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Seneca East Tigers/Northern 10 Athletic Conference News

Seneca East Sprints Past Crestview

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          If the first half was an ugly duckling, the second half was clearly a beautiful swan for Seneca East on Wednesday night as they rallied to beat Crestview (65-48) in a division VI district semifinal.

          The will play Van Buren for a district title on Friday night at Liberty-Benton High School.

          They used an (18-2) run in the final 6:57 seconds of the third quarter to make a 13-point deficit (37-24) into a (46-39) lead after three.

          They continued that surge in the final quarter as they began the final stanza with a (10-2) run to establish control of the game at (56-42) with 3:32 left after a Landon Hicks basket.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they came out the second half and were more aggressive in their zone.  “We made some defensive adjustments.  They were comfortable in the first half.  Their role players play really well.  You have got to worry about Goon and Wells and Spoerr.  Then we turned the page in the second half and then our role players played really well.   We made some adjustments defensively because they were a little too comfortable for my liking the first half,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We had some defensive adjustments that the kids implemented that really helped out.  Again, I just told our seniors you guys have got two more quarters and this could be the end your season.  Brady Bloom if your open pull it.  Don’t go out and be hesitant.  Him and Landon Hicks stepping up and then obviously Luke (Mason), you never tell him to bring it.  So, I'm just happy for the guys, it’s been a special group.”

          Crestview coach Ben McClay says they were not able to respond to the Tigers run.  “I give Seneca East a lot of credit.  We were up like 12 in the third and looking pretty good and they went on a big run and made some adjustments.  I give those kids a lot of credit they played really hard for 32 minutes.  Unfortunately, we just couldn't withstand that run.  I thought our kids had a nice season.  We gave a really good effort out there,” he said.

          McClay says they were handling the Tigers half court trap and that led to turnovers and many layups for the Tigers.  “I saw a lot of us just struggling against their traps in that zone.  The other thing I saw was we were missing a lot of shots that maybe we were making that first quarter and they were knocking in shots.  The name of the game is basketball and unfortunately we missed the shot that would have put us up 15 and they just came out swinging,” said McClay.

          Feasting on those turnovers, the Tigers (18-6) were able to convert a lot of those turnovers into layups.  “Crestview was taking advantage of our mistakes.  If we get a couple stops, let's get out and run.  So, I think they took that to heart.  We were a little careless with the basketball that led to some easy baskets.  I said that's not what we've been talking about, so the guys took pride in what they were doing in the second half and kind of flipped the script,” he said.

          Seneca East’s all-time leading scorer Luke Mason finished with 15 points, but six of them came on a 6-6 performance from the free throw line as the Tigers were putting the game on ice in the final two minutes.

          Langhurst says his is a leader that always does what is good for the team.  “The same thing against Mansfield Christian.  He scores 15 points in the first half and they go box and one and he doesn't score the second half.  That's been the beautiful thing about this group is whether we're telling a guy this is your role they've been doing that.  They're buying in, but then also they're expanding their role over the season and getting better.  That's what’s the beautiful thing about coaching and seeing these young men kind of blossoming in their roles,” said Langhurst.

          Hicks had 17 to lead the Tigers.  Freshman Jaron Depinet added 16.  Andrew Spoerr led the Cougars (13-11) with 16.

          Crestview’s leading scorer Karter Goon was called for two charging violations with 60 seconds in the late third and early fourth quarter with the game still in question.

          Langhurst says that was big for them.  “That was a big key was Goon getting that foul.  We just know when he gets downhill.  We've been a team that takes charges.  We chart it.  We make sure guys are recognized for that.  That was a big play and making sure he had four fouls.  Then you have got to go to your bench, so that was obviously a turning point for us.  With the defensive adjustments we made it was just enough for us to keep strangling them,” he said.

Published 3/05/26

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Seneca East Must Make Clutch Plays

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          Seneca East takes on Crestview in a division VI district semifinal at Willard High School on Wednesday night.

          The Tigers lost to Crestview in a district semifinal last year.

          Last Friday, the Tigers (17-6) crushed Mansfield Christian (67-32) in a sectional final.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they played with a lot of energy in that game.  “It was a total team effort.  Luke (Mason) got us off to a good start there and then our role players seem to be throwing everything in.  So, it's nice to get off to a good start and our guys brought a lot of energy and playing at home probably played a factor, but yeah just overall our performance was a was a positive one,” he said.

          Crestview (13-10) downed New London (53-41) to advance to the district.

          Langhurst says they have good length and athleticism.  “It's going to be a tough out for sure, they're pretty dynamic.  They have got a three headed monster with Goon, Wells and Spore,” he told Swankonsports.com, “They're athletic, high skill level, so we'll have our hands full.  Ben (McClay) has done a nice job of leading into those guys.  They do a good job mixing up things defensively and like I said they're pretty dynamic offensively.  So, we'll have our hands full see if we can do and make things harder for them.”

          It’s tournament basketball and Langhurst says they must handle the ball and make the plays down the stretch to get the win.  “We're just going to have to value the basketball they are long defensively.  Defensively, we have to make them earn it.  If we can kind of control it offensively and get good shots and then get back defensively set up our defense up and make them earn it in the half court.  I kind of like us keeping it close in the fourth quarter,” he said.

Published 3/04/26

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Seneca East Stressing Defense

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          Seneca East hosts Mansfield Christian in a sectional final in division VI on Friday night.

          The Tigers (16-6) fell to Northern 10 Athletic Conference champion Colonel Crawford (61-48) in their final regular season game last Friday.

          Anthony Langhurst, the “N10” coach of the year, says he was exited by how well they played in that game.  “I was really happy with our effort.  Colonel Crawford kind of brought the best out of our guys.  A lot of factors went into it, I think Crawford was on the tail end of a long stretch of games, so we kind of caught them on a night where their legs probably weren't there. Our guys played really tough.  We had mini cheer, plus with Crawford, the crowd they bring, there's really great atmosphere.  The guys fed off that yeah.  We were just there.  Crawford is a great team.  They make some plays there again and that's kind of the difference in the game, but I was happy with our overall performance,” said Langhurst.

          It is the second time in three years Langhurst has been so honored by his fellow coaches.

          Mansfield Christian (12-10) comes out of the Mid-Buckeye Conference, where they finished second in the league behind Kidron Central Christian.

          Langhurst says Mansfield Christian can do a lot of things on offense.  “You just look at everybody in our district.  Everybody underneath Crawford I think they think they have an opportunity to beat that team they're up against.  This is no different.  They're to me a scary team.  Josiah (Schleusener) is just a good athlete, tough box out he's really good finishing around the basket,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “With our zone, we have got to worry about guys like Cyphers and Morrow.  Those guys can really get hot and fill it up.  So, it's one of the things where we’re just going to have to communicate defensively, locate their guys.  When they throw different looks at us, I'm sure they'll try to do their best to take Luke (Mason) away.  So, one of the things where role players have to step up and our stars are going to have to do their thing.  It should be a good match up.”

          Luke Mason is the all-time leading scorer at Seneca East and Langhurst says they need to find ways to get him shots.  “We knew that going in that was a game plan.  He probably gets sick of it and just getting dogged the whole time.  He's used to it.  Our guys kind of recognize we have got to get it to him.  If he’s not open, we have got to find ways to get him open.  It's not going to be any different than every other game we played this year.  We're not worried about him stepping his game up.  He's been a rock for us this whole year.  He's going to bring his game, so hopefully like he's been doing the whole year just elevate everybody else around him,” said Langhurst.

Published 2/27/26

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Seneca East Looking Forward to Friday

          Seneca East hosts Northern 10 Athletic Conference champion Colonel Crawford in a conference game on Friday night.

          The Tigers, in third place in the league, downed Buckeye Central (52-40) last Friday in an “N10” game.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they made some good adjustments.  “It was their senior night, so they were playing with a bunch of energy, a lot of emotion.  We had just went through the same thing at our place and got a good win against Arcadia.  So, we knew they'd be up for it, but we just had to kind of buckle down a little bit and make some halftime adjustments there defensively.  Offensively, get out and run a little bit make their bigs get down the floor.  So, happy with the adjustments and kind of happy the way the kids responded,” he said.

          Seneca East (16-5,10-3) hosts Colonel Crawford (18-2,13-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles lost (57-53) in overtime to Fredericktown on Tuesday night.

