These kids really got into enjoying being around each other. We tried to make it a fun atmosphere,” he told Swankonsports.com, “We did some camping things, we did training camps. One summer we went down to Kings Island and spent three or four days down there visiting the park. They worked out before and after we did any fun activities. So, they enjoyed each other’s company. They kind of recruited more kids and got more kids involved than you would have thought we would have simply because it was an enjoyable experience.”

Thogmartin is now retired from education and does a lot of traveling. He says he has met a lot of members of these teams in his travels. “My wife and I have kept in contact with a lot of them over the years. We visited a few them that live out west Kristy Thomas, Tucker and Julie Hamilton, and they have really grown into some great men and women and it was a wonderful experience for us,” he said.

Thogmartin says he looks forward to Hall of Fame Weekend. He says he gratified that he might have had a little of influence in the adults they became. “I am really looking forward to seeing all of these guys again on that hall of fame weekend. My wife Julie went to all of the meets we had home and away, especially on Saturdays when we had those big meets. We are so proud of the fact that we might have had a small part in their development as young men and women and the successful people that they are now. One our runners on the girls’ team had a birthday here recently and I wished her happy birthday on Facebook and she mad a point of telling me she had run, she had just turned 40, and she told me she had run 40 miles that week in celebration of her 40 th birthday. She kind of said that her experience with cross country and working with myself and our other coaches had inspired her to really enjoy running,” said Thogmartin.

Published 8/17/18

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Clear Fork played host to Defiance Tinora on Tuesday night in a scrimmage as they prepare for the high school football season.

They are at home for Fredericktown in their home opener on August 24, on Hall of Fame weekend.

Coach Dave Carroll says the players look forward to their first taste of action against another team. “The kids get excited about that. They are banging each other around and banging their teammates around. It is what everybody says get some fresh meat and our kids did a nice job. We were concerned, especially (Monday) it was hot and we thought hopefully we aren’t going to perform like this. They did a really nice job. They flew around out here and did a lot of good things. Tinora is traditionally a really good program that have been in the playoffs year in and year out, been to the semi finals, regional finals a ton. Kenny and I go way back. We coached together back in the 80’s up in Northwest Ohio. We have kind kept this thing going, either seven on seven or now we do this full out scrimmage,” said Carroll.

He says they got some solid performances from their skilled players all over the field on Tuesday. “We didn’t have Trevon Trammell, one of our top athletes. Jacob Lester, who is an up and coming sophomore, 220 pound running back. Those other kids that kind of filled in (Tuesday) night did a fantastic job. Colon Crider, who moved here from Shelby. He is a little thing, but man does he have quick feet and runs hard did a great job. Brady Tedrow is mister where ever you want him to play. He is a quarterback and we had him at running back in Travon’s absence. He can play slot, he can play split, he would probably play offensive tackle if you wanted him to. He had some nice runs too,” said Carroll.

The Colts are going with a platoon system at the quarterback spot again this year. Carroll says kids both looked good on Tuesday. “I thought both quarterbacks looked really good, Brennan South and Jared Schaefer, very impressed with those guys. It is great when you have kids back that know the system. They are like coaches on the field, very smart, very competitive,” he said.

Clear Fork plays Lexington and Loudonville on Saturday in their second scrimmage. Carroll says they want to be better on Saturday, really better every day. “We want that at the end of each drill, at the end of each practice, at the end of each day, we want to be better. We talked about that (Monday.) In the morning practice we didn’t feel we got better, we kind of slipped backwards. I think they took that to heart,” he told Swankonsports.com after the scrimmage, “They did (Monday) we had a really good second practice in that heat. They came out here (Tuesday) night and did a fantastic job. We just have to keep building, just keep going, keep going. You have to keep doing that till the end. That is how you end up with a really good football team.”

Published 8/08/18

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Clear Fork won a league title and all of their games, but one last year, but that is all in the past and a new season opens in just over three weeks at home against Fredericktown.

So far, coach Dave Carroll says attitude and participation have been good and that is a good start for the Colts. “It has been not bad. I think each year our attendance to things, The kids expectations of what needs to be done as far as the time and work put in in the summer time and the off season is getting closer and closer to where we want it to be. Of course, the football coach wants every day to be 100 percent attendance and effort and all of those things, but the kids have a lot of stuff going on. Our attendance good, our work effort good. It was the third day of two a days (Wednesday) and we have had every kid there and all of those kinds of things and working hard, so we are pretty excited right now,” he said.

The Colts were very explosive of offense last season scoring lots of points and at critical times too. Carroll says they have the building blocks this year, but they have to be able to compete at an elite level. “That is the game plan every year to have those kind of goals. Obviously, Blake Dinsmore was the guy that was the ringleader of that explosive offense, but Jared Schaefer (Sr., 6-1, 180) did a tremendous job as well and he is back with two years of experience being a varsity quarterback. Trevon Trammell (Sr. 6-0, 180,) running back, receiver, very explosive, very fast, ran a 4.5 40 over at Ashland University with those guys clocking him. Zach Homerick (Sr., 5-9, 170) is quick. He got in a lot last year, now it is his senior year and his time to shine. He has been sitting behind Bryce Lyon and Matt Thran and Sloan Bowman and all of those guys. It is his time to go and he is a fast your man,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Probably right now we are going with a two quarterback system again. There are people that are doubting Thomas’s, but I think hopefully we put those guys to rest last year because it worked really well. With our offense we run our quarterback. If you have two kids you can play in there it is half the shots they are getting. Jared is a starting safety on defense, so he is getting some rest time. Brennan South (Jr., 6-0, 155) is alternating equally with Schaefer right now. He has an unbelievable arm. He is small boy stature wise, but he is quick and he can run it, but man can he throw it. We think we have a pretty good offense, but it depends on those guys up front and so far so good with those guys. We have some decent size up there Michael Chillemi (Sr., 6-2, 255) is taking over for Paul Francisco. Michael started on defense, and is a tremendous defensive end, 250, 260 pounds. We have to replace Tanner Winand at center and Jacob Bailey at right guard. We have a few different kids working in there. The left guard James Watts (Sr., 6-0, 225) and the left tackle Hunter Tollison started last year and are back bigger and stronger. We feel that we can be okay, but they have to compete.”

Carroll says they want to leave last year behind except for one thing. “That is what we have talked about. You know, great job, a lot of these kids were part of that last year, but last year is last year and you have to make your own way this year. The only thing that we are taking away from last year that we are talking about is our senior leadership, the parents that we had last year of our seniors were tremendous and they showed how it is supposed to be done, the work effort, the leadership, all of those things, the competitiveness. So, we are using their example. If you are not sure what to do, there is the example right there last year, you don’t have to dig back 50 years to find a great group of seniors it is right there and they all saw it. Other than that this year is this year and what you do now is what counts,” said Carroll.

Published 8/02/18

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The North Central Ohio Football Coaches Association’s All-Star Football Classic is Friday night at Lexington High School.

Kickoff is set for 7 PM.

There will be 16 scholarships awarded to young people on Friday.

The south team is coached by Clear Fork’s Dave Carroll and the north squad by Dan Mager of Crestview.

Carroll says it is special to get a chance to work with some pretty good kids that like to play football. “So far it has been a good experience. Every time I have done this, and I have done quite a few through the years because I am old, it is really neat to spend another week and another game with your own kids that you are not going to be around they are going off and doing their thing whether it be college football or just moving on. Then to be around all of these other kids. Some of them you played against, the enemy and so forth through the years, and they are just like our kids and like we were when we were that age. They are football guys, they are good kids. It is neat to see these kids from different schools kind of mesh together and form new relationships. Our coaching staff was saying wouldn’t it be nice to have this group of kids every year. If you need special teams guys you can just draw a name out of the hat and every one of them can run down the field on a kickoff and whatever you need. It is pretty cool being around all of these really good athletes,” said Carroll.

10 of the players on the south team played for Carroll at Clear Fork last fall when they won of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title. He says the fact that they wanted to play in this game says a lot. “All 11 of our seniors are playing except Daniel Spencer our defensive end that was All-Ohio this year. He found out he hurt his back a couple of weeks ago. He comes to practice every night and he is going to be there at the game and all of those things. All of our guys are together one more time and that kind of shows you the class that they were. I always tell the kids and the parents the number one characteristic of having a good team is something I really have no control over that comradery that especially that senior class has,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Just all of them wanting to do this and just play one more time together just shows what kind of special group they are. (Blake) Dinsmore has already started school, he is doing summer classes down at Hocking College, so he will be ready to go in the fall. He is coming back, he couldn’t make the first few practices, but he is going to come back later in the week and practice and get some reps in the game. These guys are going out of their way with all of the different things they have going on right now to have one more shot at playing together.”

When it comes to the schemes for the game, Carroll says they are going to be pretty vanilla. He says he has had to scale back some of the things he wanted to Friday. “The coaches association has rules on what you can and can not do. We like to run a lot of empty in our offense. That is kind of what I wanted to do and they said we kind of don’t want you to do that because that causes too many problems for the defense. It is definitely harder offensively because you have to put plays in. Defensively, all you can do is line up with a four man front, three linebackers and your db’s have to play man coverage. There is no blitzing, no line stunting or anything like that, so those guys are ready to go after the first night. Trying to mesh the offensive guys together, the offensive line getting them cohesive, the ball handling in the backfield, the passing game, there is a little more work to do on that side of the ball, but again you are working with really good athletes that are pretty smart and have been doing this for a while,” said Carroll.

Published 6/06/18

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Ontario scored in every inning, but one, and they pounded Clear Fork (12-7) Sunday night at Heise Park in Galion to claim the division two district title.

They play Lakewood in the regional semifinals on Thursday at Carter Park in Bowling Green.

For the Warriors it is 24 wins in a row. “I think those situations present themselves when you put the ball in play. A year ago, with basically the same group we struck out way too much and just didn’t hit the ball hard enough. This year is just a different story they bought in to what we worked on in the off season. They play good baseball,” said Ontario baseball coach Jeff Fisher.

Clear Fork made eight errors and eight of Ontario’s 12 runs were unearned. Fisher says they were able to respond. “Uncharacteristically of Clear Fork there were some bumps there for them and like we have done all year we took advantage of them. We talk about when they score our job is to answer back. They scored first and just had all of the momentum. The crowd was into it. Jake (Gleason) was fighting it as far as his command. Avery’s hit just kind of tempered that a little bit. It gave us confidence that this is for the Warriors,” he said.

Clear Fork took a (2-0) lead in the top of first on an RBI single by A.J. Blubaugh, the second run scored on an Ontario throwing error. However, Ontario tied it up on a two-run home run by Avery Fisher.

In the bottom of the second, Clear Fork committed two errors and Ontario scored three times with only an infield hit to lead (5-2,) they never trailed again.

Clear Fork made it (5-4) in the top of the third on an RBI double by Dylan Jewell and RBI ground out by Gavin Bailey. Again, the Warriors responded with four in their half a two-run double by Noah Creed, an RBI ground out by Nolan Hatfield and three more Clear Fork errors and it was (9-4) Warriors after three.

Clear Fork coach Joe Staab says they made too many mistakes, but was proud of his kid’s effort. “We kicked the ball around too many times and gave them too many free extra bases, but the boys preformed very well, very proud of them,” he said.

The Colts made it (9-5) in the fourth with another RBI hit by Blubaugh, but there was no stopping the Warriors as they added another on an error and a sacrifice. Clear Fork got a little closer with single tallies in the fifth and sixth to make it (10-7,) but Ontario put it away with two more in the sixth, the Colts helped them with two more errors.

Ontario is an aggressive team and coach Fisher thinks they forced some of those Clear Fork miscues. “You would think that when you have a team that can run a little bit the pitchers are going to be a little loose in the strike zone. They are going to be apprehensive going forward. You are going to see more fastballs that is really where it is at,” he said.

Ontario put four different guys on the mound in starter Jake Gleason, Will Watkins, Luke Smith and Avery Fisher. “When you look at our box scores they have kind of been like that all year long. Jake Gleason is our horse, but he has saved four games also this year. We have developed a group of guys as a staff that they know that we pass the ball along and it’s their turn. When they do gas out or it isn’t their day somebody is going to pick them up. With Andrew Cacchio and Avery (Fisher) here really kind of getting into this postseason mode they have kind of given us some extra length there,” said Fisher.

Staab reiterates that there was no quit in his kids and they continued to battle. “They competed well the whole game. We couldn’t find a way to put ourselves in a position to win. We answered every inning, they just answer more,” he said.

Ontario plays Lakewood and the other side of the bracket has Wapakoneta and Oberlin Firelands. Fisher says their guys will need to respond to the pressure like they did Sunday night. “I really haven’t had a chance to evaluate the three teams that are there. You safely presume when you have the number one team in the state in Wapakoneta, who I hear has three guys throwing mid to upper 80’s. You have Firelands, who we scheduled this year, but it was too cold. They are representing the Cleveland area. Lakewood, our opponent, has a hall of fame coach, and he has been there and done that, state championships under his belt,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We haven’t been to a regional in a while, so we have to get our guys groomed to deal with the stage fright and deal with some of the adversity that comes. I think (Sunday) night and this environment. Nothing can compare you for what is to come at Carter Park. This platform was fantastic. Having Sunday night under the lights. We appreciate Galion’s hospitality. This is fantastic. You couldn’t ask for a better script. We are happy we are going forward.”

Published 5/21/18

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Clear Fork has won 13 of its last 15 tournament games over the last three springs and the formula has been the same great pitching, outstanding defense and aggressive baserunning and it was no different on Thursday.

The Colts (21-7) scored all of their runs in the fourth inning and they kept Bellevue at bay with tremendous defense and they upended the Redmen (4-1) in the division two district semis at Heidelberg College.

Bellevue scored first when Bryce Ray tripled over the rightfielder’s head and scored on a ground ball in the bottom of the first.

Clear Fork tallied four times in the fourth to grab the lead. Jared Lind opened the inning with a single, Hunter Auck was hit by a pitch, and A.J. Blubaugh singled to load the bases. Dylan Jewell got the Colts the lead with a two run single. Big Paul Francisco laid down a bunt, which the Redmen then threw down the right field line allowing Blubaugh to score. After a Gavin Bailey hit, Mason Cox executed a suicide squeeze to plate the final run. They call it small ball.

“We were able to get some bunts down and get some runners moving around putting the ball in play and playing the game at our pace and when we are able to do that good things can happen,” said Clear Fork coach Joe Staab.

With the way they play, Staab says they can get some big innings. “When we are able to capitalize with the next batter up and kind of just keep the momentum going and keep things going in our favor and that is when the momentum swings and we are able to hopefully have a big inning,” he said.

Bellevue coach Andy Dennings complemented Clear Fork on its execution and said they couldn’t come up with the big hit. “They were kind of able to play their style of game there. It was just kind of was what is was they won it in one inning. We had a chance to threaten there a couple of times,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “They got out of a jam there in the fifth with the bases loaded and one out. We competed really well it was just one of those days. That’s baseball.”

A lot of Bellevue’s ineffectiveness in clutch situations can be attributed to the Clear Fork defense. Second basemen Lind made a leaping grab of a line drive in the second, Auck made a couple nice picks, and then there was centerfielder Thomas Staab,

He made two fine running catches to allow the Colts to escape a bases loaded jam in the fifth, one to left center of the bat of Dalton Hay and the next to right center of the bat of pitcher Mitchell Wells. “He struggled at the plate. He wasn’t there for us at the plate, but defensively he picked us up and did a great job in centerfield,” said his older brother.

Then in the sixth he robbed Kayden Vogel of extra bases when sprinted into left center and dove, extending his body fully, and swiping the ball just before it hit the ground. Coach Joe Staab says Thomas gives all he has. “He is aggressive and he laid it out there and whatever he had to do for the team to win and came up with the big catch,” he said.

You may watch high school baseball for another hundred years and you will not see three plays made by an outfielder any better like Thomas Staab made on Thursday and they were all made at key times.

Jalen Sherriff went the distance for the Colts. He allowed four hits, walked only one and struck out three. Staab says he knows what his job is. “Jalen did a great job of pitching to contact and allowing our defense to stay on their toes and making plays for him,” said Staab.

“MOAC” rivals Clear Fork and Ontario meet for the district title on Saturday afternoon at Heidelberg. The Warriors beat Tiffin Columbian (7-0) in their semifinal.

Ontario beat Clear Fork in both of their games in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference (6-3) at Clear Fork and (6-2) at Ontario. Staab says they have to play better, it’s that simple. “You play your best baseball you have a chance to win, if you don’t you don’t have a chance to win,” he said.

Published 5/18/18

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Clear Fork beat Marion Harding (6-2) Monday evening in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game in their final tune up for the division three district baseball tournament that starts on Thursday at Heidelberg College in Tiffin.

The Colts (20-7), #4 in the final Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, will play Bellevue in the second semifinal. It will follow a matchup between Tiffin Columbian and Ontario.

Clear Fork coach Joe Staab says hopefully this week works out according to plan. “We wanted to play (Monday) and that gives us Tuesday and Wednesday to practice. With this weather, hopefully, we will be able to stay away from rain and get outside,” he said.

They will finish in second place in this their first year in the “MOAC” and Staab says he liked the competition. “It is a very competitive league. It’s a lot of fun. The teams are quality teams. They play good baseball. They are going to do things like bunt and run. It is a lot fun playing in the league and competing. It has been a good experience,” said Staab.

Bellevue (19-3), #2 in our poll, beat Clear Fork (6-3) in a regular season game and Staab says they are in for a big challenge. “Bellevue is a great program, a great team. Coach Dennings does an incredible job up there,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “They are very talented up there. They are very athletic and physical. It is going to be a fun atmosphere. I think Bellevue is going to bring it. You are going to have to play your best baseball.”

Bellevue beat Shelby (2-1) on Friday in their sectional final on Bryce Ray’s solo homer in the bottom of the sixth inning. Staab says they are fully aware of Ray’s capabilities. “You don’t want him to beat you, but he is a great player. Baseball is not the only sport that he does and incredible job in. He is an athlete, a competitor. He is going to do whatever it takes for his team to win,” he said.

Published 5/15/18

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Clear Fork has advanced to the state final four in division three the last two years, but this year they are in division two and their road to Columbus would seem to be more difficult.

However, they got started on the right foot on Wednesday with a (2-0) win over a very good Vermilion team in the sectional semi.

It was a long trip, something Clear Fork is used to, and coach Joe Staab says they were excited to get on the bus. “It was a long bus ride up there, but the kids got out of school early, so they were pretty happy about that,” he said.

Jalen Sherriff was outstanding on the mound on Wednesday for Clear Fork, who has showed some depth in their rotation this season despite the loss of Mitch Dulin, who started that state semifinal last spring, for the season to an arm injury. Staab says Sherriff did what is he was supposed to do against the Sailors. “He pitched really, really well pitching to contact. He got in a little bit of trouble with walks and free bases. He did a great job and our defense played really well behind him,” he said.

Clear Fork kicked the ball all around in a (6-2) loss to Ontario in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference on Monday. Staab says they were able to clean that up on Wednesday. “Monday we were pretty poor defensively and good baseball teams are going to take advantage of that. Luckily (Wednesday) night we were able to field and throw the baseball a little bit better,” he said.

Clear Fork (18-6) scored twice in the first inning and Sherriff made it stand up, but Staab would like to get some more clutch hits beginning on Friday. “We scored two in the first inning and then weren’t able to score again the rest of the game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night after the win, “We had a lot of opportunities with the bases loaded and runners on second and third about every single inning we are just that big hit away from breaking it open and putting some extra runs and some insurance on the board. Our defense and our pitching took care of it. Hopefully, our bats can heat up for the next game.”

Clear Fork visits Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division co-champion Clyde on Friday. The Fliers (17-4), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, scored seven runs in the sixth inning to beat Port Clinton (7-6) on Wednesday.