          Langhurst says Crawford will be ready to play on Friday night.  “I don't think it's going to hurt their confidence too much.  If anything, they'll be more fired up.  You're going to get the Crawford team that you know you're always going to get.  It'll be a nice challenge for our guys with the with the tournament right around the corner,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night.  “Just try to put some good possessions.  Just let the guys know if you make good plays it's probably the best team on the schedule.  So, that's kind of the mindset we're going to be taking into it.”

          Next Friday, the Tigers will host Mansfield Christian in a sectional final in division VI. 

          Langhurst says it’s great to have another home game.  “There wasn't a whole lot we could do.  We just wanted to kind of stay away from Crawford, that was a no brainer and the kind of chips fell the way they did.  We feel fortunate that the seniors get another home game front of our fans.  Give our fans another chance to see them on their home floor.  Just getting started gathering some information on Mansfield Christian.  They're kind of long and athletic, have bigs and guys that can shoot it.  So, we'll take a deep dive on them after the game on Friday night,” said Langhurst.

Published 2/18/26

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Seneca East Ready for Buckeye Central

          Seneca East is on the road at Buckeye Central in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          This week, the Tigers have a (58-53) loss to Monroeville on Monday and a (77-58) win at home over Arcadia on Wednesday.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they learned some positive things form both games.  “Those were actually two really good games for us.  At Monroeville, they have got a really good team.  Physical and just kind of prepared our guys for what tournament basketball is going to look like.  Teams are strong and physical and you don't get a lot of bumps and those kind of call from the referees.  That really helped us.  We just were a couple plays away from maybe turning to tide in that game.  Kind of proud, Arcadia has a nice team with a good record.  Coach (Jordan) Benson does nice job.  It was senior night and we kind of rode a little bit of emotion there and that kind of helped us get over the hump against those guys,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (15-5,9-3) plays at Buckeye Central (2-15,2-9) on Friday night.  The Bucks lost (67-29) to “N10” leader Colonel Crawford on Tuesday night.

          It was Seneca East that won the first matchup (52-37) on January 3.

          Langhurst says they have been devastated by injuries.  “In small schools like us you take even one starter out of the lineup you might be hurt, but they've had a couple injuries, they had a move out, so that’ two, three starters.  So, you can tell with a team that size in the area it really hurt them.  Still (Hunter) Caudill is good.  They mixed in zone with some big dudes.  They played Mohawk kind of tough a couple games ago,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We'll be ready for them.  It's their senior night, so we know what that did for our team, so it’ll be one of those things where we'll be ready for them.”

          Langhurst says a big goal is to control Hunter Caudill (17.2 ppg) on Friday.  “I was referencing that Mohawk game.  Mohawk hits some shots early and then the zone kind of kept Buckeye Central within striking distance.  Caudill can get hot hits a couple threes in a row and next thing you know they’re down one possession with the basketball.  It’s one of those things were we have got to locate him..  Luckily, he's kind of a lot like Stoner from Arcadia.  He's good at handling the basketball, really good shooter.  So, I thought we did a good job of locating him at times, so that kind of was a nice precursor for what we're going to see (Friday) night,” he said.

Published 2/013/26

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Seneca East Has to Get to Shooters

          Seneca East, the third place team in the “N10”, is at Upper Sandusky Friday night for a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          On Saturday night, they fell (52-43) to second place Carey.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they learned some things about themselves.  “We'd like to play a little bit better, but that type of an environment with a physical team.  I just told the guys afterwards it's going to be a good learning experience for us and hopefully something we can take some things and clean up some things and hopefully it will make us a stronger team when the tournament rolls around,” he said.

          Seneca East (13-4,8-3) is at Upper Sandusky (7-11,6-5) on Friday night.  Upper lost to first place Colonel Crawford for the second time in a week (57-38) on Tuesday.

          The Tigers won the first matchup with Upper (56-50) on December 27.

          Langhurst says they need to get out of the perimeter and play good defense.  “They're well coached.  They run their system really well.  They have got a lot of shooters, which poses a problem for a team like us that’s predominantly zone.  We kind of got lucky the first time we played them in they missed shots they traditionally would knock down.  So, we'll try to get out and locate their shooters a little bit better.  They play a good pressure style of defense.  So, as long as we have got a collective effort from guys taking some pressure off of Luke (Mason) hopefully we'll have a good showing,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says if they execute right they should be able to get some open looks at the basket.  “They do a good job of running and jumping.  They have got some good on ball defenders.  They do a good job of kind of making you stay on one side of the floor.  So, we have got to just take what the defense gives us.  We'll have some opportunities to knock down smoke shots if they're over helping,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “It's going to take one guy kind of breaking the defense down, maybe another guy stepping up and making a play or stepping up and making the extra pass for another guy.  So, it's going to take two to three guys to make plays for us.  They're also really good rebounding team too.  You get caught up in the pressure that they play defensively, but they're also crashing boards pretty well too.  So, there's a lot of things you have got to make sure we take care of if you want to be successful.”

Published 2/05/26

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Seneca East Must Handle the Ball

          Seneca East is at Bucyrus on Thursday and at Carey on Saturday in Northern 10 Athletic Conference games.

          They stand in third place right now in the “N10” standings.

          On Friday night, they beat Wynford (59-50) in league play.

          They had to grind hard to win the game and coach Anthony Langhurst says that how they have to do it.  “That's going to probably end up being the recipe for the rest of the year honestly.  We're just kind of not built to be able to run away from teams.  We're just going to have to kind of be smart with the basketball, especially at crunch time in the fourth quarter.  It's going to be a lot of away games coming up, a lot of tough environments to play in and hopefully our guys are up to the challenge,” he said.

          Seneca East (12-3,7-2) is at Bucyrus (2-11,1-7) on Thursday night.  The Redmen were shelled (55-32) by Buckeye Central in the “N10” last Friday.

          The Tigers won the first matchup (71-40) on December 20.

          Langhurst expects a different game this time.  “We're going to harp on that a lot.  Just kind of forget that first matchup.  Their a different team and we're a different team now.  If you throw in the fact that they're going to be at home it's going to be a little bit different for us, a little bit more difficult.  So, we'll do our best to come in with just a blank slate saying hey it's one team against another team and it's going to be a conference game.  So, hopefully we play well and that kind of catapults us into the weekend,” said Langhurst.

          Carey (6-6,6-1) is a game in front of Seneca East in the standings.  The Blue Devils edged Seneca East (53-48) on December 19.

          Langhurst says there are a couple of things they have to do better.  “It'll be an interesting matchup again on the road.  It's really tough place to play.  They’re a physical team.  They did a nice job of taking Luke (Mason) kind of out of his rhythm and out of the offense, so that'll be the first thing to see if we can get him going a little bit more than we did.  It's an interesting matchup because they had a lot of athletes they could throw at him and switch and all kinds of things,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “We're trying to get him going whether it's on the ball, off the ball, kind of move the basketball around.  Just see whether or not our role players can get any better.  What hurt us last game against Carey.  We made some careless mistakes there in the fourth quarter and hopefully we learned from that and see if we can take care of the ball more and come away with a little bit more of a tighter victory.”

Published 1/28/26

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Seneca East Needs Good Perimeter Defense

          Seneca East is at Wynford to take on the Royals in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          The Tigers are in third place in the league.  Two games behind Colonel Crawford.

          They stuffed Mohawk (47-37) last Saturday in a conference game.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they did enough to get the win.  “It kind of played out the way we thought it would.  It's a tough place to play.  I know they have some younger guys playing varsity for the first time this year, so they're still trying to figure some things out, but they play extremely hard.  I haven't had very much success there, so I ended up having my first win there.  So, just kind of laid it out to the guys that even though they might be a team that hasn't had that much success as far as their record goes it's going to be a tough environment.  They did a nice job defending, taking Luke (Mason) away and luckily we had just enough guys step up and make plays,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (11-3,6-2) plays at Wynford (3-8,2-5) on Friday night.  Colonel Crawford hammered them (76-29) on Saturday night.

          In the first meeting, Seneca East rallied to win (50-41) back on December 11.

          Langhurst says Wynford’s perimeter shooting can be a problem for them.  “They're scary, they got a couple guards that could go off.  They kind of match up well with us.  We're predominantly zone team and they have got some guys that can light up,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “The first time around we were fortunate to play at home and it will be at their place.  They'll probably be feeling pretty good.  They came out punched us in the mouth you know the first time there and got out to a good lead and we luckily made some adjustments there in the second half and we're able to take care of business.”

          Langhurst says they are going to have to make some adjustments defensively this time.  “Like I said, we just have to look at the things that they did that were successful against our zone and kind of clean it up and then hopefully have a good game plan going in there this weekend,” he said.

Published 1/20/26

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Seneca East Getting into Rhythm

          Seneca East is at Mohawk for a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Saturday night.

          The Tigers were buried last Friday by unbeaten Colonel Crawford (67-34) in an “N10” game and then lost in overtime (62-57) to New London on Saturday.  They did hammer Ridgedale (75-43) in a non-conference game on Tuesday.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst believes they did get better thew that stretch.  “Obviously, we knew we'd be up against it against Crawford.  It's probably the best team on our schedule, no disrespect everybody else, but you know probably one of the best teams in the state in our division.  Coach (Tom) Howell is doing a great job.  We knew they had some nice pieces.  We were just kind of like step slow a little bit on defense.  Offensively, didn't really handle the pressure very much.  The good thing about it was we had an opportunity to kind of take a look in the mirror and look at some things on film.  Clean some things up defensively and offensively try to do a couple of different things.  Luckily, we saw a lot of those things connect against Ridgedale,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (10-3,5-2) won the first meeting of the season against Mohawk (61-56) on December 5.

          Langhurst believes the Warriors (3-5,1-3) have matured since then.  “The first time we saw them they were a bunch of young guys playing their first varsity games.  They’re just going to keep getting better and better.  Coach Dunn and coach Haines do a great job over there.  You can see at home they are a different team to me,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “They got down a little bit early against Wynford.  That team is just going to keep scratching and clawing.  They made some timely shots there at the end.  They’re going to be playing with a little bit of confidence.  I know they have got a tough game against Crawford (Thursday) night, but it's a tough place to play.  I haven't really had a lot of teams have success over there.  So, hopefully get the guys locked in and ready to put in a good performance on Saturday over there.”

          Seneca East played a lot of basketball early in the season, 11 games in just over a month and Langhurst says that was good for them.  “Actually, it was beneficial for us in the fact that we had some guys that just needed to play basketball.  We had a lot of new faces and we were lucky to have a lot of home games early, so our confidence is good.  We were familiar with our surroundings and you know luckily the ball bounced our way a little bit had some confidence as far as wins and losses.  Now, that the season is kind of getting down to a more of one or two games a week and you kind of take a breath, kind of fix a few things here and there, and then focus on the game ahead of you,” he said.

Published 1/15/26

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Seneca East Must Play Defense

          Seneca East is over at Wynford in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Tuesday night.

          Both need a win badly to stay in the conference race.  The Lady Tigers trail Colonel Crawford and Carey by two games, Wynford in a game back.

          Seneca East (10-4,5-3) beat Mohawk (43-27) on Saturday in “N10” play.

          Coach George Parks says they got a solid effort off the bench.  “I was pleased with the effort.  We faced a little of bit of adversity.  We had a couple starters pick up two fouls in the first minute.  We had some girls who haven't played too much step up and made some good plays.  I'm really happy with the way we responded,” said Parks.

          Wynford (11-3,6-2) was smoked (57-33) by Crawford on Saturday.  Wynford won the first matchup with the Lady Tigers (32-27) on December 6.

          Parks says they understand what they have to win.  “They're well coached.  It starts with (Caroline) Sheldon girl at the point guard.  I think she's leading the league in scoring right now,” he told Swankonsports.com Monday evening, “Coach (Amy) Taylor does a great job with putting them in the right spot and game planning.  It will be a challenge for us, that's the first time.”

          Sheldon averages more than 15 a game.

          Parks says they have to keep the ball out of her hands.  “We did a pretty good job with her the first time.  We just could not put the ball in the bucket ourselves.  I have got Cami Lance, who is probably the best defensive player I've ever coached.  She's going to be up for the task,” he said.

Published 1/13/26

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Seneca East Has to Make it Tough

          Seneca East, a game back in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays at conference leader Colonel Crawford on Friday night.

          The Tigers are coming off a (52-37) win over Buckeye Central in “N10” play last Saturday.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they did what they needed to do.  “I thought Buckeye played really well.  Kind of gave us some fits with their size and their zone you know made it a little bit difficult for us.  Luckily for us, Luke (Mason) got hot there in the second half, in the third quarter there, and got in a stretch there and kind of pushed the lead out.  It allowed us to kind of control it.  The (Hunter) Caudill kid is a tough match up.  We tried to really take him away and he still ended up getting his.  So, overall a good league win for us,” he said.

          Seneca East (9-1,5-0) visits Colonel Crawford (7-0,4-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles drilled Carey (74-39) in a “N10” game on Saturday night.

          Langhurst says you have to stop the Crawford runs.  “What you want to do is just make sure those four point runs don't turn into like 10 point runs.  So, control the basketball.  If you give those guys easy baskets that's when those runs really start to balloon up.  They're great at executing, so they're going to score baskets in the half court even when you take away their first and second option they have still have got guys that can make plays for themselves or other people.  So, you can't really help them out by letting their defensive pressure turn into easy baskets for them.  If we could do that and maybe tighten things up defensively, make it hard for them, we can maybe keep this thing competitive,” said Langhurst.

          Colonel Crawford features Payne DeGray (19.1 ppg) and Brayden Holt (15.1 ppg), but Langhurst says you have to concern yourselves with the other guys too.  “It's a tightrope to walk for sure.  Not only that, but the thing you get blinded by, Holt, DeGray, those guys are elite talents, but then also what their coaching staff does a great job of doing is just saying hey these role players this is what you can do that can help us be the most effective team.  Whether it's a spot up shooting or you know playing your tail off defensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “Those guys are the guys that tend to hurt you.  Holt and DeGray, they're going to find a way to get theirs.  You focus on those guys, try to take away some of their strengths, then that's when the other role players step.  So, we'll just make it hard and try to take away a couple strengths of their key guys and hope their guys miss some shots and we can find a way to close a couple possessions out.”

Published 1/09/26

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Seneca East With Test at Crawford

          Seneca East, a game back in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference standings, plays at conference co-leader Colonel Crawford on Tuesday night.

          They beat Buckeye Central (49-31) in a conference game on Saturday.

          Coach George Parks says it was one of their best games of the season.  “We came out and played really well.  I was really pleased with the way the girls responded, especially coming off the holiday.  The first half we played some of the best basketball we played all year,” said Parks.

          Seneca East (9-3,4-2) is at Colonel Crawford (9-2,5-1) on Tuesday night.

          Parks says they are fundamental.  “They're well coached.  Coach (Zac) Bauer does a great job with them.  They're disciplined defensively and they don't turn the basketball over.  They do all of little things right,” he said.

          Crawford lost for the first time in “N10” play on Saturday when Carey beat them (52-46).  The Lady Eagles now share first with the Lady Blue Devils and Wynford.

          Parks says they are really good on defense.  “They're leading the league in points allowed and we are right behind them.  I actually used them to model defensively a little bit and try to do what they do,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “They are definitely tough to score on.  You look at some of their scores and they are low scoring affairs.  That’s not because their offense isn’t good, it's because their defense is so good and that’s how they want to play”

          Parks says they are going to need to execute very well to win and they are capable of just that.  “We have been right in the thick of things.  Our three losses have come down to one possession.  It’s just making one more play and getting the job done.  Crawford is going to be a tough test for us.  We’re right there with them.  It should be a good basketball game,” said Parks.

Published 1/06/26

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Seneca East Taking Advantage

          Seneca East will meet Buckeye Central at home on Saturday night in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The Bucks have only one win this season and have suffered with a lot of injuries this year.

          They picked up a (56-50) win over Upper Sandusky last Saturday night in an “N10” contest.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they had a lot of different kids step up in that game.  “That was a big program mid-season win for us.  Just looking at the score for us at the end if you would have told us Luke Mason only scored eight points when the game was over him I'm sure we're looking at a loss, probably pretty convincingly,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening,
“So, just kind of goes to show you we had a really good team effort. Some guys stepped up and made some plays for us, some of the role players, played really well.  Just definitely an all around great team win for us against a quality opponent.”

          Mason averages nearly 20 ppg for the Tigers (8-1,4-1) this season.