Published 5/10/18

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In its first year in a new league, the Ontario Warriors are Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference baseball champions.

They scored five times in the second inning and beat second place Clear Fork (6-2) on Monday evening.

Coach Jeff Fisher says it is gratifying to reach a goal you have set. “It feels great to see our kids achieve a goal that they set out in preseason to do and it was just one of those things that week by week you could kind of sense they were on the road for this championship season. To do it against a program that is elite in our area is an added bonus there. It really means something,” said Fisher.

After two walks by Clear Fork starter Gavin Bailey to start the bottom half of the first inning, Ontario’s (19-3,12-0), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll, Luke Smith delivered an RBI hit give the Warriors a (1-0) lead. Then the second inning the Colts had four errors and Smith punctuated that inning with another RBI hit and suddenly it was (6-0) Warriors.

Fisher says they have taken advantage of opportunities all year. “It has been our M.O. all year. I don’t think we have a home run all season, but we have a bunch of guys up and down the lineup that know how to battle and get on base and then create pressure. Hopefully that kind of philosophy continues throughout this week with bigger goals ahead,” he said.

Clear Fork had six errors on the day and Colts coach Joe Staab says you just can’t have mistakes like that against very good teams. “We had an inning there where we put some guys on for free, had some errors, threw the ball around a little bit and Ontario was able to capitalize on it,” said Staab.

The win went to starter Andrew Cacchio, making just his second start of the spring. Fisher feels he was tremendous, striking out four and walking two over four plus innings. “Specifically, our starter Andrew Cacchio had his first start of the year last Monday. He had three innings under his belt all together. When you look at the depth of our classes here collectively Andrew Cacchio has always been a pitcher. He had a preseason injury related to his lower back. It was tentative whether he was even going to play this year coming out of soccer. He worked like crazy to just be able to play baseball for us,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “To see him on the mound and be able to put that kind of pressure on his lower back is just absolutely fantastic. He is a warrior. In his second start of the year to do it in championship fashion. He gave us length and then we passed the ball to Will (Watkins), who has been doing what he does all season long and not just being a gap guy, but (Monday) night he closed.”

Clear Fork (12-6,9-3) had their chances to get back in the game. The loaded the bases in both the fifth and sixth innings, but Watkins got out of the jams both times. Staab says they couldn’t get the big hit. “Had the bases loaded back to back innings, the first time with nobody out and we weren’t able to execute. We had a ground ball to the pitcher, then we had a strikeout and then a popup. When you are not able to execute and take advantage of those situations then the momentum swings right back in Ontario’s favor,” he said.

Both teams play tournament games on Wednesday in division two, Ontario hosts Sandusky, while Clear Fork travels to Vermilion.

Published 5/08/18

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Clear Fork needs to string some wins together and consistency has been an issue for the Lady Colts this year.

They hammered a good Highland team (9-2) Thursday after losing to Marion Pleasant (10-6) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Wednesday. They play rival Ontario in a league game on Friday.

Coach Jeff Gottfried says they came out ready to play against Highland and where able to put some things together. “(Thursday) night was one of those games talking to the Highland coach that they would have rather practiced. They had a very, very tough loss in eight innings to Cardington (Wednesday) night, so they felt like they had lost a conference title there, or their chance at it, and now they need some help. So, they were kind of down in the dumps. It was one of those nights when they didn’t really feel up to playing. I know the taste we had in our mouth from (Wednesday) night. We got beat in a similar way, we had a lead, and our kids weren’t happy about it and they were anxious to get back on the field. So, there were different mindsets going into that game,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win on Thursday night, “Our kids responded and when the bell rang they were ready to go. We played very, very well top to bottom, defense was solid, timely hitting. It was our Jekyll team that showed up (Thursday) night. Hyde was the one that was there (Wednesday.) We have been dealing with some inconsistencies. I think when you have that with some youth in some key spots. That is not putting any blame on anybody, never is, but when you don’t have seniors in those main areas you are going to have some kids make some mistakes and also play well some other nights.”

Carson Crowner had three hits and two runs scored and Haylie Miller has three hits and four RBI for Clear Fork.

The Lady Colts scored five runs in the second inning and Gottfried says it allowed them to relax and feel more comfortable. “It allowed our kids to relax. It allowed our pitcher to relax. We have been scoring, but we haven’t had those crooked numbers. It has been one here, one there and so on. When you get one and you give up twos and threes, guess what you are behind. We had that big lead 6-1. The key was we got a zero in the bottom half of that same inning and then we came back the following inning and scored another run. It was nice to see us add on more because sometimes I think when you do get a lead you relax more. We tell the girls our mojo is to keep the foot on the accelerator. Let’s just keep playing because you never know and that’s is what our girls did they played very well,” said Gottfried.

Clear Fork (15-6,4-6), #4 in the Swankonsports.com softball coaches poll in the small school divison, plays at Ontario (6-6,6-3) on Friday and Gottfried says this is an important game for them in a number of ways. “It is one of those games that is good competition going into tournament play. I think both of us are actually out of the league race. If you want to call Lexington a rival when we were in the “OCC” Ontario very easily could be the rival in the “MOAC.” All of our kids know each other. It’s about pride. It is about putting the shoes on the right way and just getting after it. I know our girls haven’t forgot what they did to us about two weeks ago when the score was 9-1 and basically wiped us all over the field. I think our girls will have the right attitude going up there to their place. The bottom line it is about getting better. We have a tournament game here in another week. We want to make sure we are playing our best ball when it comes to that time,” said Gottfried.

Published 5/04/18

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Clear Fork kept its hopes alive in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference race as they climbed all over Marion Pleasant (17-3) in a baseball game played at Pleasant on Monday evening.

They trail Ontario by two games with five conference games yet to be played.

Coach Joe Staab says they came to the plate Monday with the right game plan. “Our kids were locked in and focused at the plate and were able to barrel up the baseball and put the ball in play and make some good things happen,” he said.

Monday was as a good a weather day for baseball as there has been all season and Staab says the kids, not to mention the coach, liked it very much, “Our kids were definitely ready to play (Monday) and we came out and we competed well. Hopefully, this warm weather sticks around because I am tired of wearing too many layers out there. Hopefully, the sun stays out. I know it is calling for some rain, but I would rather see that than snow,” he said.

Clear Fork (12-5,7-2) will host Pleasant (8-8,3-4) on Wednesday and Buckeye Valley (13-7,6-4) on Friday in “MOAC” games. They are scheduled to play at Ontario on May 7 in the rematch. Ontario beat the Colts (6-3) last week. Ontario (14-3,9-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, plays Galion (12-5,3-5) Tuesday and Wednesday.

Staab says they can’t concern themselves with what Ontario is doing until next Monday. “Ontario is a great team and coach Fisher does a great job over there and they have a really, really good team and they are playing the game really well. The thing is we can’t control what Ontario does,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “We play them one more time. All we can do is come out and compete and play the way we are capable of day in and day out and at the end of the day we will see where we are at. We can’t be focused on what other people have to do. We have to kind of control our own fate.”

Clear Fork will play at Vermilion is the first round of the division two tournament on May 9. Staab says this district is really good. “The division two district this year is loaded with a lot of really good baseball teams. We are just hoping to be playing our best game during the tournament and hopefully we will be able to see what happens. It is going to be a grind day in and day out in every single game,” he said.

Published 5/01/18

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Clear Fork fell out of the race for the title in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with a loss to Ontario on Wednesday, but they battled back with a win non-conference win over Fredericktown (11-1) in five innings on Thursday.

They scored seven runs in the fourth inning to put it away.

Coach Jeff Gottfried says it felt good to get back on the field and be able to execute better. “It was definitely a good bounce back night for us. Sometimes you learn a whole lot more from losses than you do victories. When you have a bad taste in you mouth like we did (Wednesday) night there is nothing better than to get a chance to go right back on the that field. Our kids were excited,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “They were ready to get back out there and wash their hands of the game they played the night before that didn’t go well for us. We tip our cap to Ontario they played very, very well against us and sometimes that happens, but it was nice to see that the enthusiasm was there for the kids. We are starting to see a little more buy into what has to happen for our team.”

Macy Wade, Courtney Palmer, Maddy Wine, Reagan Marshall and Whitney Snavely all had two RBI for the Lady Colts. Wine allowed four hits and struck out one in the game.

Clear Fork has a lot of youth on its team this year and Gottfried says it kind of showed in a (9-1) loss to Ontario on Wednesday. “I made the comment after the game (Wednesday) night to our assistant coaches. I said answer this question for me, which team had a senior out on the mound? It wasn’t a slam on our kid in any way, shape or from, but which team had a senior out on the mound. It was very obvious that Ontario did and that girl was hungry. Musille that is the first game that she has beaten us in her career and you could tell she knew it was one of the last times she would have a chance to play against us. They are a rival of ours and I expected her to throw well and she was all over it,” he said.

Gottfried added that he believes they are getting better as team as this season goes on as they get more experience. “Our youth is learning and they are growing. Sometimes you take two steps forward and one step back and two steps forward again. It is just all a process. The best thing about a freshman is when they become a sophomore and a sophomore become a junior and so on. We will get better, they are growing throughout the season, but still they only have 16 games under their belt. It is not like they have played 80 like some of those seniors have,” said Gottfried.

Clear Fork (13-4), #3 in the Swankonsports.com softball coaches poll in the small school division, is in division three this year and the draw is on Sunday. Gottfried says for this team to be successful they have to become more consistent in all areas. “I think it is like anything else you have to be consistent. So much of tournament play since it is a one and done situation it is not always the best team that wins. It is team that plays the best that given night. The thing that I know as far as our past experience goes is the team than makes the most mistakes is the one that ends up on the loss column not the win,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “So, we have to take care of ourselves defensively. We have to pitch in key situations to get ourselves out of jams. On the offensive side of things we have to get some timely hits. (Thursday) night we got some good two out hits and those are daggers to the opposing team. When the other team gets a two out hit against you they are certainly killers. I think that will help us going down that tournament trail.”

Published 4/27/18

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Clear Fork is hitting it stride and they are becoming a dangerous baseball team.

Behind ace Gavin Bailey they shutout Galion (10-0) in six innings on Wednesday and remained a game behind Ontario in the race in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference.

Bailey’s ERA is 0.00 for the season. Coach Joe Staab says he got away with some things against the Tigers, but he has been very consistent this year. “Gavin pitched well as he is at his best when he pitches to contact. He gave some free passes (Wednesday) night. He made some mistakes, but he has been really consistent and we have played good defense behind him,” said Staab.

Clear Fork has been in double digits on the scoreboard in four its last five outings, the only time they weren’t was a (9-1) win over previously unbeaten Lexington on Saturday. Staab says they are going to bat with a plan. “The offense has been doing pretty well of trying to keep within themselves and going up there looking to be aggressive and taking advantage,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “They haven’t been sitting back. Hitting can be contagious and when everybody is hitting well everybody is having fun.”

If Mother Nature agrees and maybe she will and maybe she won’t, the Colts (6-2,4-1) play at Galion (7-2,2-1) on Thursday afternoon. Staab says they have to wipe the slate clean. “We are looking to get back out on the field and play again. Hopefully, we can just mentally prepare ourselves. It’s another game and whatever you did the game before doesn’t matter,” he said.

In a competitive league road wins against good teams are like gold and Staab knows the Tigers are going to be ready for the rematch. “It was nice having the first game at home with Gavin on the mound. We are going to go to Galion and with coach Jackson the guys and going to be ready. (Thursday) should be a good game and hopefully we are able to get back outside,” he said.

Published 4/19/18

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Clear Fork kept itself in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference softball race with a key (3-2) win over River Valley on Wednesday.

That was after losing to the Lady Vikings (10-9) on Tuesday. Clear Fork is two games behind unbeaten North Union and Ontario.

Clear Fork coach Jeff Gottfried says it was a different kind of game on Wednesday. “The first night it was a little chilly and the wind was blowing out at their place. Not that it really affected anything. I just think the pitchers had a little trouble hanging onto the ball and missed their locations at times. Between the two teams I think there were 26 hits and 19 runs scored. (Wednesday) night at our place the wind was kind of blowing in a little, but kind of crossways. It was probably 10 degrees warmer and sunny and it was amazing how much better feel the pitchers had with the ball. Both pitchers, pitched very, very well. It was a good ballgame and we were fortunate to come out on top by a run,” said Gottfried.

Haylie Miller hit a two run homer for Clear Fork in the first inning and Courtney Palmer put the Lady Colts up (3-1) with a solo home run in the fourth inning.

Clear Fork has shown a lot of power this year and Gottfried says it has been throughout the lineup. “It has kind of been spread throughout our lineup. I think we have seven kids that have hit home runs and you would be hard pressed to find a high school softball team with seven different kids with home runs. I don’t know if it is the field. I don’t know if it is wind aided. I don’t have any idea, but you have to hit the ball hard and we have some good kids that are seeing the ball really well right now,” he said.

Freshman Maddie Wine is in the circle for Clear Fork this season and Gottfried says he was impressed with her comeback effort on Wednesday. “I was really curious as to how Maddie Wine would bounce back (Wednesday) night. She got hit pretty hard (Tuesday) night and they scored a bunch of runs on her and we lost the game in the bottom of the seventh. Sometimes that can be very mentally challenging, but she came back. In fact, they loaded the bases in the first inning on her with no outs,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “I’m think to myself, okay, how is she going to handle this? Our defense made some good plays and helped her out and got out of that inning. That was huge to not give up and runs there because if they get on the board early like that did (Tuesday) night we could have had some trouble, but we responded in the bottom of the first and put a two spot on the board and I think that helped her relax a little bit. As the game progressed she certainly settled down pretty well.”

It has been very cold this spring, but Gottfried says his girls are tough and he has given them a little tip. “I try to brainwash the girls, they don’t believe it, but they know I am going to say it that it is sunny and 70 every single day, which we know it is not. It is physically tough and it is mentally tough to get yourself to hang in there. You take one in on the hands and your hands are stinging and you can’t feel you hands for three innings. You can make fun of us, but we encourage our girls to put a batting glove on their throwing hand on defense. You don’t see a lot of kids do that, but that is something I did as a player and I wasn’t afraid to do it and our girls have found out that it certainly doesn’t hurt you. You can still grip the ball and make a throw and they have kind of embraced that concept. Our kids are pretty resilient and pretty tough no matter what the temperature is they just like to play,” said Gottfried.

Published 4/12/18

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Clear Fork has scored double figure runs in each of its last two games and they are starting to find some things.

They beat River Valley (14-6) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Tuesday evening.

With the exception of last year’s ace Mitch Dulin, the Colts are pretty much back to full strength after having some players out to start the campaign, and coach Joe Staab says that it is a plus and they have been able to develop some depth too. “It is nice having everybody back besides Mitch, it would be nice to have Mitch, but with the circumstances that we have it was nice to have some other players get the opportunity to step up and fill some roles in case we have other situations that happen during the season,” he said.

In terms of their offense, Staab says they have been going to the plate with a better approach. “It was nice to get that going. Just try and go up there and barrel the baseball and put it hard in play. When it is that cold. With the weather conditions the way they are sometimes the defense struggles and starts throwing it around a little bit. We were able to put the ball in play and get things going,” said Staab.

Clear Fork (3-3,2-1) has been pretty much like that record would indicate, up and down, but Staab is hoping for a little more consistent play as it starts to warm up a little bit. “We have seen Jekyll and we have seen Hyde. It is controlled by ourselves,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “I am pleased that we are able to play at a level that we are expected to play at, but it is also a displeasure when sometimes we are not able to preform. We just have to go out and compete for seven innings every night and I think the rest can take care of itself.”

Clear Fork is at home for River Valley (0-5,0-2) on Wednesday. Staab says he likes that back to back format that the “MOAC” has adopted this year. “It is nice both ways. If you come out and get a win it is nice to have the next day to kind of keep the momentum going and if come out and get a loss on a Tuesday it is nice to have another game the next day. So, I do enjoy playing the back to back games. The more you are able to string it together, the more you are able to play, the better it is,” said Staab.

Published 4/11/18

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Freshman infielder Courtney Palmer hammed three home runs, the team hit five, and Clear Fork downed Danville (10-4) in a non-conference girls’ softball game on Thursday.

Brooke Robinson and Maddie Wine also went deep for the Lady Colts.

Coach Jeff Gottfried says they made some good swings and were able to drive the ball. “Before the game started I was talking to coach Lyons from Danville. She was kind of talking about us having some power and things like that and I jokingly said you won’t have to worry about that the win is blowing in from left. It was and it was blowing pretty hard, but we were still able to get a good part of the bat on the ball in a couple of swings. We were able to hit the ball really well,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “Courtney Palmer, a freshman hit three of them, and Brooke Robinson got another one, I think that was her third on the year and Maddie Wine got her first one. It was two freshmen and a sophomore that did the damage with the long ball. When they are that young you are not sure what you are going to get out of them. You see the potential is there. Until they are actually put in those situations and you see them come through you are not really sure what is going to happen. The pitcher missed some locations at times and good hitters are going to take advantage of that and I think that is what we did.”

Clear Fork has a mix of youth and experience. Gottfried says he just wants those young kids to continue to play and have fun. “I talk with those younger kids and we don’t want to wake them up. We want them to sort of sleepwalk through the game and go play and have fun and not realize the magnitude of the moment or the pressure that is on them. We try and tell them to go out and be yourself, do what you have always done, and don’t try and play for two people, play for yourself. You are going to make some mistakes. Our second basemen hit three home runs, but she also made two errors in the field. I talked to her about her fielding and what needs to be better there. I told her if you hit three home runs every game I will take two errors. It is a lot of fun when you see them put a smile on their face when they have some success at the varsity level,” said Gottfried.

Clear Fork (5-1) plays at Mansfield Madison (1-0) in a non-conference game between solid teams on Friday. Gottfried says that they have developed a rivalry with Madison and they want to keep playing them. “When we put the schedule together for this year and try and do our non conference games obviously we want to keep the local teams on the schedule. When I talked to coach Niswander we immediately said we are non conference, but we are still playing each other twice. It is going to do both of us a whole lot of good and see where we measure up. We have another one in May as well. They hadn’t gotten any games in. I talked to him (Thursday) and (Thursday) was going to be their first regular season game, so we have a little advantage there because we have played six ourselves. When we play those guys it doesn’t matter league or non league the kids all know each other and it is a good fun battle every time,” said Gottfried.

Published 4/06/18

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Clear Fork is kind of getting a baptism by fire this week and they have played some pretty good softball.

They beat Wooster Triway (7-3) on Monday in a non-league game and then lost (10-7) to Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference favorite North Union on Wednesday.

Coach Jeff Gottfried says he liked a lot of things he saw from the girls. “We had a good start on Monday against a Triway team that year and year out we usually open up with. They are good competition for us to at least get the season started. I thought we played pretty well first game out, but certainly not the caliper of team we ran into the next game with North Union. I didn’t think we played bad with North Union they are just very, very solid from top to bottom. There were a few things here and there that if would have done a little differently we might of come up on the top end of the score. That happens and sometimes you learn more from a loss than you do a win. So, we discussed those things afterwards and hopefully we get a chance to get back on the field with them (Friday,)” said Gottfried.

The Lady Colts are due to play at North Union on Friday afternoon and Gottfried says they gave great effort against the Lady Cats on Wednesday. “We got behind early in the contest 3-0 nothing in the third inning and we bounced right back with four in the bottom of the third. Then it was back and forth for a little while then next couple of innings and then we gave up a big inning in the sixth. They scored six runs and put it out of reach for us. We didn’t quit, we still scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh. It gave us a good feeling about competing with a team like that. They are the measuring stick in the conference,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We competed with them with a freshman in the circle and a freshman behind the plate. We have some youth in some key places. I think there is some potential there and some room for growth obviously. We will kind of see day by day and get rid of some of this crappy weather and get back on the field again.”