          Langhurst says with Mason the only kid back for them with much varsity experience they have been able to win a lot of close games this season.  “We're just kind of shaking our heads after every practice and kind of just the vibes are really good.  Winning cures a lot of things that could go wrong on a on a day-to-day possession to possession basis.  We're just fortunate a lot of the close games kind of went our way.  We had one that we wish we could have back, but that's just kind of basketball for you,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East has not played Colonel Crawford this season and they will have a stretch when they will on the road for six out of seven games later in the season.

          Langhurst says the know things are going to get more difficult.  “As far as the schedule goes it's been kind to us as far as had a lot of home games and that's good for a young team to kind of have that familiarity and not having to get on the bus and all that kind of stuff. So, it will get a lot tougher as the season goes on.  We will have a lot more road games.  We just kind of take care of business right now and the ball is kind of bouncing our way,” he said.

Published 12/31/25

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Seneca East With Three Games This Week

          Seneca East will play three basketball games this week all at home with Crestline in non-conference play on Wednesday, and they Carey and Bucyrus in Northern 10 action on Friday and Saturday nights.

          They kept their share of the conference lead with a (50-41) win over Wynford on Thursday.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says it was another game where they had to battle to the end.  “That was like the big thing in the locker room was just kind of be comfortable with being uncomfortable because these games are going to be tight. The way the team is constructed we don't really have the ability to blow teams out.  We can play good stretches of basketball, but again the way the league constructed there is a lot of good teams out there, a lot of good players.  So, we're never going to blow a team away.  We have just got to always stay locked in for four quarters that was just another example of it against Wynford,” said Langhurst.

          Crestline (2-2) comes calling on Wednesday.  The Bulldogs lost (59-52) to Kidron Central Christian on Friday night in play in the Mid-Buckeye Conference.

          Langhurst says they will come at them with a lot of pressure.  “They're really scrappy, they're scary.  They're going to be playing free.  They play man to man defense, they get in you and that's kind we've struggled with that, the pressure a little bit.  We kind of look back on games against teams like Plymouth that we're a lot like that.  That kind of wanted to scramble a little bit and put you in a bad spot offensively.  So, just as long as we're controlling the basketball, making them work defensively, it should be another one of those close games for us,” he said.

          When it comes to Carey on Friday night, Langhurst says that is going to be a physical game.  “They have got a lot of important pieces back and they got better as the season went on last year.  All of their important pieces are back.  So, we’re going to be up against it.  They defend really hard, they're a physical group of kids, that's just the kind of makeup of the Carey athlete,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “It'll be a little bit unfortunate for us that we've got that back-to-back coming off probably what we're considering going to be a pretty physically demanding game.  Our guys we'll just play as hard as we can on Friday and then kind of go through a nice little walk through and see if we can give Bucyrus all they can handle on Saturday.”

Published 12/16/25

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Seneca East to Play Two “N10” Games

          Seneca East faces two Northern 10 Athletic Conference games this week as they play at home against Wynford on Thursday and Bucyrus on Saturday.

          They opened “N10” action with a (61-56) win over Mohawk last Friday.

          It was a toss up going down the stretch and coach Anthony Langhurst says they were able to grind it out to get the win.  “That was a good game for our kids.  We told our guys those are going to be the kind of games we're in, tight one possession, two possession games.  Luckily, we've been in a few of those already to start the season where things kind of got tight there our guys kind of showed good resilience and we're able to close it out,” he said.

          Senior guard Luke Mason had 32 for the Tiegrs.

          Seneca East (3-0,1-0) plays at home against Wynford (1-1,0-0) on Thursday.  The Royals beat Cardington (67-39) in their opener and then lost (64-41) to Fredericktown on Saturday.

          Langhurst says they have some potential scorers and they will mix things up on defense.  “They have got some nice guard pieces.  (Jaron) Vance gives them some muscle inside.  (Drew) Stanek is really long and explosive and (Reed) Johnson does a nice job handling the basketball and can shoot it pretty good.  I'm really impressed with their defense.  They do a nice job mixing it up doing a couple different zone looks and some man.  So, it’s going to be a nice little challenge for us on Thursday.  We’ve got some good vibes going and their probably feeling good about the way they're playing.  So, it might just come down to who wants it more,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says these kind of double weekends, the off day in the middle, are important and good teams handle those well.  “That's the good thing about basketball is that if you don't play good one game you're playing the next night or end up getting a good victory and you’ve got those good vibes going you just want to keep rolling,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “That's the great thing about basketball the games they come at you in waves.  So, luckily for us we got that buffer in between where we can kind of give everything we have got on Thursday and kind of relax a little bit lick our wounds a little bit and then kind of focus on Bucyrus on Saturday.”

Published 12/11/25

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Seneca East Moving Forward

          Seneca East will entertain Mohawk in their Northern 10 Athletic Conference opener on Friday night.

          The Tigers (2-0) edged Plymouth (39-38) on Tuesday night in non-league action.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they just had a lot of guys step up.  “Just a big win for the program.  I feel good for the seniors, starting with Luke (Mason), played really well for us.  All the guys that got in kind of made a positive contribution whether it's just giving guys a blow or stepping up making timely shots and getting rebounds here and there.  Plymouth is going to end up being a really good team and we just ended up making just a couple more plays at the end of the game,” he said.

          Going forward, Langhurst says they have to make sure they have good possessions and on defense they want to have a lot of ways to contain the other team.  “Coaches say this all of the time it’s good to learn from wins, so we're happy with the “W”, but there's a lot of things to clean up still. We have got some young dudes that are still trying to figure it out possession by possession.  You have got to make good decisions.  Defensively, you're always trying to shore up some things that you see.  Teams are going to attack you in different ways, so you want to try to get out in front of it.  Mohawk traditionally is really good at finding weaknesses in your defense.  They have got really good athletes.  So, we're just focusing on the things that we can correct and go forward from there,” said Langhurst.

          Friday night will be Mohawk’s first game of the season.

          Langhurst says the Warriors and going to be athletic and despite their inexperience they are going to be good too.  “We know that that's unprecedented the seniors that they had last year.  You can look at it as a negative, but I'm sure those kids have been around some good teams and they don't want to be the class or the group to take a dip.  So, they probably got a bunch of guys that are ready to step up.  It’s their time to shine,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “Coach (Paul) Dunn and Haynes and those guys over there they do a great job of coaching their boys up.  So, we're expecting their athletes to be good.  They had a good football season.  They're going to get after it.  They've traditionally been really good defensively.  So, it's going to be a good test for us.”

Published 12/04/25

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Seneca East Looking to Make Shots

          Seneca East begins play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference at home against Mohawk on Tuesday night.

          So far, they have won all of their games against Hopewell-Loudon, Van Buren and Norwalk St. Paul.

          Coach George Parks says you can’t ask for more than that.  “We start 3-0, but we're a little sluggish right now offensively.  Right now, we're relying on our defense and that's what we talked about beginning of the year,” he said.

          Parks says they are not running their offense the way they should and they are not making a lot of open shots, but he believes they are about to bust out of that.  “Right now, we've watched a little bit of film we're not seeing open people and when we do have open shots where not making them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday afternoon, “Fortunately for us, some things are going good.  We're just not finishing our shots.  Once those first couple shots are going, I think it's going to be like lightning in the bottle and we're going to put up a lot the points.”

          Mohawk (1-1) beat New Riegel (48-10) last week.

          Parks says they have to be ready to play.  “They have the (Chloe) Miller girl in the post.  Last year she played really well against us.  I think she's seven, eight, nine blocks against us and they knocked us off.  They have got the (Katie) Woodland girl up top, who runs the offense for them, she's experienced.  It's going to be a challenge for us.  We have to be ready to go,” said Parks.

Published 12/02/25

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Seneca East Wants Good Shots

          Seneca East plays host to South Central in a non-conference game on Saturday night.

          It’s the season opener for both.

          Tigers coach Anthony Langhurst says he has seen a lot of positive things in the preseason.  “We've had a couple of scrimmages that were productive for us.  Saw some really good things.  Defensively, guys that are being active.  They’re using their length well.  They are reacting well to what we want to do structurally on offense.  So, there's been some positive things.  We're going to be a little bit banged up coming in on Saturday, but hopefully we can patch things together here and put a good outing out,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says that first game is always exciting for the players.  “We've had a couple of scrimmages and there's some parents in the crowd, but once the ball goes up and the student bodies are out there and the fans from both sides are there and the refs are there it'll be pretty exciting.  We have some younger guys who this will be their first taste of varsity basketball, so I'm sure they'll have to fight through some jitters there early, but they're just excited to go out there and play with their buddies,” he said.

          South Central returns quite a bit from last year.

          Langhurst says they have to control the Trojans running game and get a lot of good shots.  “I'm pretty impressed, we watched a couple films on them and (South Central coach) Dallas (Yost) has got them playing really hard defensively.  They're real physical, but those kids are like that they have got an edge to them.  It's going to be styles that contrast,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “They are going to want to kind of get up and down a little bit and get physical.  We're going to want to try to control the basketball and make sure we get good shots.  If we can handle the pressure, take high percentage shots, make them work offensively I like our chances, but if they can kind of turn us over and get some easy baskets in transition, I think the advantage might go to the Trojans.”

Published 11/27/25

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Seneca East Opens the Season Saturday with Hopewell

          Seneca East has high hopes as they open the girls’ basketball season on Saturday night at Hopewell-Loudon in non-conference play.

          They are coming off a very sound season a year ago in which they won 16 games and finished in a tie for their place in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Coach George Parks says they have lofty goals for the season.  “We were 16-8 last year and we bring everybody back.  We have eight seniors back and three juniors, so we have every minute that played in a varsity game last year is back.  So, the future looks good and with the upcoming season we have got some high expectations,” said Parks.

          Parks says this year’s seniors have led a resurgence in the Seneca East girls’ program.  “I’ve got a special group of girls.  I took the job four years ago these girls were freshmen and we won one game.  They have worked really hard since then.  Like I said, they won 16 and their goals are a district title this year and make a run a league title,” he said.

          The game with Hopewell was originally scheduled for Friday night, but has been moved due to the Chieftains playoff football game with Carey.

          Parks says they don’t know a lot about Hopewell, but he expects a very good game.  “We don’t know too much.  They have a new coach this year.  Coach (Eric) Brickman is taking over.  They have the (Karsyn) Snyder girl back on last year.  They lost two or three good players,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “Every year we play them the first game and they play us tough.  Last year it went to overtime and the year before it was pretty close.  So, I'm expecting a good battle, hard fought game, and hopefully we're fortunate to end up on top.”

Published 11/18/25

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Seneca East With Young Group

          Seneca East will have a lot of inexperienced kids at the beginning of the season trying to figure out varsity basketball.

          However, they do have a player that knows all about that in Luke Mason.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says Mason gives them something to build around.  “We return for us the most important player at the most important position.  We have Luke Mason back, but he's really the only varsity guy that we had coming back from last year. We graduated a pretty special senior group last year.  Just luckily for me and the younger guys coming up here trying to make an impact for us they have got Luke to kind of lean on,” he said.

          Langhurst says they really just got all of their kids this week.  He says the team has been working hard.  “It's kind of hard to get a groove on what we have got going.  The football team had a pretty good season and they just finished up last week.  So, still kind of working the football guys in.  Then like I said, we have got a bunch of new faces even if they weren't football guys,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “It's kind of seeing and putting those guys in the right spot. The one thing I like is that these guys are excited for basketball.  The younger guys are bringing really good energy.  Some of the guys on the JV team are looking to carve a spot.  So, there's some good competition going and guys are playing hard.  That kind of energizes us as a coaching staff.  So, overall kind of happy with the effort guys are giving us.”

          One thing that makes Langhurst really happy with that he has been able to coach these kids in an attempt to make them better players.  “For us, it's mostly like a conditioning session, but you want to kind of see little things that you wouldn't normally see in practice.  Try to clean up some tendencies that they may have been able to get away with at the JV level or at the junior high level.  Let's not dribble right away or let's kind of look and see, look for this.  Luckily all the guys who have gotten some constructive criticism from me have kind of taken it.  They're excited to get coached up.  So, luckily for me so far for me guys are taking what I'm saying and trying to get better,” said Langhurst.

Published 11/14/25

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Seneca East Wants to be Physical

          Seneca East will be up at Archbold for a division VI regional quarterfinal on Friday night.

          Last week, they built a two score lead and hung on to beat Woodmore (15-13) in a first round game.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they did a good job of battling adversity.  “We did what we had to do.  We played a really good first half.  There were only four possessions, two for us, two for them.  We scored on both and had the safety on defense.  We were very efficient on a really bad field.  That was part of the problem because the field was not in good shape from the rain.  We had a game plan for that and we stuck to it, the kids stuck to it, and did a nice job,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “The thing I’m proud about the second half is about anything that could have went wrong penalty wise, and some other weird things, did, but we had the character to just do what we had to do.  We kind of got out of the third quarter and in the fourth quarter I thought we did some nice things well.  We got some stops and really we moved the ball, but just had some just really untimely penalties.  We probably should have had another score when they fumbled a punt and there was just a strange call on that that took that away.  Anyway, we did what we had to do and got the next round.  To do well in the playoffs you have got to be able to win games like that.  I think that going through that process and winning that game is exciting and winning a close one is good for you.”

          Seneca East (8-3) is at Archbold (8-2) on Friday night.  The Blue Streaks have won eight of their last nine.

          Phillips says they are going to look to throw the ball.  “Everybody's good at this point.  They're different from most teams we played.  They're kind of a throw first team, so that's a good challenge for us.  So, we have got to go out and put some pressure on the quarterback and still make sure that we take care of business with everything else.  Then offensively, I think we've become a very physical team and I think it's important for us to be able to do that again Friday night,” said Phillips.

          Phillips says they have been a good road team this year.  “Our kids have done well with that.  They like to go different places and stuff.  So, that's kind of thing where they get out of school early like that.  So, it’s all what you make of it.  I think our kids just make it a challenge.  The last time we went on the road was Mohawk and that's good, so hopefully we can take that last road performance and take it to Archbold with us,” he said.

Published 11/07/25

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Seneca East Must Stop Run

          Seneca East will be at home for Woodmore in a division VI first round playoff game on Friday night.

          They earned a home game with a (50-19) rout of Mohawk in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game last Friday.

          Coach Ed Phillips says it was a good night for everyone in orange and black.  “Kids, coaches, students section, fans, yeah everybody all came together and it was just a fantastic night,” he said.

          Phillips says they really played well in the trenches.  “We controlled the line scrimmage and controlled it more than I could have imagined.  I thought we could win the game and I knew to do that we had to win up front and we were capable of that, but man we just dominated right from the get go.  The first series of the game we got a three and out on them.  I watched our defensive line handle their offensive line and I was my God this is impressive, just the first series, but then the guys just continued all night long.  Just a great performance up front,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Then on that three and out.  Coach (Kevin) Dick does our special teams and he had talked to the kids about getting a punt and on that first snap they had a bad snap and we kind of sacked their punter.  That allowed us to kick a field goal a get in front.  They did score and go ahead for just a short period of time, but the rest of the night we played with the lead.  The third and fourth quarter the offensive and defensive lines and our backs just took control.”

          Seneca East (7-3) has Woodmore (7-3), the fourth place team in the River Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference.

          Phillips says this is a team that wants to run the ball and has the speed to do it.  “They have a really good running back and they want to run the football and that's a challenge for us.  They've got a lot of speed in there.  Their team is not real big.  In the “N10” we have a bunch of big guys and they don't, but they have got really, athletic fast guys on both sides of the ball.  That's kind of what we're dealing with,” said Phillips.

          Landon Rich was the leading rusher in the River Division this year with 1,897 yards.

          The Seneca East coach says Wildcats are really different than teams they have played this year.  “Maybe Crestview in week one, but Crestview probably had a  little bit more size than them, that that's going way back.  So, probably not really in that perspective.  They’re not completely different from anybody we’ve ever played.  They’re just a good football team on offense wants to run ball and defense comes at you and plays with a lot of speed,” he said.

Published 10/28/25

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Seneca East With a lot to Play for

          Seneca East will be at Mohawk on Friday night in another tough game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Seneca East is trying to secure a home playoff game in division VI.  Mohawk is trying to hold on to their piece of the “N10” title.

          Last week, the Tigers went out and buried Bucyrus (62-14) in a conference game.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they got a lot of kids into the game.  “We wanted go out and have some fun.  That's an important part of high school football.  We got everybody involved on Friday night.  I think the kids had a good time.  It was a good way for us to kind of get rolling into week 10 here and the big opportunity we have got with Mohawk,” said Phillips.

          Seneca East (6-3,4-2) is at Mohawk (8-1,5-1) on Friday night.  The Warriors moved into a share of the conference lead when they edged Carey (29-28) in overtime last week.