Clear Fork plays a tough regular season schedule, they play Shelby and Plymouth in a three way on Saturday, but Gottfried says you have to be careful about not overloading the schedule too. “You can be misled a little bit if you have a bunch of wins against teams that aren’t really competitive. Likewise, you kind of need some confidence that if you are playing good teams every day out and are getting beat, beat, beat and sometimes the confidence goes down a little bit. So, we try and blend and mix a little bit with the schedule we put together. I think it is too bad we had to play North Union this first week of the season. I told the girls after the loss we had on Wednesday truthfully you may not know this know, but this was a regional caliber game and a regional caliber team for sure and we played right there with them, so I think that gave some confidence even though we did suffer a loss,” said Gottfried.

Published 3/30/18

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The weather forced a chance in venue and the Clear Fork Colts brought a better approach to the plate on Wednesday and they blasted North Union (10-0) in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference opener for both schools.

The game was originally scheduled for North Union, but the field conditions were too wet there and the game was switched to Clear Fork. The schools hope to play at North Union on Thursday, weather permitting.

The Colts (1-1,1-0) had lost to Shelby (3-1) on Monday and coach Joe Staab says it was good they could get back on the field Wednesday when a lot of other schools could not. “It was a very important win especially after a loss earlier in the week to Shelby we just kind of wanted to get back on the field. Fortunately, we were able to get on our field (Wednesday) and it held up pretty nice and we were able to get back out there,” said Staab.

Gavin Bailey, who was used mostly in relief last spring, turned in a tremendous performance on the mound. Staab says he was able to throw all of his pitches for strikes. “Our pitcher Gavin Bailey threw a great game. He had multiple pitches working for strikes. He kept his composure and didn’t give up a lot of free bases and our defense was able to play behind him,” he said.

Plus, Staab says they were able to bring a better approach to the plate on Wednesday and that allowed them to score more runs, something they are capable of doing. “We were up there trying to get better pitches to hit, have better pitch selection. Just getting the kids swinging the bats,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We didn’t have the best offensive mentalities in our previous games. We got out there and where aggressive and some kids were able to do some nice things.”

To be a successful hitter Staab says you have to go to the plate with a plan in mind not just swinging at the first thing you see. “You always want to be proactive on what your purpose is and what your job is instead of just going up and trying to get a hit. Going up there with a confident mentality. If the kids are going to do that they are going to put themselves in a better position,” he said.

Published 3/29/18

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Clear Fork’s baseball coach is still named Staab, but it is a different Staab. Namely Joe Staab, the son longtime Clear Fork coach Rusty Staab.

Joe Staab was a member of the 2010 Clear Fork team that won the division three state title and he lead Wynford to a “N10” title two years ago.

He says this is a dream job for him. “I am pretty excited. I very fortunate for the opportunity to be the head coach at Clear Fork where I got to play and have a great experience. So, I am looking forward to this season. We return a lot of talent from last year. We graduated three seniors, so we have a lot of talent returning. So, hopefully we can have a successful year,” he said.

Now, dad has set a high standard. The Colts have been in the state final four the last two springs and Joe says they bring quite a bit of talent back as well. He says they have a chance to have some depth on the mound. “We are looking to have a good staff. Our ace Mitch Dulin went down. He had Tommy John surgery back in the fall, so he is going to be on the “IR” this year, but we have a lot of other guys that are stepping up and are looking to do big things this year, they have been working really hard. Fortunately, we should have a pretty good staff,” said Staab.

The Colts certainly have the potential to score a lot of runs. Staab says they just have to go to the plate with a plan in mind, not just go up there swinging. “We just have to have quality at bats and make sure we stay within ourselves and know the job at hand to hit the ball hard and try and stay within yourself. Put the ball in play and put some pressure on the defense,” he said.

Clear Fork is in a new league, the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, and they have had some success in some sports and not in others. Staab says he kind of looks forward to playing some different teams. “Some of these teams we did get an opportunity to play last year. It is nice going in and really not knowing anybody or who they have and what they return,” he told Swankonsports.com in Thursday, “You go in and it is you versus the opponent. The team that plays better they are going to be the ones that win the game. We have big expectations for our team, but not knowing anybody is going to be a fun experience. It’s just show up and play the game.”

Published 3/16/18

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Clear Fork was always one of the better softball teams in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, if not the best, but they have a lot to prove in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference and they going to do that with some inexperienced pitching.

The Lady Colts advanced to the regional tournament a year ago before losing to Oak Harbor in division two. They finished 22-4 for the year.

However, coach Jeff Gottfried says they have a lot of questions this year, especially when it comes to pitching. “It will definitely be interesting. It will be a change for us as far as who is in the circle. Darian Gottfried graduated a year ago. She pitched for four years for us in the circle. Our number two last year was Makenzie Baker and she was a senior as well. So, we are going to be very inexperienced in the circle. We have a couple of good young arms that we are taking a look at, but obviously until they get their feet wet it is going to take a little time. Surrounding them we have a good core back, a good nucleus of returning players,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “We have a couple of seniors anchoring down our corners Macey Wade and Zara Thomas. A couple of other seniors as well in Erika Robinson, she got a little bit of time last year, not a lot. She plays a significant role for us as far as leadership goes. We have several pieces in place, but it is just a matter of some of those kids that are new to the program coming up from our JV team hopefully they will be ready to fill those spots. Also, a senior in the outfield in Whitney Snavely will kind of anchor things down out there with some experience as well, so counting on those seniors as well.”

The Lady Colts with that core returning to the lineup has the potential of scoring some runs. Gottfried says they can do it in a lot of ways. “It will be interesting to see. We kind of mix and match with some speed and some power. We may have more power this year than we have had in year’s past, but we try and do what’s best for the kids we have. In certain situations, we will kind of tone it back on the bases and give this kid a chance to swing the bat and some other times we might have to generate some runs with some speed. At least at the beginning we are going to have to rely on our offense a little bit because like I said with pitching we are just not real sure. It is not they are not any good it is just the experience. We might have to score more runs because with Darian in the circle last year you kind of knew what you were going to get she was going to shut the other team down, so we didn’t have to score as much at times,” said Gottfried.

With the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, Gottfried says there will be good competition. “We start the first week of the conference season with North Union. We saw them two years ago up at the Wendy’s and lost a tight ballgame to them, but they are a traditional power in the conference. I think River Valley is another well known softball name in the conference as well. Some familiar ones with Galion and Ontario in the mix. We have seen them frequently the last couple of years. So, it is not all brand new, but there is quite a bit that is new to us. We look at it that they don’t know anything about us either. So, put the socks on and the pants on and the jerseys and go at it. It is just a game of softball that is all it is,” he said.

Published 3/13/18

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Clear Fork battles Mansfield Senior is a first round tournament game in division two at Bucyrus High School on Friday night.

Both teams finished a game back in their respective conferences, Clear Fork in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference and Mansfield Senior in the Ohio Cardinal Conference.

Clear Fork (17-5) had a chance to earn a share of the “MOAC” crown, but lost to rival Ontario (70-60) last week. Coach Steven Bechtel says sure it stings, but they have moved on. “I think they are pretty upbeat. We continually talk to them about putting that aside and moving on to the next challenge. Obviously, we have a pretty big challenge ahead of us,” he said.

Mansfield Senior (14-7), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, had a chance to do the same, but lost to rival Madison (82-58) two weeks ago.

Bechtel says first year head coach Marquis Sykes has done a great job sort resurrecting the program. “First and foremost, coach Sykes has done a great job. In just one year you can see glimpses of the old Mansfield Senior. The discipline and they play a lot harder than they have in the recent past. Great job by him. They have had a tremendous year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “I talked to coach Braggs after their win (Tuesday) not and we said hopefully both teams show up and play at their best. The kids will decide it out there between the lines and hopefully both teams come out and play as hard as they possibly can.”

Sometimes the Tygers have not shot the ball well from the perimeter, but Bechtel says even if they struggle with outside shots they have so many other ways they can hurt you. “They make up for it in so many ways when the don’t shoot it well. They still have a few guys that can put the ball in the basket and beyond the arc as well. We know what they can do inside the paint. They make up for it if they aren’t shooting the ball well they will adjust and do things a little bit differently. We just have to be focused on what we need to do on our side of the ball and what we need to do defensively against them,” said Bechtel.

When you play Mansfield Senior keeping them off the offensive boards is always big, but Bechtel says that is important for them every night. “Rebounding is big against Senior High, rebounding is big against everybody. That is an area that we have to focus on in any game and with any opponent,” he said.

Published 3/01/18

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Crestview took the lead on the very first possession of the game on a jumper by Kennedy Hickey and they never tailed in beating Clear Fork (40-31) in a division three sectional semi final played on Wednesday night at Lexington High School.

Crestview led by as many as ten 10 a couple of times in the first half and the Lady Cougars held a (24-14) lead at the break.

They played 13 players in the game and coach Aaron Goon felt their depth was a factor. “We had some girls come in that first half and played really well when a couple of the other girls got into foul trouble. I think Elly Motter had four points and that is huge when your starters go out with two fouls in the first quarter and have the subs come in and play like that. Then Jackie (Baith) kind of got it going in the second half. I think we still have a couple of girls under the weather, but they are playing a heck of a game,” said Goon.

Clear Fork’s game plan called for them to get the ball in the post, but coach Chuck Schmitt says they didn’t consistently execute that plan on Wednesday night. “We really wanted to get the ball inside more. I don’t think we ran our offense the way we wanted to run it. I think the first quarter hurt us getting behind, in a hole. We probably committed too many fouls, I think they shot a pretty good percentage (12 of 16.) We certainly didn’t score points. We need to make three, four, five threes,” he said.

The Lady Colts made only 6% (1-18) of their three point attempts.

They were able to score inside early in the game and Erika Robinson scored three straight baskets to cut the Crestview lead to (7-6) with 4:22 to play in the first quarter.

That’s when Goon inserted his daughter Kenedi Goon, a freshman with some size and she was able to control the paint. “Kenedi has been a great help to us this year. We were thinking about trying to keep her down for a while and let her get used to high school because I don’t care who you are coming from eighth grade to high school is a big jump, but she has done a heck of a job all season for us,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “She rebounds well, she gets her hands on a lot of shots without fouling a lot and that is tough to do. It changed the tide there in the beginning. Plus, it gave us that offensive threat they kept paying attention to.”

Goon ended up with five points and nine rebounds. Baith led Crestview with 12. Robinson had 14 for Clear Fork and Macy Wade added 12.

Clear Fork cut it to seven a couple times in the second half, the last being at (34-27) with 3:26 left on a hoop by Allison Studenmund.

They only shot 26% for the contest and Schmitt says that isn’t going to win you many games. “We cut it to seven and then it was back up to 12, but we just couldn’t get it going. We didn’t have any consistent offense and that has been our history all year. Are we better? Yeah, we’re better, but not there. You have to make shots. There is no secret to the game, you have go to make shots,” he said.

Clear Fork came with aggressive pressure in the fourth quarter, but Goon felt they handled it pretty well with only 17 turnovers. “They got real aggressive there, but I told the girls, I said listen, it is different and that is what it is the post season, so you have to be strong with the ball and you just have to play through it and I think they did a really good job with that and I am proud of the girls,” he said.

Crestview (16-7) plays Edison in the sectional final on Saturday afternoon at Lexington. The Lady Chargers beat Crestview (48-41) on Wednesday.

Published 2/22/18

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Tuesday night’s game is what makes a rivalry or in this case intensifies one.

Ontario spoiled Clear Fork’s attempt to share the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title by downing the Colts (70-60) at Les Hauenstein Gym in the valley.

Marion Pleasant wins it outright.

Colts coach Steven Bechtel thought it was important to get a good start and Clear Fork did that building its biggest lead at (24-9) with 6:21 left in the second quarter on A.J. Blubaugh’s bank shot. They led by five at the half (32-27) and by six (53-47) after three quarters.

Ontario scored 43 points in the second half, one its biggest halves of the season. Coach Joe Balogh says they got better ball movement and they were able to get the ball in the post more. “Offensively one of the things that makes us successful is when we move the ball. Not so much in player movement, we need to move the ball from side to side to get the defense to move. We weren’t doing that, it was a lot of head down and dribble and attack. Any defense is going to be good when it is just sitting there and that is what it was. What kind of turned it for us a little bit was when we started using our post guys inside. Logan Jones was really huge. We made a run in the first half and then we forgot about him for a couple of minutes. The big emphasis at half was, one, we needed to move the ball. I wasn’t concerned so much with players moving, I was just concerned about moving the ball and making the defense move. We had to let Jones and some of the post guys get touches and we did a better job of that. The problem we had in the second half was we couldn’t get stops. We were scoring, they were scoring. Fortunately, we were able to ramp up our defense a little bit and strung together a couple of stops and with our scores were able to get an advantage. We were good down the stretch taking care of the basketball. That has been a problem for us since the first of the year in crucial games. We did a good job against Shelby on Saturday. We did a good job (Tuesday) night. We didn’t turn it over and we got to the foul line and converted free throws,” said Balogh.

With the lead the Warriors cashed in on 6-6 free throws in the final :30 of the game Griffin Shaver was 4-4, both one and ones.

Clear Fork held a six point lead going to the final quarter, but they could only score seven points. Colts coach Steven Bechtel says Ontario was able to capture the momentum and they were never able to get it back. “We didn’t start off that fourth quarter very well. I think I just looked at the possession chart. We gave up four offensive rebounds. They finished the game and we didn’t. So, that fourth quarter was big and the momentum really shifted and we could just never rebound from that,” he said.

Clear Fork went almost four minutes with only two points in the fourth quarter, going from leading by one to trailing by eight.

Ontario took the lead with 4:33 to play in the game on Chance Mott’s 3 pointer from the left corner and the Warriors never trailed again. Ontario led conference champion Marion Pleasant in the fourth quarter last week, but this time Balogh says they made the plays down the stretch. “You have to have kids that are willing to step up and make plays. We ran a couple of sets and we executed really well. Chance (Mott) hit a big three on a set that we ran that. We looked at the options and that was the option that was open. That execution is crucial at this time of year,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “We told our kids as we started the second half that we could defend, that is kind of what we have hung our hat on all year is our defense. Giving up 32 points in a half is probably not going to do it. Our goal is always to get them under 55 and I thought we were better in the second half, especially getting matched in transition because we lost them a couple of times early in the game in transition and lost some guys on the perimeter. I thought we did a pretty good job with Barnett, although he is a really tough cover. He tried to take over and did for a little bit, but then we did a better job of getting help to him a lot earlier.”

Clear Fork’s Chance Barnett is the “MOAC’s” leading scorer at more than 18 points per game. He was held to 15 by the Warriors, six in the second half and two in the pivotal fourth quarter.

Bechtel says they knew Chance we going to get double teamed a lot. “Based on what happened last time we knew they were going to be a little bit different with him. He has been able to step up all year long for us. We did have other guys Brady (Tedrow) had a nice game (Tuesday) night and Brennen (South) stepped up. It just wasn’t enough they made more plays than we did,” he said.

Tredrow and South both had 12 for the Colts.

Balogh says they also wanted to know where South was at all times too and he thought they did a better job containing him down the stretch, he especially credits the play of guard Travion Harris. “Our emphasis was we wanted to make things difficult for Barnett because he killed us the first time we played them down the stretch. So, we were trying to double him. He split a couple of doubles and then we tried to make sure we didn’t leave South. I think early in the first half he threw it in the post, we went in the post off of him and he hit a three. Kind of going unrecognized a little bit if our pressure on the point guard. I thought Travion Harris again did a great job of just keeping constant pressure. If you were able to keep that constant pressure for 32 minutes in wears on them a little bit and I thought maybe it wore on South a little bit as the game got down the stretch,” said Balogh.

Senior Logan Jones led Ontario with 19, Logan Houle scored six of his 14 in the fourth and freshman Shaver added 14 as well for the Warriors.

Published 2/21/18

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Clear Fork has worked hard this season at improving and they have realized that goal heading into the tournament.

They play Crestview is the division three sectional semi-finals on Wednesday night at Lexington High School.

The Lady Colts are (7-15) and coach Chuck Schmitt feels they have steadily gotten better as the year has progressed, really in all areas. “I think overall all of our girls are better individually and as a team. If you break down individual skills we are better. Our post girls are better. They are more comfortable with their moves inside and our perimeter girls are learning to value the ball more, learning pass a little bit better, so all of that helps us to be a better team. Defensively, we are learning how to play defense now. We settled on a 1-2-2. It took some time to learn the slides and how to shift and so forth, but overall in every area we are a better basketball team,” said Schmitt.

Clear Fork finished seventh in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, which featured some very good teams in River Valley, Buckeye Valley, Ontario, and North Union.

Schmitt says they are prepared as they can be for the postseason. “We look at as we had 22 games to get better. The last third of the season we were better, we were in games. Instead of experiencing a loss by 15 or 20 we were in it to the end. Some of those games we won and a few we lost by two or four or five. We lost to our league champion (River Valley) by two points at the buzzer by foul shots. So, the girls have gained confidence. Really, we are at the point now where this is our second season and we feel we have a nice match up with Crestview,” he said.

Crestview (15-7) out of the Firelands Conference comes in with a five game winning streak, having beaten New London (48-37) in their last game last Thursday. In terms of common opponents, Crestview played Mapleton twice in league games winning (60-33) and (71-38) at home on February 8. Clear Fork beat Mapleton (56-23) in their second game of the season.

Schmitt things this game will be a battle to see who controls the tempo. “They are very aggressive. They are going to play man to man baseline to baseline. They will try and double up the ball as soon as it is thrown in. They want to speed the game up. They want to shoot the ball once they have possession and cross half court, they want to shoot it in 10 seconds. They are going to drive to the basket, they are going to shoot threes, so we will be challenged defensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “We feel we have a little bit of an advantage height wise on them. They want to speed it up and we want to control the pace of the game and slow the game down a little. Force them to play defense for a long time and limit them to one shot.”

Published 2/21/18

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Clear Fork hasn’t won a boys’ basketball conference title since 2002, but they have a chance to earn a share of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title with a victory over arch rival Ontario on Tuesday night.

They would share the title with Marion Pleasant.

Coach Steven Bechtel says the team knows what a win will do for them and they have to come out with their feet on fire. “Obviously we know what’s at stake. It’s senior night, so hopefully our guys are going to be amped up,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “We had an opportunity earlier this year if would have beaten Pleasant we would have guaranteed ourselves a share. So, hopefully we come out and are a little more energized in the first quarter. Hopefully, we can play like we have been playing all year.”

It has been an outstanding season for the Colts in which they have won more regular season games that any season since when they won the division three state title in 2002.

Bechtel says when they have struggled this year it often has been because they have gotten behind in the first quarter and they need to come out and play well in the first eight minutes. “For whatever reason, situations, matchups or just not ready to play. We have to find some energy right from the start. When we come out energized that is when we feel we are at our best. That will be something we really concentrate on coming out in the first part of that game,” he said.

Clear Fork (17-4,12-1), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, beat Ontario (53-48) in overtime on February 3. The Warriors led Pleasant in the fourth quarter last Thursday before falling (58-46) and then beat Shelby (55-52) on Saturday.

Balogh knows the Warriors (12-8,9-4) are peaking. “There is no doubt they are improving and it is not a surprise. Obviously, Joe (Balogh) has been around a long time and he does a great job over there. It is no surprise that they are playing their best basketball at the end of the year,” he said.

Will there be anything different from the Warriors? Maybe. Bechtel says they have to be ready for basically everything. “They have their constants, but they will show some different things. They probably will have a few wrinkles in. We just have to be prepared for everything in those few days leading up to the game. We just have to be ready. We have to be ready to play great defense and execute on offense and whatever they throw at us we are ready for,” he said.