          Phillips says they are very balanced with what they do on offense.  “They run the football good.  They take some shots and they make some big plays and got the win in overtime against Carey.  They can come at you from different angles and makes it a good challenge for us.  A good opportunity for us,” he said.

          Phillips adds that Mohawk has some guys that can cause havoc on defense.  “They've got some big guys back up front.  Some experience at linebacker and then their secondary has jelled pretty good with some young guys and old guys.  They're really solid on the defense and they'll play with good speed,” he said.

          Phillips says they have some things they earn by getting a win.  “We want to win and be right there in the top two in the “N10” and also give ourselves a really good chance I think to have a home game to playoffs.  This is huge for us and a lot of good opportunities,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “We want to go out and get the win to show that we're at the top of the “N10”, right there with them.  We want to like to have the opportunity to play at home again and what a fantastic way to go on the week 11.”

Published 10/22/25

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Seneca East Making a Push for the Playoffs

          Seneca East hosts Bucyrus in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          They bounced back form a (31-0) loss to Colonel Crawford the week before to smoke Buckeye Central (56-8) last week in conference play.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they worked hard last week to get better.  “You don't want to lose, but when you do you want to a team that comes back and comes to practice and works hard to get better.  That's always our goal, but I think you emphasize that going into a week like Buckeye that we need to get better.  That’s what we're doing this week,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “We need to get better individually and as a team and our guys are doing a really good job of that.  We just want to be playing our best football here in weeks eight, nine and ten.  We're practicing like that and that's our goal and it is.”

          Quarterback Nic Parks threw for 330 yards and a couple scores last week.

          Right now, the Tigers (5-3,3-2) stand eighth in their division VI region with the top 12 qualifying this year.

          Phillips says a couple more wins will put them in good shape.  “We put ourselves in a good spot.  If we win this week we will be in a little better spot.  If we win in week 10 there's a good chance there is a good chance we will play at home, get to seven wins.  So, that would be huge.  That would a big thing for us, so that that's the goal right now,” he said.

          Bucyrus (1-7,0-5) was hammered (49-22) by Wynford last week.

          Phillips says they play a lot of young guys.  “There are young.  They've got some really good young talent.  They darn near beat North Baltimore, and they are 8-0 right now, at the beginning of the year.  So, you know the talents there, but it is hard to be good in our league and it's really hard to be good in our league if most of your team is younger.  I think that's what they're going through right now.  They have some kids that are excited and they do some good things on the field,” said Phillips.

Published 10/15/25

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Seneca East Looking Forward

          Seneca East plays at home against rival Buckeye Central in a contest in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          They suffered a tough loss last week when they were smoked (31-0) by Colonel Crawford in league play.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they got behind early and they just didn’t play well.  “They jumped out and played really well.  We had a couple chances to get back in it and just didn't capitalize.  It wasn’t our night, so on from there,” he said.

          Seneca East (4-3,2-2) host Buckeye Central (3-4,1-3) on Friday night.  The Bucks were whipped (56-0) by conference co-leader Carey last week.

          Phillips says they have some experience and some talent too.  “They're a backyard rival, trophy game for us, it's called “Battle for the Paddle”, so I'm excited about that.  They spread you out and sling the ball around and have got good skills and guys who played three and four years.  So, they've got a good experience team,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “They have got those same guys on defense.  I know they are a hungry team.  They want to try and make the playoffs and they’re in the top eight right now.  So, it's a good opportunity for us to compete against a playoff contender and go for some points ourselves.”

          Seneca East stands eighth in its division VI region right now, the top 12 get in.  Phillips says that’s in the back of their minds, but their focus is beating Buckeye Central.  “We have been focused this week on this game and stuff, but I guess one really good thing about we're at right now is we are in control of that and that's always a big deal to us.  So, that's our focus right now is beating Buckeye Central and just continuing to put ourselves in a good spot for next week.  Then hopefully have a good opportunity to do something when you get to playoffs,” said Phillips.

Published 10/09/25

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Must Win for Seneca East

          Seneca East trails the leaders by a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference and must have a win when they play at one of those leaders in Colonel Crawford on Friday night.

          Crawford shares first with Carey.

          After a tough loss to Carey (20-14) the week before, the Tigers beat Upper Sandusky (35-14) last week.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they play solid, complementary football.  “We played really well.  It was maybe our most complete game and we played really good football all year long and lost a couple tough ones.  It was another good week in the sense that we got out front, played really well.  The first touchdown we gave up the field was a little slick and our DB went to change direction and his feet just went out from underneath him,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “Upper is a good football team.  They've lost to right off top my head they've lost three football games to I think three really good football teams in us, Carey and undefeated Mt. Gilead, so it was a good win for us.”

          Quarterback Nic Parks threw three touchdown passes and run for another last week.

          Seneca East (4-2,2-1) is at Colonel Crawford (6-0,3-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles routed Bucyrus (48-0) last week.

          Phillips says they are a well rounded team.  “I will say the way they run the ball, but then they do a really good job in their passing game this year too, they're pretty efficient with it.  They look for big plays in the passing game.  Defensively, they just want to keep everything kind of in front of them.  Their front seven is very good against the run,” he said.

          Both Peyton Baker and Brayden Holt see plenty of time at quarterback for Crawford.  Phillips says they are both hard to defend.  “They're a little different, but not like last year.  Last year, one basically ran the ball and one would throw the ball.  This year I would say they both are pretty good at both facets of the game.  That's a good thing for them to be able to play like that.  You run up against some teams that will do that from time to time and they do it well,” said Phillips.

          Phillips says they know the importance of Friday night.  “It absolutely is.  I think in terms of getting league title this is super important,” he said.

Published 10/01/25

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Seneca East Needs to Step up

          Seneca East is pretty much in a must win situation as they are at Upper Sandusky in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          They lost to Carey (20-14) in an outstanding conference game last week.  The Blue Devils scored on Carter Bane’s two-yard run with 42 seconds to play in the game to get the win.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they certainly had a chance to win.  “It was a tough one.  We did a lot of stuff that gave us a chance to win the game, just not enough, but it’s something that I think we build on.  We knew that they were a really good football team coming in and know that going out and we were right there with them,” said Phillips.

          Carey had a lot more total yards, 371 to 98.  Nic Parks threw two TD passes for the Tigers.

          Seneca East still has Colonel Crawford, next week, and Mohawk, on week 10, to play and are still in the thick of the race.

          Phillips says they challenged their kids this week.  “I think the top of this league is deep and it's really good and it's quite a challenge this year.  It’s going to be interesting as we get into the second half of the year.  We kind of challenged the kids this week to step it up and go after it.  Upper is the first challenge for us in the in the second half,” he said.

          Seneca East (3-2,1-1) travels to Upper Sandusky (2-3,1-1) on Friday night.  The Rams outscored Wynford (44-20) in an “N10” game last week.

          Phillps says there is no doubt, the Rams have solid players on both sides of the ball.  “Coach (Russell) Hall does good job with them.  They've got a great running back and other really good skill guys and they put together another good offensive line up front,” he told Swankonsports.com Thursday evening, “Defensively, they're very physical.  They have a pair of really good inside linebackers and some speed on the outside.  So, they have got some guys all over the field that are to be reckoned with.”

Published 9/26/25

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Seneca East in Key Battle With Carey

          Seneca East puts out the welcome mat for the Carey Blue Devils in a key early season matchup in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          Last week, the Tigers smoked Wynford (62-6) in an “N10” game.  Nic Parks threw four TD passes in the win.

          Coach Ed Phillips says their younger, less experienced, players have learned about varsity football.  “We were really clicking on all cylinders and our young guys just keep getting better, and so do our older guys, but some guys that were kind of new to Friday night's at the beginning of the season and have grown a lot and are really confident in our older guys that have kind of been there before.  It really came together really well for us last week,” said Phillips.

          Seneca East (3-1,1-0) is at home for Carey (1-3,1-0) in a conference game on Friday.  The Blue Devils won their first game last week in the “N10” opener (33-7) over Upper Sandusky last Friday.

          Phillips says this is a traditional Carey team.  “You see Carey and you see a tough, physical team that runs the football really well.  They have got a lot of speed on both sides of the ball.  They're really physical and aggressive on defense.  Kind of what you were expecting from them over the years,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “Everybody knows they're better than their record, but they like a challenge.  They challenge themselves with some great teams in their first three games of the season.  Then iron sharpens iron and prepares them for the “N10”.  I think we do a similar thing.  I think our first three games are a bear and it got us ready for the “N10”.  Now a pretty big clash (Friday) night.”

          Phillips says it will be a big plus for them to be at home on Friday.  “It's a great environment here.  Our student section, our community really comes out and supports us and that's an important edge for us and one that we're glad we have (Friday) night,” he said.

Published 9/19/25

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Seneca East to Play a Different Wynford

          Seneca East will be on the road to open up Northern 10 Athletic Conference play at Wynford on Friday night.

          Last week, the Tigers stuffed Monroeville (14-2) in non-league play.

          Coach Ed Phillips believes they played good complementary football.  “The kids they were fantastic and the coaches did a great job getting ready.  Just really from the get go we came out and got a stop on defense and blocked the punt and took it down scored.  So, right off the bat all three units were working together to get us started well.  It was nice to play with the lead, not a big lead, but against a team like Monroeville you're probably not going to get a big lead.  From that point forward we just played outstanding defense and the offense made the plays that we needed the to,” said Phillips.

          Seneca East (2-1,1-0) has played three pretty good teams in non-conference play and Phillips thinks that has prepared them well for the “N10” portion of their schedule.  “The nice thing about our non league schedule is in the three games that there was no break.  You've got to be at your best.  So, I think that that Crestview, Northmor and Monroeville got us got us ready for the “N10”.  It's great to start out against Wynford to see if we can get the ball rolling in the “N10,” he said.

          Wynford (1-2,0-1) was hammered (46-0) by Western Reserve last week.  They had just 77 total yards last Friday.

          Phillips says they are adjusting to some new things on offense.  “They want to run the football and they do that in a couple different formations.  They've kind of changed this year a little bit in the sense that they run some spread stuff, so that's made it a little different for them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “I think that's probably affected a little bit offensively going from a team that is mostly under center to a team that is running some shotgun.  It's different for them.   Defensively, there's still what they've always been in the sense of disciplined, hard hitting, sound football team on defense.”

Published 9/09/25

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Seneca East Wants to Stay Mad

          Seneca East takes on Monroeville on their home field on Friday night in non-conference action.

          They lost a tough one (27-21) in overtime at Northmor last Friday.

          Coach Ed Phillips says that has translated into a good week of practice so far for the Tigers.  “We've done some things this week in practice that we haven’t done very well at all this year.  So, when I say that some kids have stepped up and improved.  I think some of that is just like every week we're getting better.  I think also they're a little ticked off that the last week got away from us and know that we've all got do a little bit more,” said Phillips.

          Phillips says right now they are in a bad mood and he wants his players to come into Friday night’s game with chip on their shoulder.  “I always think when we have a tough loss, I've probably said this to you before, Ohio State is at their best a week after they lose.  Last year was a good example of that.  If Michigan doesn't beat them they probably don't win the national championship.  They got beat, they got ticked off and they became a different beast,” he said.

          Monroeville fell to Tiffin Calvert (35-21) last week.

          Phillips says this is really a typical Monroeville football team.  “A good tough, physical Monroeville team like always.  They want to run the ball and they've got a good offensive line and good backs back there good, speed and they're kind of the same thing on defense,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “We have the same big guys up front that are really good football players.  They have good speed at linebacker and in the secondary.  So, just a well rounded football team.  I think we've built our non-league to the point where we've got a challenge every week and that's certainly one this week.”

Published 9/04/25

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Seneca East to Tangle With Northmor

          Seneca East is down the road at Northmor on Friday night for a battle between two traditional football powers.

          The Tigers are coming off a (2-0) win over Crestview in a game that was pretty unique for a high school football.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they stayed patient and did just enough to get the win.  “That's why we did it.  We wanted to do something historical, so we went out and won 2-0.  It was different.  I actually played one other game when I was in high school, it was a JV game, we won 2-0, but no it doesn't happen very often.  We need to get better at offense, but Crestview played extremely well defensively and did some things that we had seen in the scrimmage.  What a credit to our defense and our kids and our coaches.  We stayed patient.  I think we played complementary football with our special teams.  We did just enough to win the ball game,” said Phillips.

          When it comes to their offense, Phillips says they just have to be a little better.  “Everybody's got to do something a little bit better.  If we all do some things just a little bit better.  I still believe we're really good on offense.  I think it was a case of first game and that was part of it and not having a whole lot of film on them.  Also, partly because they're I think they're really good on defense too,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “A lot of credit to them.”

          Northmor also produced a shutout in their opener in blanking Upper Sandusky (16-0) last Friday.

          Phillips believes there will be playmakers on both sides of the ball.  “I think that in Northmor and us we've got two really good defenses.   I think you have got a lot of playmakers on the field on offense too for both sides.  I think that's going to show up on Friday too,” he said.

          Phillips says the approach to the game is pretty similar with these two teams.  “I think you got two programs they're pretty similar.  I think you have got a lot similarities offensively.  They're pretty diverse.  We run do some similar things on defense, so it should be a fun night,” he said.

Published 8/27/25

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Seneca East Ready for Friday

          Seneca East will be at home for Crestview in a non-conference football game to open the 2025 season on Friday night.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they have shown good potential this year and now they want to be tested for a full game.  “We've had a good couple of weeks.  A good couple of scrimmages.  We had a nice scrimmage against Hopewell and Rossford and then a good preview against Lakota.  So, it's been nice progression.  I think we're in for four quarters of football here,” said Phillips.

          Scrimmages are nice and all, but Phillips says they kids really want to play a game for real, one that counts.  “They want to go out there and reap the rewards, I guess.  As they say, the big dog has got to eat well.  I think they're hungry.  They've got a really good Crestview football team to play against, but they're hungry to get out there and get under the lights and play four quarters of football,” he said.

          Crestview is going to be in the race in the Firelands Conference this year and Phillips knows the Cougars are going to give them a good game.  “They're good, coach (Steve) Haverdill does a great job with them.  They are kind of an old school football team.  They're hard nosed.  They will get in the “I” formation with two backs,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “Then when they do go four wide they have got they have got a really athletic quarterback that throws the ball very well and some big receivers so they're a great challenge for us.”

Published 8/20/25

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Seneca East Wants to be Physical

          Seneca East is part of the traditionally tough and balanced Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Last season, they shared second place in the conference with Colonel Crawford and Carey, a game behind Mohawk.  They lost a close game to Mohawk on the final week of the season.  A win would have allowed them to share the title.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they return a lot of experience in the trenches.  “We've got a lot of experience coming back, especially up front.  Then we've got some experience in the skilled spots, but then we've got a few of them that we need the young guys to develop to and kind of take the place of the guys that did such a great job for us last year,” said Phillips.

          Nichols Parks, who threw 30 TD passes last year for the Senecas, returns to the lineup.

          Phillips says they have looked like a physical football team this year and that is a good thing.  “I like that we’re physical.  That was the first thing I told him in June when we started to do some things that the goal was to be an extremely physical football team and I think we're on our way to doing that,” he said.

          The Tigers have scrimmages this week against Rossford and next week against Kansas Lakota.  They open the season on August 22 at home against Crestview of the Firelands Conference.

          Phillips says to be good this year they must be a physical football team.  “I think if you go back a couple of years I don't think we were where we wanted to be physical wise and last year we took these steps in right direction and it gave us a chance to win the league and win a playoff game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “We want to keep building on that and we've got some big dogs up front that are leading the way for us and we hope can do that.”

Published 8/06/25

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Seneca East Wins; Ready for the Tournament

          Seneca East beat Arcadia (7-1) while dodging the rain drops on Tuesday evening in preparation for the tournament, which starts for them on Friday.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says they got better pitching.  “That was a good win for us.  We were on a five game losing streak.  Our pitching had struggled a little bit.  I think we walked a combined 40 batters in four losses.  So, we were struggling some.  We kind of turned things around,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “One walk the whole game from our pitchers.  We threw strikes and played defense and got some timely hits, so that's what we needed headed into the tournament.”

          Bowerman says it was not an easy day to play baseball, but they wanted to get the game in.  “It wasn't the nicest.  It was spitting rain.  We had some heavy drizzle there for a while.  Not an easy day to play, but we needed to warm up before tournament and it was a good day for us,” he said.

          Seneca East (11-13) plays at Hopewell-Loudon (19-6), #5 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday in a sectional final in division VI.