When there is a big game like this, and there hasn’t been a regular season game of this magnitude for the Colts in years, Bechtel says that is what gets your juices flowing. “I think growing up you always want to be challenged and obviously every time you play an Ontario team whether it is at the beginning of the year, middle of the year or end of the year or even in the tournament you are going to be challenged,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “This is going to be something where both sides are obviously looking forward to the game. This is what people want to see as well so. I think both teams just have to ready to come out and put on a good show.”

Published 2/20/18

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Clear Fork shares the lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference lead with Marion Pleasant and they play at Marion Harding on Thursday night in conference play.

It is simple, a win is a must.

Pleasant plays its last conference game at home on Thursday night against Ontario. The Colts host those same Warriors next Tuesday.

Pleasant moved into a share of first place when they beat the Colts (67-65) in overtime last Friday.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they weren’t ready to play when the game started. “The first quarter was a huge disappointment with the way we came out energy wise. Dealing with young high school kids you never know how they going to react in those situations. Unfortunately, we didn’t handle it the greatest. It is a situation that we have to learn from that when that happens again. I was proud of the way we did battle back. We did put ourselves in position to win the basketball game. Pleasant just made one more play than we did,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork (16-4,11-1) beat Marion Harding (58-48) on January 30. Last week, the Presidents (6-13,4-9) beat River Valley (73-62) on Friday in league action. Bechtel says it can be difficult to figure out what you are going to get from Harding. “We know that they are very athletic. The offenses that they run, they run them very well. They play hard defensively. When you do those things you are going to put yourself in position to be in games,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Last weekend, they might have scored 73 on Friday and only scored 25 on Saturday. We are not really sure which Marion Harding team we are going to get, so we have to control what we do. We have to come out with a lot more energy and be ready to go.”

It seems more people in the valley are talking about the game next week against Ontario, but Bechtel says their focus must be on Thursday night. “As long as the people in the locker room continue to think that. I know everybody outside, you see it in every sport, they are always looking, hey, down the road this is when we have to play this team. As long as the guys in the locker room and on the coaching staff we are looking at it as one game at a time. Those are the things we can control. That is the way we have to continue to go. This team has been pretty good at doing that we just have to continue that,” said Bechtel.

When it comes to doing things better against Harding, Bechtel says they have to finish their shots in the lane and play better defense. “I just think finish. Watching the film there were a lot of possessions that we didn’t finish at the rim. We had some open easy baskets and just missed them. I felt that we had some open looks, so we executed pretty well we just weren’t hitting our shots from the perimeter and you can’t control that part. Defensively, not allowing them to have too many open shots,” he said.

Published 2/15/18

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Clear Fork can clinch no less than a share of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference boys’ basketball title on Friday night with a win at home against second place Marion Pleasant.

They put themselves in that position by beating arch rival Ontario (53-48) in overtime on Saturday night.

They were able to force the Warriors into 19 turnovers on Saturday and coach Steven Bechtel says they have been improving in the way they play defense. “We are getting better on that side of the ball. Obviously, our offense gets most of the headlines, but we are slowly getting better on that side, especially in a game where we really had to grind it out in the half court. That was really a big step in the right direction for us,” he said.

Clear Fork (15-3,11-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball poll in the large school division, has won its last 10 games. They have not lost since Mansfield Madison beat them (77-73) on December 29.

They beat Pleasant (66-61) on January 23, rallying for a 10-point third quarter deficit. Bechtel says the Spartans (15-3,10-1) do a lot of good things at both ends of the court. “They are really good. They are a real good basketball team. They have a lot of guys that can score. They have a lot of guys that can score in different ways,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “So, they are very, very dangerous every time they have the ball. Then defensively they are just solid as well. They do a great job in what they want to do on both sides of the ball. We are going to have to really be ready to go on Friday night.”

In that first game between the two there seemed to be a lot of streaks and Bechtel says both teams want to push the pace of the game. “I think we both relied on really getting out and trying to run and get easy baskets. We were fortunate enough in the first game to have a longer streak and that is what both teams have go to try and do is limit those streaks on both sides, so that we can have success,” he said.

It has been 15 years since the Colts have won a conference title and Bechtel says his players are aware of the opportunity they have come Friday night against Pleasant. “We know kind of what is at stake and that kind of thing. I think the guys are just kind of figuring out today that we have won 10 in a row and the 11 th one is a huge one. We just have to continue the same thing we have done all year. It is the biggest game on the schedule because it is the next one. So, we just have to continue with that mindset and be ready to go mentally and physically on Friday,” he said.

Published 2/08/17

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Clear Fork scored the final five points of the game and beat Ontario (53-48) in overtime in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Saturday night at the O-Rena.

The win kept the Colts (15-3,11-0) a game in front of Marion Pleasant, who beat River Valley (73-66) on Saturday night, in the conference race. They play at Les Hauenstein Gym on Friday night. Ontario drops three games back.

It was a high pressure game as both teams played aggressive defense. Clear Fork had 20 turnovers and Ontario had 19.

Clear Fork coach Steve Bechtel says the Warriors play so well on defense it is had to execute against them, but they did okay considering the magnitude of the situation. “The full court pressure we did a pretty good job with it. We had trouble getting the ball inbounds occasionally and that is something that we are really going to have to make sure we do a better job the next time we see them,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “Their defensive pressure just in the half court is really good. I mean they are solid. We had to work for every possession. I am proud of the guys with the way they persevered the tough times. We had a lead and blew the lead and had to battle back.

Jayden Jacobs tied the game (48-48) with a twisting layup off the left block with :44 seconds to go in overtime, but the Colts took it right down the floor and Chance Barnett scored the go ahead basket from the right baseline with :32 seconds left. “He had quite a few big shots (Saturday) night. We were fortunate that when we missed a couple of free throws down the stretch that it didn’t come back and bite us. Chance really stepped up big on the offensive end. He did a great job on Logan Jones as well,” said Bechtel.

Ryan South sealed the game by bagging three of four free three throws in the final 13 seconds.

Ontario took its first lead since it was (4-2) on Griffin Shaver’s driving layup (46-45) with 1:20 left in regulation. South tied the game by making one of the two free throws with 26 seconds left in regulation.

“We just didn’t get the one or two plays that we needed to win the game. Give Clear Fork a lot of credit that they hung in and were able to make the play and we didn’t. We are in a situation where you have to keep fighting,” said Ontario coach Joe Balogh.

Ontario mad just 35 percent of its field goal attempts. Offensive execution is something that has plagued the Warriors this year.

Clear Fork lead (26-17) at halftime. Barnett scored the first three field goals of the third quarter for the Colts, but Bechtel says it was not their plan coming out of halftime to try and get him the ball specifically. “We just wanted to move the basketball. We wanted to find the open guy and he just happened to be there in the second half. We were able to get it to Chance and they were able to get it to Logan trying the get the foul on the other big guy, that would have been a huge advantage. It was fortunate the ball ended up in Chance’s hands and he was able to score it,” said Bechtel.

Barnett led Clear Fork with 20 points, South had 12. Shaver had 13 for Ontario, Logan Jones added 11.

The loss drops Ontario (9-6,8-3) three games back in the league race with three games to play. “It will be difficult for us to get back in the league championship race, but I think we are a team that can help decide who is going to win it. That is kind of where we are,” said Balogh.

They play at Pleasant February 15 and at Clear Fork February 20.

Clear Fork and Ontario have played every year since the early 60’s and Bechtel knows anytime you beat Ontario it’s a big win. “It is huge just because it was Ontario. They have set the standard so high here in the area with Joe and all the success that he has had. We look forward to the challenge every time we play them. Hopefully, it is going to be a great rivalry,” he said.

Published 2/03/18

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Clear Fork continues to be unbeaten in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference this season and they lead Pleasant by a game and Ontario by two in the standings.

They play at Galion in an “MOAC” game on Thursday night and at new arch rival Ontario on Saturday night, it will be the first meeting of the season between the Colts and Warriors.

Clear Fork beat Marion Harding (58-48) on Tuesday night to maintain that lead. Coach Steven Bechtel says it wasn’t their best performance of the season, but it was good enough for a win. “We survived. We didn’t play our greatest and we knew it. We were a little tired, a little sluggish. You have to give Marion Harding credit they came in and were fired up and they gave us everything that they had. We had to really scratch and claw there for a while to maintain that 10-point victory,” said Bechtel.

Chance Barnett is the second leading scorer in the “MOAC,” but Bechtel says when they get other players stepping up and making in plays is when they are really good. “When we get that second or even third scorer to really step up and that has been really key for us this year and it has been a different guy on a lot of different nights. We are not sure every night what guy is going to step up. We really like that support and it takes a little load of Chance too,” he said.

Clear Fork (13-3,9-0) plays at Galion (6-10,3-7) on Thursday night. Galion took once beaten Northmor to end last week before losing (69-65) by four in a non-conference game.

It was a (67-47) Clear Fork win in the first meeting December 21 when the Tigers were plagued by turnovers. Bechtel says they are clearly a better team now. “They are a solid basketball team. Obviously, the Alsip kid he can score with the best of them. They are athletic. They have got some size. They are doing a lot of different things. They are pressing more now, so we are going to have to make sure we are steady and sharp and focused when we go over there (Thursday) night,” he said.

Clear Fork and Ontario have played every year since the early 60’s and were in the Johnny Appleseed Conference together for nearly 20 years.

Ontario lost both of its league games last week to Buckeye Valley (46-42) and Pleasant (53-48) to fall out of a share of first with the Colts. However, Bechtel feels they are still a very good team. “They continue to just be solid. They don’t do anything flashy or anything that way, but they are solid offensively. They move the basketball well. They find the open guy,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Defensively, they are just very, very good. We are going to have to be sharp on Saturday when we have to go over there and execute against their solid defense.”

Published 2/01/18

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Clear Fork and Marion Pleasant are two of the three leaders in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference and they play at Pleasant on Tuesday night in game that was originally scheduled for January 6.

Last week, the Colts beat North Union (65-51) on Thursday and Buckeye Valley (69-65) on Saturday.

Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel says those are big wins too. “Everyone is big. Against Pleasant and Ontario and us, we are all undefeated, we all want to beat each other, but every win is big. We just have to make sure that we are prepared and are mentally ready to go and expect it to be in a dogfight,” he said.

Marion Pleasant (11-2,7-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, beat Galion (50-40) and Marion Harding (54-32) last week. The Spartans only losses come to unbeaten Northmor and Columbus Bishop Ready.

Bechtel says they get to the basket and they pressure you a lot of defense. “They are pretty well balanced. They have a lot of guys that can do a lot of different things. Their dribble penetration is really good. They pressure you. I look at them and I think of ourselves,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “I think we mirror each other fairly similarly and we just have to be ready to go. We have to go down there and execute on offense and make sure we limit them to one shot on defense.”

Clear Fork (9-3,6-2) is on the road, but Bechtel feels no matter who wins it is going to be a big win for them. “If they happen to beat us it is still a big win I think. They want to hold home court and we want to go down there and try and steal one, whatever word you want to use. We have to go down there and play well. Hopefully, we put ourselves in position where we can win it in the fourth quarter,” he said.

It is going to take 32 minutes for whoever wins the game. Bechtel says they have execute on every play and if they have a lead they have to keep building on it and not become satisfied. “Saturday, taught us a lot. We had a big lead and kind of squandered it away and we had to just milk it away there at the end. We have to do a great job if we have the lead. We have to do a great job if we have to get stops and then a score. No matter what the situation is we are going to have to execute at both ends of the floor,” said Bechtel.

Pleasant has scored in bunches this season and the Colts can’t allow that to happen on Tuesday night. Bechtel says they have to force the Spartans into taking tough shots. “Any runs with anybody you may be playing is not a good thing. We have to make them really earn their baskets. Not give them any easy ones and I am sure their game plan is the same thing with us. You have to make the other team score against your five guys. It is not soccer, it is not football, so we are not going top hold then scoreless. We just have to make them earn every basket,” he said.

Published 1/23/18

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Clear Fork shares the lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference standings with Ontario and Marion Pleasant entering league play this week with league games on Thursday and Saturday for all teams.

The Colts (7-3,4-0) host North Union on Thursday and travel to Buckeye Valley on Saturday.

Clear Fork shook some of the rust off with a couple of practices last week and then beat Loudonville (73-41) on Saturday night in a non-league game.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they were a lot sharper than they were in a one point win over Fredericktown (56-55) earlier in the week. “The practice was much needed and it was very beneficial to us. I think it helped us get back in the rhythm. Our shots were better. Our rotations where better. Everything seemed to be a little bit better than what they were on Tuesday,” said Bechtel.

The Colts were not allowed to practice due to weather conditions from January 4 to January 8, but they were able to get back on schedule last week and Bechtel says it shows. “It was just the constant movement, just staying sharp. We weren’t able to do that when we weren’t allowed to practice. It was just something we had to fight through. Hopefully, down the road it will make us a lot stronger and better off,” he said.

Clear Fork beat North Union (6-5,2-4) in the league opener (62-59) back on December 8 in Richwood. Bechtel says the Wildcats height is a concern to them because they don’t match up really well with big teams. “Obviously, they pose a few issues. They have a nice 6’5” kid and another 6’6” kid. We don’t match up real well with those guys,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “We are going to have to do a lot better than we did last time. We are a lot better. They are a lot better. It ought to be a nice challenge for us.”

Bechtel says they are going to have to battle on the boards and also due a good when and if the Wildcats are able to get the ball to their big kids. “Just defending their high-low actions and keeping them off the glass so they don’t get any easy ones and try to keep the tempo the way that we want it. Trying to get up and down the floor and try and get as many easy baskets as possible,” said Bechtel.

The Colts are at Buckeye Valley (3-9,2-4,) who beat Galion (72-53) in a league game on Tuesday night. Clear Fork beat then (71-64) in their first meeting this year. Bechtel says the Barons can score. “I think it is a very good basketball team. Their record doesn’t show that. We know exactly how that feels. That is a real good basketball team and a really, really good guard. They have some decent size around him. They do a lot of things well and we are going to have to have our “A” game when we go down there on Saturday,” he said.

Published 1/17/18

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Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference tri-leader Clear Fork hosts Marion Harding on Friday night in league play.

That is if Mother Nature allows and it looks like maybe she isn’t going to be in the mood.

Marion Harding (3-7,1-4) lost to River Valley (54-33) on Saturday night.

Despite their record, Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel, says Harding, a division one school, is a very capable team. “They are a very dangerous team that is pretty athletic. Their dribble penetration is really good. They seem to share the basketball really well. They have shown in many games that they can really step up defensively. They had a huge win earlier against a really good Mt. Vernon team,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “So, we know that they are very capable at coming in and playing at a really, really high level and we are going to have to come out at the same type of level and really concentrate on what we need to do.”

Harding took “MOAC” co-leader Ontario to the last possession before losing last month (37-34) in a league game. Bechtel says they have some versatility on defense. “I think they are capable. They are not overly big. They have a lot of guys that are the same size and that allows them to do many things, whether it is in their zone or their man to man type scheme. In the half court we are going to have to come out and execute at a high level no matter what defense they happen to be coming out in,” said Bechtel.

With Ontario and Marion Pleasant, the other two leaders, scheduled to play each other Friday night if the Colts (6-3,4-0) win they are going to remined tied for the lead with somebody. However, Bechtel says they are not looking at the standings. “That is something we really haven’t discussed with the guys at all. We just try and take it one game at a time. No matter how it ends up one game at a time. First with Marion Harding and Saturday we will come out ready to play against Loudonville,” he said.

Loudonville (4-5) plays at Clear Fork Saturday night in a non-conference game. Bechtel says the Redbirds are another dangerous team. “Obviously, coach (Kelly) Seboe does a great job and they are going to play extremely hard. This is another rivalry type game. They get to come to our place this year, so that will make it even more special that way. They are going to be disciplined on offense and they are going to very stingy in defense as well. He always comes up with a plan against us and they always seem to play really, really well,” said Bechtel.

Published 1/12/18

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Clear Fork made five of seven free throws in the final 40 seconds and they held on to beat Fredericktown (56-55) in a non-conference boys’ basketball game at Les Hauenstein Gym on Tuesday night.

Due to a number of weather related factors Clear Fork has not been permitted to practice since last Wednesday and had games against league foes Ontario and Marion Pleasant cancelled.

“We knew it was going to be one of those games where we weren’t exactly sure how we were going to come out. We told them we wanted to see a lot of energy. We understood their wind might not be there, but their legs might be. In the first half it was kind of getting into the flow of things and in the second half we really got into it on the defensive end of the floor,” said Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel.

Clear Fork led (8-5) with 5:08 left to play in the first quarter, but the Freddies (2-8) took the lead (16-14) when Xavier Stallard scored with 57 seconds to play in the quarter.

The Freddies led by as many seven (24-17) in the second quarter and held a one point (27-26) lead at the break.

It was the third quarter that turned out to be pivotal for the Colts (6-3) as they outscored Fredericktown (21-13) to take a (47-40) lead after three periods.

Freshmen Brady Tedrow gave Clear Fork a (36-33) lead with 4:58 to play in third with an old fashion three point play and latter added two field goals as part of a Clear Fork (14-7) run to end the quarter. Gannon Seifert added a three and Michael Chillemi scored back to back hoops as part of that run.

“I thought our bench played huge (Tuesday) night. Some of them didn’t get the minutes they really wanted and that type of thing. I thought that one group that was out there towards the end of the third quarter really set the tone and got us that lead and that really pushed us and we were able to hold them off,” said Bechtel.

Tedrow is part of a freshman class that was unbeaten in junior high and Betchel says he has been a solid contributor for them. “We love his intensity. We know what he can bring defensively for us. Offensively, he has been the guy for that group and this year he just has to be one of the guys. He is capable of having a big night and he really stepped up for us,” he said.

Fredericktown has a never say die attitude Tuesday night and got as close as (51-50) with 1:09 left to play on a layoff by Stallard, but could never get over the hump.

“The kids definitely played hard. We saw some things (Tuesday) night that we will build on. The toughness and the never give up attitude is pat of what this team is,” said Fredericktown coach Derek Dibling.

The Colts were led in scoring by Chance Barnett and Brennan South with 13 each. Tedrow had nine and Jay Swainhart eight. Anthony Caputo, Stallard and Nick Cunningham all had 13 for Fredericktown.

Clear Fork shares the lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with Ontario and Marion Pleasant and had games with both of those teams cancelled last week on nights when the rest of the region played. The Ontario game will be played February 23 and Pleasant game the last week of January.

Without even a practice, Bechtel it was difficult to know how they would come out on Tuesday night. “We knew they would come our ready to play. We haven’t practiced and I am sure they have played a couple of games here. We knew they were going to be a little more prepared than we were. We just wanted to make sure we came out and played as hard as we possibly could,” he said.

Published 1/09/18

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Clear Fork shares first place in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with Ontario and Marion Pleasant and they play both of those schools this week.

They host the Warriors on Thursday at Les Hauenstein Gym and they travel to Pleasant on Saturday. Two wins gives them first place to themselves in the “MOAC.”

Last Friday, they lost a non-conference game to division one Mansfield Madison (77-73) at Madison.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they must strive to get better on defense. “I thought we were okay offensively. We talked to the kids with four possessions if we could just get four more stops somewhere in any game that really increases our opportunity to win, especially when you lose by four. You never know what is really going to happen. Just getting better in the half court defense I think that is where we really have to improve. We have concentrated on that and hopefully come (Thursday) night we can showcase that,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork (5-3,3-0) hosts Ontario (5-3,3-0) on Thursday night. The Warriors lost non-conference games to Highland (60-53) and Lexington (72-48) last week.

Ontario may be on a three game losing streak, but Bechtel says coach Joe Balogh will have them ready Thursday night. “Joe is the coach, so they are going to be fundamentally sound. They are going to be ready to play. They are a very solid basketball team. I know the scoring thing comes up, but they are winning games. People always say you would rather win ugly then lose looking good,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “They are coming out and they are getting stops when they need too. They are scoring enough baskets to win quite a few games. They are kind of in a funk like we are. We have a two game losing streak and they gave three, but, Joe is going to have those kids ready to play.”

As normal Ontario has been playing outstanding, especially half court defense. Bechtel says when they have open shots they must cash in. “We have to make sure that when we get an open look because they aren’t going to come at a high rate for us because of how well they play defense we have to knock in those open looks. We have to do a great job of getting our guys in positions where they have the ability and our best opportunity to score,” he said.

Pleasant (6-2,4-0) has been very good too. They play rival River Valley Thursday night. Bechtel thinks the Spartans are a lot like them. “I think they are very similar to us. They have a lot of guys that can play. They have a lot of guys that can shoot, put the ball on the floor. Defensively they get after it just like we do, maybe not so much in the full court, they have shown that a little bit. It is kind of a mirror image that way. We have looked at them a little bit because we only get a day to prepare for them, but most of our focus is on Ontario,” he said.

Published 1/04/18

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Clear Fork heads to Mansfield Madison for a non-conference game on Friday night between two schools with a long relationship on the basketball floor and both are having good seasons.

The Colts, who share the lead in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, had a five game winning snapped in an (84-72) loss to Mansfield Christian last Saturday afternoon.

The Flames shot 80 percent from beyond the arc and they were able to get open looks. Clear Fork coach Steven Bechtel says they didn’t do enough to prevent those. “I don’t think we came out with the energy that we really needed to have a chance in that game. However, you have to give Mansfield Christian a lot of credit. They came out and took advantage of certain situations and knocked down a lot of open shots and that kind of cost us the ballgame. We have to rebound from that and be ready to go for Madison,” said Bechtel.

Perhaps that game last Saturday was a little out of character for Clear Fork because Bechtel says they have played pretty good defense for the most part. “That is obviously something we can control every night. We can’t control how many shots we make or if we are making baskets on a certain night, but we can control of defensive intensity. Besides the Mansfield Christian game, I feel we have done a fairly good job of that. That is something we have stressed to the guys that we have to come out and be more consistent in that area,” he said.

Clear Fork (5-2) is at Madison (4-3) on Friday night. The Rams beat Bellevue (84-74) in the same holiday tournament at Ontario that the Colts played in. They have two of the top scorers in the area in Kyle Jackson and Mason Campbell.

Bechtel says they can’t forget about the rest of the Rams. “They are playing at a very high level. Coach Mergel obviously does a very good job with those guys. They have the two solid players in Jackson and Campbell that you have to account for, but all of the other guys as well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “We have to make sure we don’t lose sight of all of the role guys as well. We can’t allow them to have a big night. We know that Campbell and Jackson are really, really good and they are going to get their points. We have to make sure we concentrate on those other guys too.”

When it comes to game planning Bechtel says they can’t let Jackson and Campbell go crazy, but the can’t lose everybody else when trying to defend those two. “The thing is I don’t think we can stop Campbell and Jackson, they are too good. We have to make them earn every basket. We just can’t let somebody else go out there and have a great night. That could hurt us. Obviously, they have a game plan. We just have to make sure we come out and play solid defensively and execute and hit open shots,” he said.

Published 12/29/17

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Chance Barnett scored the first hoop 19 seconds into the game and after 2:45 it was (10-3) the Clear Fork Colts went on to blast the Galion Tigers (67-47) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Thursday night.

Barnett had 20 points, including three dunks, and nine Colts scored at least four points in the team’s fifth straight win. They share first place in the “MOAC” with Ontario and Marion Pleasant.

The Colts led by 11 (21-10) after the first quarter and coach Steven Bechtel says they wanted to get off to a good start. “We came out and we said we wanted to get on them early. We are home and the kids came out and they responded. We didn’t make as many shots as we were hoping, but we fought through that adversity of not making shots and kept it up in the second half then,” said Bechtel.

On Saturday night, the Colts seemed to hit everything they looked at in a (101-62) win over River Valley. That was not the case on Thursday night, especially in the second quarter when they made only one perimeter shot and no threes. “We said there are going to be games this year where we don’t shoot it as well as we are capable and how are we going to overcome that? I thought our defensive intensity really picked it up in the second half and that helped us out a lot more,” said Bechtel.

Clear Fork (5-1) started the third quarter on a (14-0) run, punctuated by back to back three pointers by Jay Swainhart, to take a (47-21) lead on two free throws by freshman Brady Tedrow with 4:16 left in the quarter. Galion has a turnover on seven straight possessions in the third quarter.

There weren’t a lot of easy baskets in transition either, but Bechtel says they found a way. “Galion did a good job of getting back. They got out there and they really contested. They pressured us a little bit more than I think our kids anticipated,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “You have to give coach (Matt) Valentine and those kids credit. They continued to fight. Isiah Alsip is an exceptional player and he’s a handful.”

Alsip is one the leading scorers in the area and he led Galion Thursday night with 13 markers, but six of those came in the fourth quarter when the game was already decided. “We knew that was going to be a big key to contain him. He did pick up a couple of early fouls and he had to set on the bench a little longer than I am sure he anticipated. He is an exceptional player and we had to do a great job of containing him,” said Bechtel.

Swainhart and Tanner Winand both had eight and A.J. Blubaugh and Michael Chillemi had six each for the Colts, who play Mansfield Christian (3-2) at a holiday tournament at Ontario High School on Saturday.

They gave not lost since the opening night of the season to Lexington. Bechtel says they have good confidence, but they most keep focused. “I think just the confidence and maintaining that intensity and maintaining the focus of no matter who we are playing against, that will be the biggest key. We like where we are right now and we have to get ready to play Mansfield Christian on Saturday,” he said.

Published 12/21/17

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Clear Fork shares first place in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with Ontario and Marion Pleasant after three games and they host Galion in a league game on Thursday night.

Last Saturday, the Colts lit up the scoreboard in beating River Valley (101-62) in a conference game.

Coach Steven Bechtel says it was a night when it seemed everything went well for the Colts. “It was one of those nights when everything came pretty easy for us. We moved the basketball around and found the open guy and we had a lot of guys knocking in shots. It was a lot of fun for the guys, it was great to see. Our defensive intensity really though sparked our offense, so that was key for us,” he said.

It seems every game Clear Fork is putting eight to 10 guys in the scorebook and Bechtel says that is going to be key for them this year. “With our balance and depth that is where we feel confident gong into most games that if somebody isn’t hitting hopefully out of all of those guys we will have somebody that will be able to step up each night and knock in shots. Fortunately, we have been okay in that area. We just hope we don’t run into one of those nights when nobody is hitting anything,” said Bechtel.

Galion (2-3,1-2) dropped a game to Marion Harding (52-45) last Saturday. They beat River Valley (91-70) last Thursday. Bechtel says they have an excellent player in Isiah Alsip. “I think they are a much improved team from last year. They are led by Isiah Alsip. He is going to be a handful,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “We have to make sure he earns every basket and not allow anybody else to have a really good night. We are going have our work cut out for us. We are going to have to go out and do what we do best and execute at both ends of the floor and do it at a high level.”

Clear Fork (4-1,3-0) owns a four game winning streak, but Bechtel says they have to guard against over confidence and keep good focus. “We just constantly tell them it is one game at a time. Never look ahead or anything that way or look behind too much. We want look back at the things we did well and things we need improve and think have game by game improved in some of those areas. I think they are feeling pretty good about themselves. We just have to consistently give the kind of effort that is going to be needed out of all of us,” he said.

Published 12/20/17

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Clear Fork is at home for a pair of Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference games this week as they host Buckeye Valley on Thursday and River Valley on Saturday night.

The Colts (2-1,1-0) beat North Union (62-59) in their first ever game in the league last Friday. They had a double digit lead entering the fourth quarter and almost let it get away. Coach Steven Bechtel says they have talked about that. “We talked about it (Wednesday) with a couple of players because that was a concern for them. Getting off to a better start in the fourth quarter when we have a lead. Who knows what will happen (Thursday) night. Hopefully, we can learn from that and fight through that adversity. Fortunately, on Friday we were able to prevail and come out on top,” said Bechtel.

They have quite a few kids back that have varsity experience, but they are still young kids in some cases. Bechtel says leadership is going to be important this week and this year. “We have Brady Tedrow, he is a freshman, and he is logging a lot of minutes. Brennan South, I know he logged a lot of minutes last year, but still just a sophomore, and he puts in a lot of time out there are well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “The juniors and seniors have to really step up and be the leaders on the squad. I think everybody is doing a pretty good job of just playing their role and doing it as well as possible every night.”

Buckeye Valley (1-3,1-0) beat River Valley (66-62) in an “MOAC” game last Friday. They followed that with a loss to Highland (68-63) on Saturday night in a non-league game.

Bechtel says the Barons are going to be aggressive on defense. “Traditionally they are a really, really solid basketball team. Traditionally they press a lot, but they are not as deep as they have been. They still get after it really hard in the half court, so we are going to have to be really strong with the basketball and make really good decisions and make our cuts really sharp, so we are able to move the basketball like we want to,” he said.

So far, the Colts have handled the ball very well this year. Bechtel says that is going to have to continue. “I think so far we have done a pretty good job of handling the ball. The guys have done a good job of moving the ball around and finding the open guy and that is going to be a huge key to our success throughout the entire year, so we just have to continue to do that,” he said.

River Valley (0-2,0-1) comes to the Clear Fork Valley on Saturday. Bechtel says the Vikings approach is going to similar to Buckeye Valley. “They are going to come out and they are going to play aggressive as well. They are going to be a solid basketball team, we played them last year. They have a few guys back. They are going to play hard. The “MOAC” most of the teams are fairly similar that way where they are going to be strong defensively and really look to push the basketball as well,” said Bechtel.

Published 12/14/17

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This is the first year for Clear Fork and the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference. They won the conference title in football and they tip off the basketball conference schedule on Friday night at North Union.

The Colts (1-1) opened with old rival Lexington and Northwestern, who was in a division three regional final last year, last weekend. They lost to Lexington (73-63) on Friday and beat Northwestern (68-64) on Saturday.

Coach Steven Bechtel saw some good things both nights, but certainly his team was better against Northwestern. “With Lexington on Friday night we knew that was going to be a great atmosphere starting off with them. They are really, really solid at every position. I thought we went over there and got ourselves in position to win, but Lex just made a few more plays down the stretch,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Saturday night we had a really tough hard fought game over at Northwestern. Another solid basketball team with solid guard play and we got some stops down the stretch that we didn’t get Friday night. Hopefully, that is a step in the right direction. We hit some free throws late and were able to come away with a win.”

Free throws are a lost art in some places, like the NBA for example, but not at Clear Fork. Bechtel says they are going to have to continue to shoot them well. “On the year we are 36-39 from the line (92 percent). That is obviously a high percentage and we need to continue to do that, especially when it is to put a game away or just to win basketball games. Everybody talks about free throws being a key and that is something we are doing right now,” he said.

Among the things the Colts have to do better is rebound and defend the other guys, according to Bechtel. “Just more consistency in a lot of different areas, especially boxing out because we are not exactly a huge team. I think we are taking care of the ball fairly well right now. So, box outs and just our positioning off the ball and trying to get up in those passing lanes a little bit earlier than we have. I know that is going to come with the more practice we get and obviously the games,” he said.

North Union (1-1) spilt there first two as well. They beat Ben Logan (58-42) and lost to Triad (57-50) last weekend. Bechtel says the Wildcats are a team built around their guards. “They have solid guard play. I believe they have a coach’s kid that is one their guards. Obviously, when it is a coach’s kid he is going to be a protectionist. He is going to play at a high level. He is a sophomore. Our point guard is a sophomore as well. And they have some size. With their length they run a lot of zone, so we are going to have to come out and execute well, move the basketball, and continue to share it too,” said Bechtel.

The Colts have shown the ability to make three pointers and by a number of guys, but Bechtel says they need to find other ways to score than making jump shots from the perimeter. “We have shot a lot of three already, we just don’t want to fall in love with it. If it is one of those nights when some of those guys are not hitting we have to make sure we find out who is hitting from the outside. We don’t want to fall in love with the arch, we have to run some of our sets as well as move the basketball and try and get some easier shots,” he said.

Published 12/07/17

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Lexington outscored Clear Fork (26-8) in the second half and they beat the Lady Colts (48-28) in a non-conference girls’ basketball game on Tuesday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

Leading (22-20) at the half Lady Lex (2-0) limited Clear Fork to just one field goal in the critical third quarter. They went to a zone defense and co-coach Connie Doutt says they were a little more aggressive too. “I think this environment was part of it. I think the student section got into their heads and maybe were a little timid, but I thought in the second half they relaxed a little bit and got used to it. I think we were able to get up and put a little more pressure on them,” she said.

Clear Fork shot just 21% form the field on the night and just 5% in the second half. Coach Chuck Schmitt says they did not run their offense the way they can. “We didn’t execute our offense and get shots. If you don’t have good shots you are not going to score. We have to get better at that. Their defense was good, they are quick,” he said.

Abigail Adams scored five her team high 14 points for Lexington during a 30 second stretch late in the third quarter to give Lady Lex a (34-22) advantage with 1:38 to play in the quarter. Clear Fork (2-1) could get no closer than 10 the rest of the way.

Lexington seemed to score repeatedly off the Clear Fork press, but Doutt believes 20 turnovers are too much and “that is something we are going to have to work on and become better at handling the ball as they season goes on,” she told Swankonsports.com after the game.

Macy Wade led Clear Fork with 11, nobody else had more than five.

The Lady Colts made three, three pointers, all in the first half and had trouble get the ball into the post much at all. “They were in a zone and we have to get better at that. That is on me because we haven’t practiced a lot against zones. We have to get better at recognizing that a little better,” said Schmitt.

Published 12/06/17

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Regan Marshall scored seven over her team high 12 points in the pivotal second quarter and Clear Fork went on to blast Mapleton (56-23) in a non-conference girls’ basketball game on Thursday night at Les Hauenstein Gym.

The Lady Colts (2-0) led (8-5) after the first quarter, but they outscored Mapleton (11-2) over the first half of the second quarter, taking a (19-7) lead with 3:58 left until halftime on a field goal and free throw by Macy Wade. They then put the game away by gaining a (7-1) advantage over the final 1:41 of the half, Wade scoring five more points.

After going just (1-22) last season, coach Chuck Schmitt had a smile on his face after the game. “We are excited about it. I don’t think Clear Fork has been 2-0 for a while, so we are excited, the girls have worked hard for it, a lot of investment,” he said.

Clear Fork beat Highland (61-34) on Tuesday night.

Mapleton had more turnovers than they did points on Thursday and Schmitt was happy with how they executed their press. “We have been working on that, full court, baseline to baseline, man to man, putting pressure on the ball, pressure on the other girls. There were a few slipups (Thursday) night, but we will take it,” said Schmitt.

Clear Fork scored repeatedly inside the lane, whether on the break or in the half court and built a (52-17) lead with 5:23 to play on Whitney Snavely’s basket and coasted home. “We are trying to get the ball inside. The post girls are getting better with each week. We have come a long way from last year, so we are looking for that balance both with our post people and our perimeter guards,” said Schmitt.

Wade finished the night with nine points, Erika Robinson added eight, Alli Studenmund had seven and Tabi Hamilton and Snavely each chipped in with six. Schmitt likes that balance. “What did we have? Six, eight, 12, six, nine and seven. We can do some shooting when we are on,” he said.

Yet, there are some things that can be improved as well, Schmitt points out free throw shooting and three point accuracy as two of them. “Well, look at this we are 12-22 from the foul line, that can’t happen,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “19 field goals, that’s nice. We missed a lot of threes. We made six in the last game, only two (Thursday) night. If we can keep a team in the 20’s we are playing good defense.”

Clear Fork hosts Lexington in a non-conference game on Tuesday night. They play their first ever Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game at River Valley on December 9.

Published 12/01/17

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Clear Fork has the makings of a very good basketball team this year and they are going to find out quickly on the opening weekend how good they are and where they need to get better.

They play at Lexington on Friday night and at West Salem Northwestern on Saturday night, both are solid programs.

Coach Steven Bechtel says they are going to have to play as hard as they can because that is what it is going to take. “Obviously we are not going to be where we really want to be come January and no team really is, but we are slowly coming along. Friday night we are going to be as ready as we are going to be on that night,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We just talked to the kids about that (Wednesday) about coming out and playing with a high effort because they are going to make early season mistakes and we just have to make sure that we play as solidly and take care of the basketball on offense as we can on Friday night.”

This will be one of the more experienced teams the Colts have fielded in recent years and that is a real positive considering the shorter preseason they have had due to the football playoffs. Bechtel says they haven’t had to teach as much. “We noticed that in practice once the football kids started showing up, some of them just hit the ground running. They just picked up where they left off last year and a lot of the things we are doing are the same. There are a few different wrinkles that we are doing. However, having that experience really helps out with this short preseason,” he said.

Lexington is not unfamiliar to the Colts having played them twice a year until this season. Bechtel says the Minutemen are going to be a tough assignment, like always. “It is going to be a huge challenge. Obviously, they have Cade Stover and they have a lot of guys from that junior class as well as a couple of seniors that round out their lineup. It is going to be a huge challenge for us. Our guys are preparing and we are going to put a game plan together and we will have to go out and execute it really well,” he said.

Northwestern advanced to the division three regional final last season and Bechtel says they are loaded again this year. “It is definitely not an easy weekend. Northwestern traditionally always has a great basketball team over there. Coach Alberts does a phenomenal job. Parker Smith back and he is going to be their number one guy now at the guard position and they have some young guys that they are going to plug in as well. It is going to be a huge weekend for us. The guys are getting kind of anxious to go out there and have it actually matter. It ought to be a great weekend for Colt basketball,” said Bechtel.

Published 11/30/17

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Clear Fork has the potential to enjoy a solid season in boys’ basketball this year, but potential can be a very dangerous word in athletics.

They return almost everyone from last year and have an influx of talent in the freshmen class.

With a 12 week season in football, the basketball team was late in getting eight of their guys, but coach Steven Bechtel says he believes they will survive the late start. “The good thing is we return a lot of guys with a lot of experience and their I.Q. for basketball is pretty high. We have been able to run through a few things and make adjustments along the way during scrimmages. The guys have responded pretty well. We just hope to be able to carry over that same momentum they had during football season,” he said.

Last weekend, the Colts and the Loudonville Redbirds made a special trip to Indiana to scrimmage in the same gym that the movie “Hoosiers” what shot. Bechtel says it was pretty cool. “We went over with Loudonville to play at the “Hoosiers” gymnasium there in Knightstown, Indiana. It was a scrimmage, but for the guys I think it was more about the experience than anything. They had some fun with it,” he told Swankonsports.com during practice on Monday, “A few of the guys shot underhand free throws like they did in the movie. I told them I didn’t really care about that at all. They are never going to play in that gym again, so I think they took full advantage of the situation and I think everybody enjoyed their time.”

There is some very good talent at Clear Fork and Bechtel says they are going to need to play together as a team if they are going to have a successful season. “We have talked about that already. Potentially we could be really good, but on other hand we have to make sure we share the basketball and we play together at all times at both ends of the floor. That will be our biggest obstacle to overcome,” he said.

This year’s freshmen were very successful at the middle school level and Bechtel says they will have an impact this year, it is just a matter of how much. “We have one up on varsity and he is meshing in really well with the guys. Then we have three at the JV level as well. It is just a really solid class and they are out here to work. The guys that work the hardest are going to be able to step in there,” he said.

When it comes to the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, Ontario is a known quantity to Clear Fork and its fans, but Bechtel says overall this is going to be a pretty good basketball league. “Marion Harding won it last year over Buckeye Valley. North Union has some size. I think it is going to be a very, very good league. I think everybody is thinking we are going to go out there and do what that football team and I don’t think it is going to be like that. Every night it is going to be a fight. There are going to be some very good basketball teams and we are going to have to show up every night,” said Bechtel.

Published 11/21/17

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If Clear Fork beats Bellevue on Friday night they will become only the second team in the school’s history to play in a regional final.

The last was in 1989, 28 years ago. That was when the Berlin Wall came down, something today’s kids only know through history books, hit singles were Paula Abdul’s “Straight Up” and “Right Here Waiting” by Richard Marx, okay not everything was that great, and Michael Jordan had yet to win an NBA title. Okay, you want consistency Pete Rose was banned from baseball and he still is and I have the same hair style, just less of it.

Another thing that is consistent is the name Lyon. Jim Lyon played on the ’89 team, his son Bryce plays this year.

“I actually think I get more enjoyment out of watching him play and succeed than I did actually playing them game. I try not to compare what I would do with what they’re doing because of how different the game is. I think I’m more nervous nowadays than I was when I played,” said Jim Lyon.

Current Fredericktown head coach William Hartley played on the ’89 team and when it comes to memories he doesn’t even talk about the playoffs. “Two stick out, beating West Holmes, which finished the season 9-1, for our homecoming game. This gave us the “MAC” championship. Second would be defeating Mansfield Senior at Arlin. That team has (NFL player) Hugh Douglas on it. For some reason we were heavy underdogs going into that game,” said Hartley.

Luke Beal, a member of the 1989 team, and a former head coach at Northmor, Fredericktown, and Brunswick, and the current defensive coordinator at Medina Buckeye, echoes those comments. “For me, the most memorable moment was our win over Mansfield Senior at Arlin Field. It has been a long time, but that is the one game that stands out. They returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, so it seemed like we were in trouble, but we were able to rally back and score and upset win,” he said.

For Lyon, he talks about the Senior High win and the playoffs, but more about the relationships built then and still has today. “Even though it has been 28 years ago there is no short answer. I have such vivid memories of that season from things like the smell of the grass, the smell of the concession stand, the sweaty locker room, the sounds of the fans cheering, to the actual sounds of my teammates and coach’s voices. The obvious answer that most fans would probably give is the success we had that year beating Mansfield Senior at Arlin Field 43-7 on their homecoming night (the first year they combined Malabar and Senior High) going to the playoffs and winning the first round and losing to Versailles 3-0 in the second round. But, to me it was much more than that. Our team back then reminds me so much of this year’s team. I remember how we had true friendship amongst all of the players on and off of the field and understood Colt pride. I remember how the community came together and cheered us on with banners, parades, and signs,” he told Swankonsports.com, “As far as my memory of the team goes we were a tough, strong, physical, focused team that loved to put a helmet on someone (under (assistant) coach (Gary) Beal there was no other way.) I believe we had five or six All-Ohians on the field that year and started 10 seniors that played on both sides of the ball. Myself, Luke Beal, William Hartley, Jason Fraley, and Scott Tollison. My best memories are my great coaches, my great teammates, our team’s success, the community support and keeping the Clear Fork football tradition alive.”

Clear Fork was the top seed in their division four region this year and they were in 1989 too. Hartley doesn’t remember there being a lot of drama when it comes to making the postseason. “There were four teams (in each region.) We would watch for the News Journal on Thursday, which would publish the point updates on that day. We went into the playoffs as the number one seed. I believe we knew we would get in after the Senior High game, which was week eight,” he said.

Clear Fork made the playoffs the first time the year before.

Beal says the ’89 team has something that every coach wants. “That team had a special chemistry. There was a camaraderie and a level of trust that took a group of good athletes and allowed us to become a pretty good team. As a coach, I have always tried to build that type of chemistry with my teams,” he said.

Lyon says the game has changed a lot in almost 30 years and he feels this year’s team is certainly more athletic and they are probably better too… probably. “Even though the game seems to have changed so much since I played with the rules, the speed, and the style of play, the similarities between us are unbelievable! We were definitely a more run it down your throat, smash mouth, step on your throat, stop us if you can kind of team, but other than that we are very similar in the toughness, focus, aggressiveness, determination and physicality. My son Bryce is definitely quicker, more versatile, and smoother than his old man was. The secondary nowadays is only for the terrific athletes. Many more passing teams now which requires different responsibilities and coverages. A complete nightmare for any player that’s not focused. Today’s secondary players must be extremely athletic. That’s why I feel my son is a better player than I was. This team also had a great line and terrific linebackers like us on defense. Our team now has A LOT more weapons than we did. Today’s team speed is amazing. With the athleticism they have now they can run over 200 different plays and formations, where we probably had less than 50. If you would computerize our team to today’s team on Madden NFL football, today’s team would probably win, but they would also have more injuries,” said Lyon.

Clear Fork this season beat Bellevue (20-14) in overtime on week two. They beat Hartley’s Fredericktown team (27-6) on week one, so he knows a lot about them. He says this is what strikes him most. “Their overall team speed, good size on the D-line, and great linebacker play,” he said.

Published 11/10/17

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Clear Fork locks horns with Bellevue in the division four regional semifinals on Friday night at Mansfield Senior’s Arlin Field.

It’s the second meeting this season between the schools. The unbeaten Colts edged Bellevue (20-14) in overtime at their place back on week two of the regular season in early September.

The Colts (11-0), #3 in the final Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, beat Lorain Clearview (44-0) in their opening playoff game last week. This is the first Clear Fork team ever to be (11-0) during a football season.

They got a three and out and score on their first possession last week and coach Dave Carroll says they have been putting some things together on offense the last couple of times out. “I have been really happy with our offensive start and just production throughout the game the last two weeks. We knew we had the potential to put points on the board and put them on the board early and keep right on rolling. We have done that the last two weeks. We are kind of catching up with our defense. Our defense has done a fantastic job all year and held the fort down while we got our act together on offense. We kind of feel like we are clicking on all cylinders right now and obviously it is at the right time,” he said.

Bellevue (8-3) is a lot better on offense than the first time they played Clear Fork. Carroll says that is mainly is because of the return of Treston Francis. “There are a lot of things good about the Redmen. We were fortunate to get that win. You start with (Bryce) Ray, number 22, a 200 pound running back that is very fast. Their quarterback, well they have two quarterbacks, now. Number 11 (Riley Renward) played against us the first time and is a really, really good passer. His main target is the (Dakota) McPeak kid, number 24, a 6’3” receiver that has tremendous ball skills, jumping ability and body position. They have a nice sized offensive line, they are not huge, but they are nice sized. They do a good job with their scheme. Now they have Treston Francis back, who was out with an ankle injury in week two,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “He is their slot receiver and a free safety, but he is also their wildcat quarterback. I would say he will be the fastest kid on the football field on Friday night. He had a lot of yards rushing last week against Pepper Pike Orange. He is just a dynamic player. He is not a real big, physical kid, but if he gets loose he is usually gone. So, we have to contain him and tackle him well and don’t let him get out on the edge and go. They have a lot of weapons, no doubt.”

Both teams have two kids that play quarterback. Carroll says when Francis is in the game you expect the run, but there is still a lot of deception. “I think the main objective is to get him the ball. He will hand off to (Ray) and once in a while he will throw a pass, mostly play action passes. They don’t throw the ball with Francis like they do with (Renward). You pretty much know you better stop the run, but know you have both (Ray) and (Francis.) They will fake to one and run the other and the other one will block. It does add another dimension to their offense. (Renward) will run a little bit. In the game the first time I think he ran it twice. So, they don’t want to run (Renward.) So, this gives them the opportunity to run some option stuff, fake to the back and run the quarterback, and it makes it a little tougher to defend. You do know, the odds are (Francis) is not throwing the football too much when he is in there at quarterback,” said Carroll.

On defense, the Redmen have also made some changes to take away things Clear Fork was able to execute the first time they played. Carroll says their linebackers are in a different spots. “They have adapted a little bit. They have changed a little bit on how they play the perimeter with the three man side and the two man side when you give them empty and trips and so forth. The first time we had a lot of success throwing quick screens and bubble screens out there. We got some pretty nice yards out there with Trevon (Trammell) and (Bryce) Lyon. Since then he has kind of changed the way they line up. They are taking that stuff away from teams a little more then what they did in week two. They have made some adaptions there. They are a 4-3 team and they play zone coverage. They will get into a 3-3 stack once in a while where they will blitz one or two of their guys. It just kind of a change up they throw in there here and there. Ed (Nasonti) has been pretty consistent with that style of defense and his zone coverage. It is just a little bit of rearranging with where they play their outside backers is what I am seeing,” said Carroll.

Published 11/08/17

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At its heart the Clear Fork Valley, made of the twin cities of Bellville and Butler, is a football town.

In the center of the Midwest with a rural character and whether your name was Walker or Doup or Meeks or Hamilton or Brokaw or whatever you grew up playing football in village parks or backyards or school playgrounds. Some of those kids probably dreamed of being NFL players, but first they dreamed of being Colts.

When Bellville and Butler high schools combined to form Clear Fork it was 1963, the time of John Kennedy, the time of Camelot. For the first four years, the Colt football teams under the direction of coach Bill Frazier went 36-2-2, that is a winning percent of 92 percent, pretty impressive to say the least.

Current Clear Fork coach Dave Carroll also played for the Colts, graduating in 1980. “The mid-sixties Colt teams set the standard of excellence for all of us players that came after them. The bar was set very high!” said Carroll.

This year’s team was the first since 1965 to complete a perfect regular season and 52 years in a long time ago. I can tell you that because I was born in May of 1965 and I have a lot of grey hair and a bald spot that seems to get bigger every day.

Swankonsports.com was able to talk to two guys that played on the 1965 team in Bill Worner and Steve Leedy about this year’s team and the one they played on a half a century ago.

Leedy says he made it to two games this season, one of the them being when Sloan Bowman kicked a game winning field goal as time expired to give the Colts a come from behind (23-20) win over Buckeye Valley.

He says these kids never give up. “I was able to get to two games this year (Buckeye Valley and Marion Harding.) I think that this year’s team showed a lot of heart and a neve give up attitude. They might be identified as Clear Fork’s “Kardiac Kids,” said Leedy. That was our course in reference to the 1980 Cleveland Browns, known for the late game heroics. Now, the Browns can’t even beat the clock with a phone call.

There were 80 players on the 1965 team. Worner says they are very proud of what the 2017 Colts have accomplished. “I and all of my teammates are very pleased to have some new members to what has turned into a pretty elite club. Hopefully, we will have more in the years to come,” said Worner.

There have been some close calls over the years, in fact the very next year the Colts were 9-0-1. In 1978, a team Carroll played on was 9-1, their only loss to Loudonville. In 1997, the Colts won their first nine games and lost on week 10 to Loudonville. The 2010 team, which won an undisputed Ohio Cardinal Conference title lost to Sandusky on week one and then ran the table.

Still Worner says it’s hard to believe it has taken 52 years for another perfect regular season. “Back in the beginning, Clear Fork was so successful that we would have not believed it would be 52 years before it would happen again. Congrats to the team and coaches, let’s keep this process going,” said Worner.

In 1965, the Colts were Johnny Appleseed Conference champions, they allowed no more than one score in nine of the 10 games. 3,500 fans gathered as they beat Fredericktown (12-6) on a pair of TD passes from Steve Walker to Dan Jackson. They rallied to down upset minded Crestline (28-24) on a Roger Bowers TD with 1:45 left. They then broke Ontario’s 23 game winning streak on the final week of the season with a (24-8) blitzing the of the Warriors. The Colts rans for 270 yards on the night and Walker scored three times, including a dazzling 94-yard score.

Of course, there were no playoffs then, only the “AP” media poll, which as a member of the media I can tell you nobody has enough intelligence on every team in the state to make an honest vote and that is with today’s technology. Back then it was on reputation. How many state titles has Massillon won since the playoffs began?

What if there had been playoffs, how would that ’65 team have done? “It is difficult to say how we might have done in a playoff. I do remember that we were not expected to have that great of a season by the public. I believe that my teammates had a great deal of heart also,” said Leedy.

Worner adds it’s kind of too bad we didn’t get a chance to find out. “Bob Parker said it well when our team was inducted into the (Clear Fork Valley Athletic) hall of fame, I don’t know if we would have stayed undefeated, but would have loved to have found out,” he said.

Published 11/03/17

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Clear Fork fans know the playoffs, but for their kids it is a new experience.

The Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference winners are making appearance number 13 in the postseason, that is more than just about anybody in North Central Ohio, but is their first playoff game since going two weeks deep in 2010, so none of their current players have tasted it.

Clear Fork (10-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, and the number one seed in their division four region, plays host to Lorain Clearview (9-1) on Friday night.

Coach Dave Carroll is proud of all they have accomplished, but he says it is time to move on. “We said on Saturday it is time for the second season. The first season is over, so now it is 0-0 starting over again. It’s a five game season. Just like the old cliché says one game at a time. It is all eyes, ears and attention on Lorain Clearview,” he said.

Clearview’s program has produced a lot of quality athletes. “The first thing that impressive about their program is they have a guy that is playing for the Dallas Cowboys right now. Anthony (Hitchens,) he played for Iowa. He actually got injured this year for the Cowboys. He is a middle linebacker for them. Then they have a kid from last year’s team that has a full ride to Michigan State. They obviously have some talent that comes through that school,” said Carroll.

It is not that the Clippers can’t throw the ball, but they certainly want to run it. Carroll says they are a power football team. “They love to run the football. They run a lot of two and three back formations. They are in the gun most of the time. They like to run up the gut. They like to run off tackle. They will run outside a little bit. They get most of the yards up inside,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “Their quarterback (Anthony Terry,) we are calling him Cardale Jr. He is 6’4”, 245 pounds. He can throw. He has quite an arm. He does not run the football. In all of the films we have seen he does not run the football at all, even on a scramble. He is a big boy and he can chuck it down the field. They have some speed that can go get the ball. They really like the fade route, but they run some other pass plays as well.”

On defense, the Clippers run on odd front. Carroll says they move around a lot like Ontario did when they played them three weeks ago. “Defensively, they run a “50” or 3-4, whatever you want to call it. They will mix up their coverages, some zone, sometimes man. They remind me a lot of Ontario’s defense. They are very disruptive. They do a lot of blitzing and movement up front, so the offensive linemen have their work cut out for them picking up that movement and picking up the blitzes,” he said.

Clearview won the Patriot League, Stripes Division, this year, but they have not beaten a team with a plus .500 record this season. They are coming off a (46-14) win over Brooklyn.

Carroll says it is clear that Clearview wants to run between the tackles and play smash mouth football and that is something they have not seen a lot of this fall. “Watching film from teams that they play up there. A lot of the teams seem to do very similar things. They like to get a bunch of people in the backfield and pound away. It is from the gun usually, but it is a lot of inside run game. We don’t see a ton of that here. You will see inside zone run and outside zone and those kinds of things out of the spread. It is kind of a mixture of new football and old school football. It’s kind of cool,” said Carroll.

Clearview moves kids around a lot on defense and Carroll thinks that is good coaching. “Defensively, the definitely remind me of Ontario. Ontario was in a “50” front for the most part. They are very quick defensively. They are using them I think in a very intelligent way. They are moving them around. They are blitzing them. They are not huge, they have some big kids, but they are more quick and athletic than they are big and strong. That makes a lot of sense to move them around and blitz and disrupt opponent’s offenses,” he said.

Published 10/31/17

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If they beat Marion Harding at home Friday night, Clear Fork will win its first outright football title since 2010 and have its first perfect regular season since 1965.

They put themselves in that position with an exciting, come from behind, win (20-17) in overtime over Marion Pleasant last week. Trailing (14-0) with just over 4:00 to play Blake Dinsmore completed a pass to Jake Lowe with 4:02 left in the game and the Colts tied it with 1:34 remaining on Dinsmore’s TD pass to Trevon Tramell. After Pleasant missed a 47-yard field goal at the horn and kicked one on their overtime possession, Dinsmore ran another one in to give the Colts the win.

Veteran coach Dave Carroll says his kid never stopped believing. “I was an unbelievable example of believing in your teammates and believing in yourself and having a never say die attitude. I am so proud of the kids for that. I told them after the game that I apologize. I said you guys won that game in spite of me. I over prepared. I probably did some things offensively that put our kids in not the best situation. We did some different things. I kind of had in my mind that it was going to come down to us and Pleasant a long time ago and that is the way it panned out. I started game planning for them about a month ago. We added some things little by little. If had to do it all over again I wouldn’t do it. You would think somebody my age would already know this. Just let our kids do what they do, but I thought Pleasant was that good, and I have that much respect for them, that we need to have a couple of surprises for them, and those things didn’t work out real well,” said Carroll.

He says it in the second half they got back to things they are good at doing. “The game started out weird. They had that 10 minute drive. We jumped off side when we had them third and long and they got it. They had the ball the entire first quarter. We had some screwups offensively that put us in a bad spot and gave them the ball back and before you knew it it was halftime. All of those clichés you talk about as a football coach about never giving up and so forth. They kept saying out on the field that we aren’t losing because we can score 14 points quickly and by golly they were right,” he said.

Clear Fork (9-0,6-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, plays at home against Marion Harding (6-3,4-2) in an “MOAC” game on Friday night. The Presidents beat River Valley (28-21) last week.

Carroll says the Presidents have good talent and good size and will be a tough challenge. “They are a very good football team. They are not very many points away from being undefeated. They lost by 14 to Jonathan Alder, they lost by seven to Pleasant and they lost by three or four points to Buckeye Valley, that’s it. They have some skilled people offensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “They have three tailbacks and they use those guys at wide receiver. Number one is faster than all get out and the quarterback can run it and throw it. They have nice sized kids, they are not huge, huge, like some of the teams we have played, just nice solid looking kids. We have our work cut out for us. You would like to be in a situation right now were it was somebody that wasn’t doing so well this year. These guys are scary they can play football.”

Undefeated regular seasons don’t come around very often in most places. Carroll says a win Friday night would be special. “The biggest thing is when you get to 9-0 you want to go 10-0. The league title, undisputed champions, that would be nice, and going into the playoffs with momentum. There are a lot of things. One of the big things for me, and the kids, and for everybody, is to do something that hasn’t been done in 52 years. We have talked about that a lot since I have been here. This is ridiculous that our community has had to wait around this long for an undefeated season. There is something about that that is pretty special. As a group we aren’t talking about that right now. We are talking about what we have to do to beat Harding. We are keeping the eye on the prize of beating Harding right now. Everything else will take care of itself. We will celebrate those things later on. It is pretty important,” said Carroll.

Published 10/25/17

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Clear Fork and Marion Pleasant match undefeated records Friday night in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference championship game.

The winner gets no less than a share of the conference title.

Oh yeah, both teams are also first in their computer regions.

The Colts (8-0,5-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, overwhelmed Ontario (35-0) last week limiting the Warriors to negative total yards and no first downs.

Coach Dave Carroll says their defense was focused and executed at a high level. “Our defense played really well. I know Ontario is hobbled with a lot of injuries and have been struggling the last few weeks offensively. I feel for them because we have been there before. Their coach is doing a good job with what he has got to work with at the point and time of the season, but our defense played great. They didn’t expect and easy win and take it easy out there playing. That is the sign of a mature group of kids and a great group of young men. I think all coaches try and pound in their player’s heads that is doesn’t matter who you are playing it is how you play. You have to play at the same high level every week if you want to have a really good year and they did that,” said Carroll.

Pleasant (7-0,5-0), #4 in our small school division, beat rival River Valley (27-14) last Friday. They want to feature a power running game with a number of guys carrying the ball and they have done that very well.

Carroll says their offensive line has been the key to their success on offense this year. “I think it starts were with their offensive line. They are one of the better ones, if not the best I have seen all year. It is pretty cool to watch because they are not big. Their biggest kid is 245. The rest of them are 200, 210, they just come off the ball low and quick and they hit you. They have the quick backs that hit the hole right behind them really fast. They pound it. It is old school football. It is what guys in my era grew up on. In today’s world, and I am as guilty as anybody so I’m not making fun, with all this basketball on grass that we all do spreading it out, it is kind of fun to see this style of football where they line up and run it down your throat,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “So, our defense has got their work cut out for them. We are a good run defense. It is going to be a great match-up with our great run defense against their great ruin offense. They choose not to pass it much, but when they do they have completed, this doesn’t count last week’s stats, 18 passes and six of them were for touchdowns. So, a pretty efficient passing game.”

It is likely going to come down to blocking and tackling and ball security like it normally does when very good teams play. Carroll says neither team is going to back down physically. “That might be the most fun thing to watch as a fan because we are physical and they are physical. I don’t think either side is going to back down from that aspect. Our kids have been physical all year. Yes, Clear Fork does have that reputation, but there have been years where we didn’t play physical football, but this isn’t one of them. Our kids they mix it up and they come off the football hard and we like to hit, tackle and block and all of those good things just like their kids do,” said Carroll.

Published 10/19/17

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Clear Fork shares first place in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with Marion Pleasant and they play the Spartans next week.

However, this week they play host to likely their biggest rival now that they are in a new league, the Ontario Warriors.

Clear Fork (7-0,4-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, pounded Galion (41-0) last week.

Coach Dave Carroll was impressed with the way they were improved in pass defense. “Our defense once again did a great job. Up front those guys just continue to get better. It is hard to run on them. What I liked best is we didn’t give up too many passes. I’m not sure what the stats were, but I know Jake Lowe had a heck of a game in the secondary. He knocked down pass after pass. We have been challenging our secondary because we have had some teams that have gotten a little bit of passing on us and a few big plays here and there. We have challenged them if we want to be really good we have to put that to an end. They did a much better job of that on Friday night,” he said.

Ontario (2-5,0-4) has been bitten by the injury bug, including their quarterback, and that has hurt them. They lost (27-0) to River Valley last week.

Carroll says the Warriors still have some kids on offense that can make big plays. “First of all, I feel bad for Cam Todd. I believe he is one of the better quarterbacks in the league and he is only a sophomore. He is just a smooth passer with great footwork and a tremendous runner as well. They have quite a few capable skilled guys. Number 11 (Ethan Pensante) is a heck of a receiver. 36 (Nick Arnold), 8 (Nolan Hatfield), 22 (Tavion Harris), they have some kids that can carry the football. Obviously, the passing game is a little less without Cam in there, he is such an exceptional thrower. They have had two weeks to work on this. Last week, was probably pretty stressful on the coaches and the kids trying to get a new quarterback,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “They used two kids in the game and I have been there before and that is a tough situation. They have another week to figure this out, so we have to be ready for everything and anything. (Arnold) he can run that football. He was their main running back. He is going back and forth from fullback when they are under center to quarterback when they are in the shotgun. He is a load. He is a strong kid, you can tell he has been in the weight room. He is an excellent runner.”

Carroll, who is also the Colts offensive coordinator, says Ontario is quick and aggressive on defense. “A big concern of mine and I have been challenging the offensive line, the entire offense, all week, is their defense is extremely quick and they put a tremendous amount of pressure on you. They blitz a lot. They are going to bring five, six, sometimes seven guys and they are making a lot of plays in the backfield. We have to do a good job of picking up blitzes and protect our quarterback and try and find some opening up there for our backs to get through,” he said.

With Ontario having not won a conference game, Carroll says they might try just about anything, so they have to be ready. “This is the third week in a row. River Valley had dropped some games, Galion had lost some games, and they don’t have anything to lose. They are in all likelihood out of the “MOAC” championship race, but if they can pick us off. We have to be ready everything and anything with reverses, trick plays, halfback passes, come out in all different sets, who knows what. They have nothing to lose, so why not? If we are the caliber that we expire to be we will adapt to it and do a good job,” said Carroll.

Published 10/12/17

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This has been a season like no other for the Clear Fork Lady Colts soccer team and one that include a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference co-title with a win on Wednesday at Marion Harding.

A win gives them a share of the title with Ontario and Buckeye Valley.

The Lady Colts (12-3,4-1) have lost only once in their league and that came to Ontario (3-2) a couple of weeks ago. They beat Buckeye Valley (2-0) in September.

Coach Brittany Bechtel says they have risen to the challenge. “In the “MOAC” there were some good quality teams that we went up against, obviously Ontario and then Buckeye Valley was a trying game for us, it was a very good game. It was different in than the “OCC” where there is a little more challenging teams overall. There is nothing short in the “MOAC” when it comes to how talented some of those teams are. So, we get a little bit of everything,” she said.

That challenge has been made tougher by all of the injuries they have suffered this year. Bechtel says right now they are without five of their planned 11 starters. “I have definitely seen more injuries this year than I have ever seen. In the summer we lost our keeper, Bri Warner. She did play in our first game and then had an “MRI” done where she found out she tore all three ligaments. She had been a starter for three years. We lost a defender that had been starting for four years. She had surgery, she did something to her labrum. We lost our starting center mid for the past three years Mackenzie Thorne, we lost her in the summer as well. We lost Macey Wade, our starting center-midfielder in summer and then we lost her again to an ankle,” she told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We lost Ally Went, a starting forward for the past four years. She has been in and out several times and she is back out with a knee injury. We have five starting varsity players that have put at least three years on our field out right now. To be 12-3 it is not a bad year. We knew coming in we were going to have a lot of depth coming in and that has been paying off. We are getting to the point now where we have to stay healthy and it would be nice to get those other two back before tournament time, I’m just not sure there is enough time.”

Clear Fork plays at Lexington, a team that beat them (3-2) in August, in sectional final match on October 21.

Bechtel says it would be nice to get a little more healthy by then. She says it has kind of been Murphy’s Law for the Lady Colts. “They have kept their heads up and they have focused on one game at a time. People had to step up into starting positions. It seems like whether it is practice or a game it feels like we are losing somebody at some point. It is not a matter of if there is another injury, but who’s is next. Those are just the ones that are really out with end of the season injuries. That doesn’t count ankle sprains and things. We have had a lot of back injuries this year. I have had my starting sweeper out several games. I had our other starting striker out. We have dealt with the death of the father of a player. Our team has been through a lot of adversity this year and adversity shows character. This team to be fighting at the top like they are and dealing with things the way they are they are dealing with a lot of life lessons as well. I’m proud of how resilient they are. They have been really strong and I hope that really feeds into their strength when they really need it,” said Bechtel.

Published 10/11/17

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Clear Fork is six for six this season, but they know things are going to get tougher over the last month of the regular season and that starts this week with Galion.

Last Friday, they rocked River Valley (52-8) in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game.

Clear Fork (6-0,3-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, plays two kids at quarterback and last week Blake Dinsmore ran for two scores and Jared Schaefer ran for one and threw another. Coach Dave Carroll says they have a lot of weapons, ones you notice and some you don’t. “I think we had six different kids score. It is always nice when you get different kids get in the end zone because that is what they get recognition for. Even though they should get recognition for the block that got the kid into the end zone or protecting the quarterback that allowed him to throw the pass,” he said.

Carroll adds they also got big plays from their defense and their special teams units. “I’ll tell you the big thing that happened that allowed us to get such a big lead is we had interceptions, we had punt returns. Our defense and our special teams really set us up nicely several times, so we didn’t have to go real far, not to take anything away from the offense,” he said.

Clear Fork had three scores called back against Buckeye Valley in a (23-20) win, but he says they don’t have as many mistakes last week. “I thought we made some improvements. We were much cleaner as far as the penalties go. I joked with the officials before the game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Sunday evening, “I said we have some kids that run around, especially this number 7 (Dinsmore,) and I am telling you this because I don’t want you to blow the whistle. There are sometimes I am watching him and I say he is done and the next thing you know he is on the other side of the field. He had one those Friday night on a punt return. It was incredible and, of course, we had a hold or a clip. It was hard for the kids because he is running all over and it is a 10, 12 second play for them not to hold or hit a guy in the back.”

He adds that they were able to finish some plays that maybe they weren’t doing at least consistently early in the year. “The offensive line I thought made some improvement. We were cleaner catching the football. We didn’t throw it a whole lot once you got up to a certain point, we kind of shut that down. We got some nice pass plays completed that we were happy with,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork is at Galion (4-2,2-1) on Friday night. The Tigers were belted by Marion Harding (44-21) in an “MOAC” game last Friday. They had beaten River Valley (42-35) the week before.

Carroll says the Tigers have some big play makers in their offensive backfield. “I think you have to start with Harrison Ivy, the quarterback, he is quite an athlete. He is fast and he runs the ball very, very well and he can throw the ball. Then they have a tailback, he is one of the leading rushers, both of those two kids have quite few yards. Number 17 (Takota Chrisman,) their slot receiver is one of the leading receivers in the “MOAC.” So, they have some skilled kids that are pretty dangerous. When you look that their scores they have put some points on the board. 42 two weeks ago against River Valley and early on in the season they scored a bunch of points. They can be dangerous offensively,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork is in first place in its computer region in division four. Carroll says the understand they are going to get every team’s best effort. “That was kind of speech I gave them last Thursday. I told them we are going to get every opponent’s best coaching job, best game plan, and we are going to get their kids best performance. Is that a little bit of pressure? Yeah, I guess it is, but it sure beats the alternative of the last few years when it was here comes Clear Fork and we are going to get these guys. It is a great pressure to have. If you have the bull’s eye on your back you must be doing something right,” he said.

Published 10/02/17

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Clear Fork has won all five games they have played this season, sometimes in dramatic fashion, like last week, and their coach says his kids have the right attitude and that has been key.

They share first place in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference with Marion Pleasant after two weeks of conference play. They travel to River Valley to face the Vikings on Friday night.

Last week, Clear Fork stopped Buckeye Valley on fourth down, converted two fourth downs on their final drive, and Sloan Bowman provided the winning margin with a field goal at the horn and they beat the Barons (23-20) in league play.

Coach Dave Carroll says his kids never gave up. “I was really proud of our guys. They were frustrated, just like we were as a coaching staff, with some of the mistakes we made. We had some touchdowns called back and weren’t moving the ball quite as consistently as we would have liked to due to Buckeye Valley, they are good and big and strong and a very disciplined defense. Our kids just kept fighting and overcame penalty after penalty. That last drive was like a 60, 70 yard drive, but it took us almost 200 yards to get there with all of the flags. Our kids just refused to lose and did a great job and I am really proud of them,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork trailed most the game. They had three scores called back on penalties. Carroll says they had to come together in the end and make some big plays. “I think our kids, and I had the same feeling, it is a feeling inside of you during the course of the game, that we should be on top. We are outplaying them most of the time, but the scoreboard is not showing it, so the only thing that was what was left to do was to make sure the scoreboard showed that and our kids did it. It is one of those things that is hard to explain to people, it is very hard to coach, it is just that competitive, refuse to lose attitude. Some teams have it, some teams don’t. Some teams have that attitude, but don’t have that ability to overcome certain things, so far this team has had both,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “I said the other night it is way more rewarding, not necessarily fun, to win a game like that where you are behind, you are down, and you have to fight and scratch to get the win, than to beat somebody 30-0. We told the kids that after Saturday we are forgetting about that and it was time to move on, but that is going to be a memory that you will have until the day you die. That was just sweet, the whole thing, the way it was done, the student body pouring onto the field.”

Clear Fork (5-0,2-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, first in their division four computer region, plays at River Valley (2-3,0-2) on Friday night. The Vikings lost to Galion (42-35) in a conference game last Friday.

Carroll says River Valley has some home run hitters on offense. “They have some good skilled kids. Their quarterback is like 6’1” and 195 and he will run the ball as well as scramble on the pass plays if you give him the opportunity. They have two running backs, the Spears kid and number 38. Spears is a big kid, 210 pounds, number 38 is smaller, but he is very quick, and runs hard. They have a couple of wideouts that are tall and run really good routes and have good hands. Skill wise they have a bevy of kids that do a really good job. Each week we tell our kids, like last week the leading rusher in the league and the kids rose up to it, they have to rise up again. Now it is more of a multi dimensional offense we will be facing,” he said.

Published 9/28/17

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Clear Fork hosts physical Buckeye Valley in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game on Friday night at the Colt Corral.

It has been an excellent season for the Colts so far as they are unbeaten and ranked first in their division four computer region after four weeks.

Last week, they outscored North Union 24-0 in the second half and earned a (45-13) win on the road in the conference opener.

Coach Dave Carroll says they had to make some adjustments to what North Union was doing. “The first quarter was really good we jumped up 21-0. Then the second quarter got a little sloppy on both sides of the ball. We let them have some pass plays. We had a couple of mistakes there that would have hopefully slowed their passing game down a little bit. There were things we hadn’t seen out of them before, but they are still things that are built into our defensive scheme that if they do this, here is what we do. A valuable lesson learned for all of us. You have to try and rep things you haven’t seen on film just in case,” said Carroll.

After halftime, Carroll says they were able to come out and do some things. “In the second half we came out on fire offensively and rattled off three touchdowns and then early in the fourth we ended up kicking a field goal. We kind of took care of business. We just have to try and not have that bad quarter,” he said.

This year some teams have come out and done some things they hadn’t shown previously. Carroll says he believe Buckeye Valley is going to be true to what they have been doing though. “Against Jonathan Alder we knew they had a prolific quarterback and some really talented receivers. They threw the ball a lot anyway. When we stopped their run it was all pass and we kind of expected that. That is what we were hoping to be able to do. Last week, we weren’t really sure because North Union was a wing-T team and showed hardly any passing whatsoever, so it is kind of hard to prepare for those what ifs when teams start doing that. We are going to be in that same boat again somewhere. Buckeye Valley throws the ball quite a bit. They are kind of like Jonathan Alder they are pretty spit between run and pass. They are going to run number 5, Trent Davies, the kid that is the leading rusher in the league, a million times, then they are going to throw it to their slots and wide outs. Will they come up with some different things? I know by brother, the D-coordinator, is trying to prepare our kids for anything and everything. We have all of their films,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “The more film work you can view and study the more idea who can kind of get on what they could do off of what they already do. I don’t know if Buckeye Valley is the kind of team that would go wholesale change, implement a new offense in a week. I think they do what they do and they are doing it very well. Their back has 750 yards in four games, so I don’t think they are going to do a whole bunch different. We first have to prove that we can slow down that running back. He is very good, probably the best back we have seen so far.”

It looks like a good match-up between Clear Fork (4-0,1-0), #5 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, and Buckeye Valley (3-1,1-0) and a (28-13) winner over River Valley last week.

Buckeye Valley has not allowed more than three scores in a game and Carroll says the Barons are a big, physical defense. “They are big. They have a 290 pound nose guard and the rest of their linemen are nice size. I think three out of their four linebackers are over 200 pounds. They have nice size up there. If we were going to line up and play and in the box game, running dives and stuff up the gut I would be a little concerned. I would have been concerned trying to do that to North Union, because they were big as well. Our game is we are going to spread you out and try and get our fast guys in space and run the perimeter and get the quarterback up in inside if we think we can and things like that. They are big and strong. Hopefully, our speed will help us out and we can out run them a little bit,” said Carroll.

Published 9/21/17

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Clear Fork, unbeaten in non-conference games this year, will travel to North Union to open up play in a new league, the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference, against the Wildcats on Friday night.

Last week, the Colts (3-0,0-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, beat a former “MOAC” member in Jonathan Alder (28-14) to start the year with three straight wins.

Coach Dave Carroll says they did a good job in reducing turnovers, but they still must do a better job catching the ball. “The number one emphasis was no turnovers. After two fumbles and an interception in the Bellevue game we came back last week and didn’t have any turnovers at all. So, that is a big start, a big step. Another emphasis is we have to catch football when it is thrown to us. We had some opportunities, but we dropped some again. We thought we really could have got out in front of those guys. A couple times we had some pass plays that were thrown really well by our quarterbacks and the receivers weren’t able to bring them in. That has been a big point of emphasis the last two weeks and again this week we have got to make those catches. You are skilled guys, bring them in, get the yards, let’s go,” said Carroll.

Defense has been very good for Clear Fork this year. They have not allowed more than two scores in any game. Carroll says they have been solid at every level. “Up front we have some bigger kids up there this year and that is a huge difference. They are stronger kids. They get good push and they are doing a good job of reading their keys and getting off blocks and getting to the ball. Doing a good job of playing with their eyes and finding the football. Of course, that helps out your linebackers and Jacob Bailey and Jay Swainhart are doing a really good job. Our outside backers Bobby Costello and Trevon Trammell are doing a really good job as well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “Our secondary was challenged for the second week in a row with a really good quarterback and a really good receiver. They got some passing yards on us. I have always believed in high school football if you can do a good job of consistently stopping the run and force teams to throw most of the time you have the upper hand and you are probably going to win and that was definitely the case. They went to passing every play, every other play, and that obviously puts stress on your secondary, but they handled it.”

North Union (2-1,0-0) lost the first week to Swanton (13-7,) but the Wildcats have responded with wins over Triad (54-14) and Grandview Heights (35-14) to come in with some momentum,

Carroll says they are big. “They have not given up very many points. They play really good defense. They are big on both sides of the ball. I was shocked when I put the film in for the first time last weekend. Both defensive ends are 6’4”, one weights 260 and the other one in 210. The nose guard was an All-Ohio player last year. I don’t know which side of the ball, he plays both ways, he is 285 pounds. They have nice looking kids across the board,” he said.

Clear Fork has been outstanding this year and stopping the run. Carroll says that is what they expect North Union to do. “One thing we have been pretty good at is stopping the run and they want to run the football. They don’t want to throw very much at all. Last week, I think they only attempted it five times. Now, that is a little misleading because the last couple of weeks they were killing the teams they were playing, so they didn’t really have to throw. Even in week one when it was a close ball game. They don’t want to throw the ball. They are a wing-T team and want to ram it down your throat. They will run it outside with a lot of misdirection, fake here, fake there, and give it to another guy, which we have been pretty good at. Hopefully our kids will need to read their keys against these guys with all of the misdirection and faking if your eyes are in the wrong spot you are going to get fooled and here comes a guy the opposite direction. They will run, run, run, run, run and bam then they throw it and are db’s have to read their keys and not fall asleep with all of the run,” said Carroll.

He says the Colt offense has to be very good at handling the multiple looks that North Union is going to give them on defense. “The thing I am must impressed with them other than their size is their defense. They only have three kids that play both ways. With a smaller school, a little smaller than us, only three kids play both ways. They play good defense. They give you multiple looks, multiple fronts, multiple coverages. The linemen have to be on their game as far as communicating with one another and adjusting their blocking scheme, their blocking rules, and following their rules based on what front they give you and be able to pick up blitzes and so forth. Hopefully our speed can get lose. We have a lot speed and if they can open up some holes we are usually okay there,” added Carroll.

Published 9/15/17

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Clear Fork put together a thrilling overtime win against a very good Bellevue team last week and now they must face another strong opponent as they host Jonathan Alder in non-conference play.

Clear Fork scored with just over 2:00 to play last week on a TD run by quarterback Blake Dinsmore and they scored in overtime when Trevon Trammell scored on a running play around the end. Bellevue appeared to be ready to at least tie the score, but the ball was snapped over the quarterback’s head and the Colts hung on (20-14) for the win.

Coach Dave Carroll says the kids are putting in great effort and they are executing. “Our kids played really hard. We talk about not playing perfect, but giving perfect effort and we are getting closer and closer to that pretty consistently. The thing now is we have to move on. It is amazing how many tags, phone calls, stuff you see on Facebook, congratulating us and all of the pats on the back. That is great and we greatly appreciate that and I am sure the kids have been getting the same thing. There is one group that doesn’t really care and that is Jonathan Alder. We have to get back to work and prepare like we did last week and we will celebrate that victory after the season is over,” said Carroll.

He says they have to be careful about over confidence after winning their first two games. “You can’t ever think that you have arrived. It is only week three and we have a lot of improving to do. We were fortunate to turn the ball over twice like we did against Bellevue and still win. We have to quit the fumbling stuff. The one we were in the red zone I believe or close to it and getting ready to score and the other one we were around mid-field, but we were moving the ball. So, we have got to hold on to that football. We got better on the penalty front than we did against Fredericktown. We made some improvements there. We have to hold onto the ball that is the number priority. We have to keep getting better in all phases of the game,” said Carroll.

Jonathan Alder (2-0) has wins over Marysville (35-32) and Marion Harding (21-7) in their first two games of the year. They won the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference red division last year, but are no longer part of that league. This is a non-conference game.

Carroll says they have a fine football tradition at Jonathan Alder. “Number one they have a great tradition. Some of us older guys remember Donnie Nickey that played for the Buckeyes and played in the NFL. He is a Jonathan Alder graduate. When I was at Danville we played them and they were good back then and they have kind of continued that through the years,” he said.

This year’s Pioneers have real good talent again with an excellent running back and Carroll says their quarterback is good at avoiding a bad play. “They have a real good tailback. He is back from last year. He is about a 185 pounder with extremely quick feet and runs hard. They want to pound him off tackle, and lead play and counter play and an “Iso” play. Their quarterback wasn’t going to play because he has a scholarship to play baseball at Marshall and he didn’t want to risk getting hurt, but he did decide to play and he has a nice arm. He can run, but they really don’t run him,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “What I believe he does best is he extends the pass play by scrambling around and feeling the heat and then setting up and throwing it. They have some nice receivers, number 13, is probably their go to guy that has caught the most balls the first few games. He is kind of a tall kid that has decent speed that is a good athlete.”

Carroll says Jonathan Alder does a lot of the same things on offense that Bellevue did last week. “They remind you schematically a lot of Bellevue. They line up with a stacked “H-back” that is a lead blocker and he will go out for passes. They run a little shovel pass underneath for him that is a good play for them. They are similar in what they do,” he said.

On defense, Carroll says they are solid too and can run down plays with their speed. “Defensively they are a four man front, a 4-4 or 4-3 defense. They get to the ball. You can tell their kids have been in the weight room, they are not overly huge, not quite as big as Bellevue was, but just nice looking kids and they can run, so they have a pretty quick defense,” said Carroll.

Published 9/05/17

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Clear Fork plays host to Bellevue in the Hall of Fame Classic on Friday night at the Colt Corral in non-conference action and they have to be much better on offense if a win is in the balance.

In their opening game the Colts beat Fredericktown (27-6) scoring twice on kick returns, once on the second half kickoff and a second on a fourth quarter punt return.

Coach Dave Carroll says they played very on defense and very poorly on the offense against Fredericktown. “I am extremely pleased with our defense. We pretty much shut them down to nothing other than that pass play they got on our JV’s there at the end. The special teams scored two touchdowns. The returners did a great job and our blockers setting up the wall on the punt return and the wedge on the kickoff return,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Offensively as equally disappointed. We have to clean a lot of things up. We can’t have all of those penalties, a lot of them were just those stupid penalties as coaches call them, illegal motion, substitution issues. We were trying to do some different things offensively and that might have contributed to some of the chaos. We have to be a little more disciplined, a lot more disciplined, not commit those penalties. What is unacceptable no matter what you are doing offensively we had four turnovers. We had two picks and two fumbles, that just can’t happen. We are working on that.”

The good thing for the Colts is their mistakes are fixable. Carroll says that is what they must do this week in practice. “You can’t make kids bigger or faster or more talented or experienced from one week to the next, but we can definitely button up some of those mistakes that we made. We have been very good at not doing those things in the three scrimmages. That is where you are surprised, of course, in a disappointed way and now it counts, now we are keeping score. That is when you want to have the tightest focus and make the least mistakes. When you can get away with a win and we dominated on the defensive side of the ball and still not play well offensively and cough the ball up four times. There are some great lessons to be learned there. If you go out there and wipe them off the field you might be a little more laxed this week,” said Carroll.

Clear Fork and Bellevue both have solid histories in football and have played four times over the last 10 years. Carroll says he has great respect for Bellevue and its coach Ed Nasonti. “We played them my first four years here. We beat them pretty good the first two years and they got us pretty good the last two years. They were on the top of a run the fourth time we played them they ended up being state runner up lost to Akron St. Vincent-St.Mary and had the Santoro kid at quarterback and they were loaded. It was a good series. They have a very good tradition. There is good football up there around the lake in the “SBC.” They are a traditional playoff team year in and year out. Coach Nasonti is a tremendous coach. He played there and he has coached there for a long, long time. They have an established program,” said Carroll.

Last week, Bellevue scored on a Bryce Ray TD run with 2:54 left in the game and the Redmen beat Canton Central Catholic, the defending division four state champions, (21-17) last week in their home opener. Carroll says the Redmen don’t make mistakes. “What I’m most impressed with Bellevue is their discipline. I don’t believe they had one penalty. We could not find one penalty in their first game. They are a physical football team. They run to the football. They tackle really, really well. They don’t do things to hurt themselves,” he said.

Published 8/31/17

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Kevin Gower, one of the great fullbacks in Clear Fork football history, will be inducted Saturday night into the Clear Fork Valley Athletic Hall of Fame.

Gower played varsity football at Clear Fork from 1984 through 1986. He was a two-time All-Ohio selection and ran for 3,033 yards in his career.

He currently lives in Plain City, Ohio, northwest of Columbus, and works in the insurance industry,

He says football was in his blood. “It is a great honor to be recognized as one of the beast football players to come through Clear Fork. When you start playing football in the fifth and sixth grade you really don’t know what you are getting yourself into. My brothers played for Clear Fork and I kind of followed in their footsteps,” he said.

At least once in his career Gower carried the ball 20 straight times. Not sure if the term had been invented yet, but it was definitely smash mouth football in the valley. “It was kind of an old school, Big Ten, kind of football. We kind of lined up in the “I” or the Wing-T and you knew you were going to run the ball. We probably ran the ball 75 to 80 percent of the time. They stacked the box and they knew what you were going to do. You just hoped to get three, four, five yards at a time. It was kind of the way it was,” said Gower.

When you have a run based offense Gower says the running backs get the glory, but it is really the guys on the offensive end that deserve the credit and that was certainly true in his case. “I have to give credit to all of the guys I played with they were really talented. They made the holes that I had to kind of sneak through sometimes. Give all of the credit to the linemen they worked really hard,” he said.

Weight training is all of the rage know in all high school sports, not just football, but in the early to mid-80’s it just starting in the valley. Gower says his class was sort of on the ground floor and he thought is a big plus for the program. “The kids today are doing 12 months out of the year. As I recall my freshmen year we weren’t doing any weight training, but it was kind of hitting the colleges and was starting to get down into the high schools. Starting my sophomore year (head coach) Tom Sargent and some of coaches got some weights, I don’t know where they got them. They put them in the theater of the high school and it was kind of first year of weight lifting. I don’t think anybody really knew what they were doing. They got some benches, they got a squat rack and they had some old free weights. We just went in there three nights a week and we kind of learned as we went,” said Gower.

Gower ran for 268 yards in a game for the Colts. He went on to play football at Capital University in Bexley on the east side of Columbus.

He says is he proud to be a Clear Fork Colt. “They started pee wee football and they taught us from the ground up. In the fifth and sixth grade, an all the way through junior high they did a good job of teaching us football. One of the things I’m really proud of when I got into the working world and started traveling around the state is people kind of know who Clear Fork is. We are kind of known for a rough hardnosed football player,” said Gauer.

They say there is really nothing like the first time a school wins a district title.

For Clear Fork that was March of 1978 when the boys’ basketball team won the Class “AA” district title at Ashland University and advanced to the regional tournament.

The team that includes Rocky Black, Dave Jung, Kevin Weikle, Steve Studenmund, Jay Guth, John Rinehardt, Bruce Harter, Jeff Norris, Jay Brokaw, Chuck Golden and Doug Ute, will be inducted Saturday night into the Clear Fork Valley Athletic Hall of Fame. The ceremony, which will also include the induction of 80’s football player Kevin Gower and Earl Fry, a football player in the mid 1950’s at Bellville High School, will begin at 6 PM at the high school.

Unfortunately Terry Gordon, the head coach of the Colts, will not be in attendance. He passed away in 2006. Pat Durham, then the junior varsity coach at Clear Fork at the time, will introduce the team on Saturday night.

To a man the players believe Gordon was a major reason for their success. “The first thing I think about is Terry Gordon. He was such a dynamic figure and in my opinion had a tremendous amount to do with the success that we had. I really think he was a big reason for the success we had from the 75-76 group through 79-80, which would have been Doug’s senior year. I really think that was a really good period of basketball at Clear Fork. During that time we were in the district four of the five years and won it once. You can talk about kids and players and all of that, but at the end of the day you just have to give coach Gordon a lot of credit for putting that program in place. Pat Durham was part of that as well. He was longtime JV coach and most of us played for him,” said Guth,

Guth is a highly regarded doctor in the greater Mansfield area and also serves as an assistant basketball coach at Lexington High School. He was an all-district selection as a junior in 1977-78.

Doug Ute, the only sophomore on the team, was its leading scorer (15.6 ppg) and would become the Colts’ first All-Ohio selection. He is currently the Superintendent of the Newark City Schools. He says Gordon was a great motivator. “The relationship that coach (Gordon) had with his players, and with being involved in education there is always someone that you can point back to that helped change your life. You felt like you meant something to him and he was highly invested in Clear Fork, not just in athletics, but the Clear Fork School District in terms of believing in it not only as a basketball coach, but a classroom teacher. He cared about you and you knew that. He put us kids in front of him. He could take a group of people and put a purpose with them and set some goals,” said Ute.

Ute and Guth were the team’s leading scorers that year and Golden, a leading business man in the valley and former booster club president, says everybody knew their role. “We had a good mixture of guys. We were a pretty tall team that year, we were 6’4”, 6’5” across the top four guys. We played well together. Doug (Ute) and Jay (Guth) pretty much carried the team and everyone filled in and did their roles throughout the game,” said Golden.

Black, the Deputy Superintendent of the Ohio Department of Commerce, and one of three seniors on the 77-78 team, says they had some scorers, but he thinks the difference a lot of times was their ability to defend as a team. “I think we all had a singularity in purpose and I think we had a really ferocious defense. I think we were focused on defense as much as we had good shooting. We had the best defense that we could possibly have, especially when we pressed,” he told Swankonsports.com.

The team finished 14-4 in the regular season and then beat Colonel Crawford (75-51) and Mansfield Malabar (57-56) in sectional tournament games played at Ashland High School advancing them to the district level.

Three of the team’s four regular season losses were by one point to Margaretta (67-66,) Lexington (67-66) in overtime and Shelby (54-53) and Guth believes the tough regular season schedule was a plus come tournament time. “Coach Gordon really upgraded our schedule. We started playing Mansfield Senior and that’s back when they were big. We played Madison. We played Coshocton. He was looking for competition. I think when we played Willard and Wynford we knew they were good programs, but I don’t think we were in awe of them in any way. I think we went into those games expecting to win. I think we were well prepared for the challenges. I think everything was geared not necessarily to beat the weakest teams on our schedule, but beat the teams at the top of our schedule,” said Guth.

The Colts claimed regular season wins over Malabar (67-61) in overtime, Madison (50-49) and Mansfield Senior (60-59) that season.

Ute, who led Buckeye Central to the regional tournament as a coach, says he didn’t feel the Colts were underdogs in that district tournament. He says they were confident. “I didn’t feel like we were an underdog. We played in our regular season schedule schools that were definitely equal to them. I think we really felt like we had a good team and we could beat anybody. We played within our system and played hard. Our coaching staff was fantastic and they had us believing that we could play with anybody,” said Ute.

The Colts beat Willard (65-52) in the district semi final played March 1, 1978 at Kates Gym at Ashland University and followed that up two days later with a (63-55) win over Wynford.

Golden again points out the leadership of Gordon and says the team had outstanding chemistry. “Everybody got along and everybody worked hard. Also, everybody knew who was in charge of that team and that’s Terry Gordon. Who stood out on the basketball floor or the classroom. He got your attention right away as soon as you approached the basketball floor,” he said.

Sometimes egos can get in the way, even with good teams, and Guth says he and Ute and still very good friends. Doug coached their sons on an “AAU” basketball team. He says that was the case when they were in high school too despite claims to the contrary. “I think when Doug and I played together there was some sense in the community maybe there was some friction, which was never the case. Doug and I have always felt highly of each other and supported each other throughout our careers,” said Guth.

Black, one of the captains of the team, says they had only one goal. “There was absolutely no drama. It was just very, very smooth. We had very similar personalities. They all wanted to win. That is why it worked as well as it did,” he said.

Clear Fork begins its football season on Friday night with a visit to longtime rival Fredericktown in a rivalry that dates back to the 1960’s or before.

The final result of last week’s preview scrimmage with Madison was heavily in favor of the Colts, but coach Dave Carroll did not like his kid’s mental approach to the game, especially early, and he says that can not happen this week. “The kids have worked very hard and we have some nice athletes. They are very hungry to get started with real games instead of scrimmages and practice. Hopefully we learned a little bit from last Thursday in our preview. I overheard some of them chitchatting in some down time about what they were going to do to their opponent last Thursday before the scrimmage and we went up there in the first quarter and we didn’t do anything to anybody. Thank goodness we woke up and then we exploded, but when you overlook or underestimate an opponent bad things happen to you,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “We tell our kids it doesn’t matter the whole season who you are playing it is about how you play and how you play as a team not making mistakes. You can’t worry about the scoreboard, you can’t worry about your opponent, it is about what you do in your preparation and in your play. Hopefully, they learned a little because we stunk in the first quarter.”

In a 180 from the last couple of years Clear Fork is very experienced this season, but Carroll says they are still going to be a little nervous on Friday night, at least he hopes so. “I don’t think there is a kid that we are putting on the field that hasn’t been a starter at least one year, a lot of them for two and three years, and Bailey for four years. Hopefully they have a little bit of the butterflies. I always say when I am not feeling a little nervous and I am old as the hills and when I am not getting nervous and excited and all of that on Friday nights it is time to quit. I think there is still going to be some of that. It is not going to be all my gosh what is going to happen? They know that,” he said.

Clear Fork crushed Fredericktown (42-7) last year, but the Freddies are going to be better. Carroll says former Clear Fork player William Hartley, the Fredericktown head coach, is going to have some things up his sleeve. “It is on their home field. It’s a rival game. You know opening week. They are going to jacked up. This is a big game for them. This is a big game for us. It’s that rival that goes back years and years to Butler and Bellville days. Will Hartley, I can’t say enough about him watching him as a head coach the last several years. He is a former Clear Fork Colt, but he does a fantastic job. He prepares his kids. His kids are disciplined. They do things right. Every year he is pretty good at having some wrinkles for us, something we haven’t seen. He is hiding some stuff, we know he is. We are trying to throw stuff at our kids to get them prepared for anything and everything. He always has some very good adjustments and wrinkles we haven’t seen. So, it is going to be a dandy,” said Carroll.

Published 8/24/17

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It was just their first test against another opponent and it didn’t count for anything in terms of wins and losses, but Clear Fork looked pretty strong against a good opponent in a scrimmage on Tuesday night.

The Colts dominated Defiance Tinora, a playoff team from a year ago, in a scrimmage at the “Colt Corral.”

Coach Dave Carroll says they were able to get a lot of work in with a number of players and they did some really good things on both sides of the football against the Rams. “We got in a lot of good work. A lot of kids got reps. We were able to get our ones a lot of reps, but in the varsity part of the scrimmage we also got a lot of our twos in, so we get to see them on film against a good varsity football team. Film tells you so much than what you can see with your eyes. The thing I like, and what we kind of thought going in, we have a lot of kids that can do things with the ball,” he told Swankonsports.com after the scrimmage, “Both of our quarterbacks played really well and all of our skilled kids either ran or caught the ball well for the must part. That is the hardest thing to see, but it looked like the offensive line was opening up some pretty good holes for us. I don’t think we let them score in the varsity part of it. Anytime you get a shutout.”

Both Jared Schaefer and Blake Dinsmore saw time at quarterback for the Colts.

Yes, there were a lot good things, but things are far from perfect and Carroll says they certainly gave things to work on this week. “There are some things we have to shore up. A couple of times they got receivers behind us. They run, run, run, and then they throw a deep play action pass on you. It’s self discipline and reading your keys and being where you are supposed to be. A couple of times I thought our tackling was a little shotty, not wrapping up or leaving our feet. These are all fundamental things that we have to be really good at,” he said.

Clear Fork plays Loudonville and Lexington in their next tune up on Saturday. Their preview is against Mansfield Madison on August 18. They open the season at Fredericktown.

Carroll thinks he has a good group that is willing to work hard and get better as a team. “Overall they are a good group of kids that are working hard and having fun. It was a pretty good performance. They were 7-3 and got in the playoffs last year and have everybody back. They are expecting to do big things this year. It is back to work (Wednesday). Back to two a days,” he said.

Carroll says no matter how good you look on one night you have to know you can get better. “I don’t know how many times we scored. We scored quite a bit. We just have to stay calm. You can’t think we have arrived or anything like that at this point and time. You just have to keep fighting and keep getting better and see how far we can take each individual kid and collectively as a team and see how good we can be,” he said.

Published 8/09/17

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Clear Fork begins play in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference this fall and they will field a team with both experience and talent on both sides of the ball.

Coach Dave Carroll says they have good numbers in all classes and he has seen some good things from a lot of the players this summer and during the first week in camp. “Well we are pretty excited. We have quite a few kids out. We are up to 60. What is real nice about it is if we had a game today there wouldn’t be anybody on the field for the varsity game that wasn’t a junior or senior. So, our varsity group is the upperclassmen that is as it should be. The last several years we have had to play some freshmen and sophomores and in the “OCC” or any league it doesn’t work out real well,” he told Swankonsports.com after practice on Friday, “We have a real solid JV group, the middle group, and they are still fighting for jobs. We have a really good freshmen group. A lot of nice sized lineman and have some good backs and a very good quarterback. So, we are excited. We have everything in because these guys have been here over the summer. We have been to camps and seven on sevens. Usually at this point you are still putting in base plays. We’ve got base plays, trick plays, all our passing game, the whole nine yards. We are pretty excited they are a fun group to coach.”

In July, Clear Fork, and a lot of schools, participate in seven on seven competitions, and Carroll says they looked good despite not having all of their guys. “In some of those seven on sevens we did not have some of our top players because of either and injury or we had one player that tragically his brother was in an accident and passed, but other guys stepped up and got some reps. We had a nice summer,” he said.

Clear Fork plays at Fredericktown in their first game, hosts Bellevue on “Hall of Fame Weekend” and then hosts Jonathan Alder, They play their first game as a member of the “MOAC” at North Union on week four.

Carroll says they have a lot of offensive weapons, but they have some kids that can play on defense too and they have experience. “We have quite few kids that started in the past. Jacob Bailey this will be his fourth year being a starter, he is an inside linebacker. Kids like Jake Lowe, Bryce Lyon, and Bobby Costello. He didn’t start for us, but he started for Madison the last two years at corner Blake Dinsmore. He moved back to Clear Fork, that is where he is from originally. He took a two year hiatus up there for the Rams and he is back at Clear Fork. He is an awful good player,” he said.

Published 8/04/17

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