          Bowerman says they can compete.  “It's going to be tough, that's for sure.  We have got a very good Hopewell-Loudon team we have to take on Friday.  We played them once.  They beat us 5-1.  Hopefully, our kids have some confidence that we can play with these guys.  I think if our pitchers can go out and throw strikes and hit their spots we have a chance,” said Bowerman.

Published 5/21/25

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Seneca East Downs Carey

          Braydon Robinson fired a four hitter and Seneca East beat Carey (3-1) in a Northern 10 Ahletic Conference game on Tuesday evening.

          With wind chill factors in the upper 20’s it was not an easy day to play baseball, but Tigers coach Rich Bowerman says they stayed mentally tough.  “The wind was blowing and it was cold.  We gutted things out and had some nice execution on plays to pull out the win,” he said.

          Bowerman says Robinson threw strikes and they played good defense behind him on Tuesday.  “Brayden Robinson was very good.  He gave up one run and that was a little mistake by himself with the balk.  Other than that, I mean he pounded the strike zone, we played great defense behind him, and that's what you need in close games.  Good pitching, good defense, and execution on offense and a lot of times that will get you a win,” said Bowerman.

          Robinson struck out five and the Tigers had only one error.

          Seneca East trails Wynford by two games in the “N10”.  They lost (2-1) to Wynford last Friday.

          On Tuesday, Bowerman says they had to manufacture some runs to get the win over Carey.  “We only had four hits, but we executed very well.  We scored one with a guy on third and getting ground ball to score the run in that situation you have to do that.  We had to steal a home on a first and third situation and execute the suicide squeeze on a pitch that was just about in the dirt,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “That's how we scored the runs and we have to do the little things.  We haven't been hitting the ball very well lately, so we have to manufacture runs and (Tuesday) night we're able to do that.”

Published 4/16/25

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Seneca East Shuts Out South Central

          Seneca East blanked South Central (4-0) in non-conference baseball action on Thursday evening.

          Nick Parks went the first six innings for Seneca East allowing only two hits and striking out five.

          Seneca East coach Rick Bowerman says he had good command on Thursday night.  “He threw very well, limited base runners, had a nice curveball going.  That's what he needs to do.  He could be a very good pitcher.  He struggled at times earlier this year in scrimmages with his control, but (Thursday) night he got it dialed in and had a big game for us,” said Bowerman.

          Parks also had two hits.  Braydon Robinson and Gunner Polachek also had two hits.

          South Central coach Nick Kirk was unhappy with his team’s performance in the game.  “It was not the outcome we wanted, but I believe we needed it.  Everyone is going to bring it against us and we need to be on top of our game, every game,” he said.

          There was no scoring in the game until bottom of the fifth when the Tigers (2-1) put two on the board.  They also scored twice in the sixth off South Central starter Michael Sanders.

          Bowerman says they were patient.  “We were shoutout early in the week by Wynford.  Then up to the fifth inning it was kind of frustrating, but our kids stuck with it.  They listened to us about some situational hitting,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We finally got things put together.  Actually, most of our runs came via errors by them, but we're putting them in play.  That's what I kept telling the kids put the ball in play and good things will happen and that's what we did.”

          Bowerman calls it a good win for them.  “They beat us in the district final last year 1-0 and I think they only lost maybe two or three seniors, so I know they had a lot back.  They are a very solid team, so it was a big win for us,” he said.

Published 4/04/25

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Wynford Edges Seneca East

          Wynford scored in the top of the eighth inning and they outlasted Seneca East (1-0) in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference play on a cold, windy day in suburban Attica.

          Royals coach Tom Smith says it was a true pitcher’s duel.  “Both pitchers were on (Tuesday) night. Brayden Campbell for us went all eight and only threw 96 pitches, so he was obviously very efficient,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We played good defense behind him.  Brady Bloom for Seneca East we knocked him out with a two out base hit that scored the only run.”

          The big it for the Royals (2-1,1-0) came from freshman Reed Johnson.  “A freshman playing third base for us got a nice big hit, so he felt pretty good after the game,” said Smith.

          Campbell went all eight for Wynford allowing only three hits while striking out 12.  Bloom was outstanding too, going seven and two thirds, giving up five hits, walking four and striking out eight on the night.

          Seneca East (1-1,0-1) coach Rick Bowerman says they just weren’t able to get anything going with the bats.  “Just a great pitching performance by both pitchers.  We weren’t able to get anything going offensively, but Brady Bloom’s pitching kept us in the game.  Campbell kept pounding the strike zone, keeping his pitch count down.  We weren’t able to square up many balls and the ones we did were in the air and into a stiff wind.  In games like this, the team with the fewest mistakes usually wins and that was the case (Tuesday) night.  A walk and an error led to Wynford’s only run.”

          On a day like Tuesday it can be tough to stay focused, but Smith says his kids did a good job of keeping their minds on the task at hand.  “I thought our kids stayed focused and the whole game.  Like I said, they played really good defense and made some good plays out in the field.  Obviously, so did Seneca East to have a game go extra innings 0-0.  So, it was a great defensive game and a couple pitchers that were throwing strikes.  It was a good ball game,” said Smith.

Published 4/02/25

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Seneca East with Promise

          Seneca East will open the baseball season with some promise this year even though they have a lot to replace for last year’s squad.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says the terrific weather they have had this week has put everyone in a good mood.  “It brightens everybody's day there.  You get in the gym and after a week or so kids get bored with that and we need to get outside and see live pitching and run the bases and do some live stuff.  Everybody likes that, you get a lot more done, that's for sure,” he said.

          The Tigers finished fourth in the competitive Northern 10 Athletic Conference last season.

          Bowerman says they lost some key guys to graduation, but they return some quality players too.  “Looking at our team, I like what I see.  We lost four strong seniors from last year.  An all-state pitcher and our best hitter, a three year starting catcher, a shortstop and center fielder.  So, we're losing some key positions.  We started usually five sophomores last year.  We have no seniors on our team, so our juniors are going to have to take out leadership role,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We have some experience coming back and they're working hard.  We're not going to be a team that's going to hit 7-8 home runs.  There’s a good chance we're not going to hit a home run all season.  We're not big, but I think we're quick, we're fast, so we're going to have to manufacture runs, play small ball and make sure we do the little things correctly.”

          Pitching wise the Tigers bring back a solid number one starter and Bowerman says they have some other kids to work with.  “We lose our number one arm and probably a guy that threw second in innings. We have Brady Bloom coming back, who was a sophomore last year, and stepped up for us in a big way in the tournament.  He got beat our district final game as a pitcher, but we lost 1-0 on an unearned run.  So, that showed me there's a lot of promise there.  Some other juniors that got a few innings last year, but they're working hard and getting better.  So, it's going to be the key to our season if we get consistent pitching day in and day out.  At least let’s pound the strike zone, make the other team beat you, and don't give away free runs,” said Bowerman.

Published 3/14/25

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Seneca East to be Tested

          Seneca East will be at “N10” leader Colonel Crawford for a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday.

          They beat Buckeye Central (62-43) in a “N10” game on Saturday night and then Crestline (46-37) in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          They have won four of their last five and coach Anthony Langhurst likes how they are playing.  “We kind of tightened things up on both ends of the floor there.  If we have a couple bad possessions, we try to just make sure we're making adjustments.  Luckily, we have a few practices in between where we kind of highlight a few things we want to clean up in between these games,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “It's just nice that once the season goes on we have got games you know a little bit closer together.  So, we can kind of clean up a few things and just kind of pull the ball out and see how the guys react.”

          Seneca East (14-6,7-5) plays down at Colonel Crawford (16-1,11-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles have won 16 in a row.

          Langhurst knows what they are up against here.  “They're rolling, they’re a buzz saw.  What's nice about it is we're getting close to tournament time.  It's just going to be a nice challenge for our guys.  Those are the type of teams you're going to see if you're going to be successful in the tournament.  They're going to be physical on both ends of the floor.  So, it will be a nice test for us.  It will be a good measuring stick into what we need to kind of clean up when the tournament starts rolling around,” he said.

          Seneca East plays Mohawk (16-1) next week.

          Langhurst says you can’t find better tournament preparation.  “I'm not sure who scheduled these last two games for us to put them back-to-back.  Like I said, we'll see what we can get right and what we get wrong here this Friday.  Then we'll luckily have a full week kind of take a look at some things and make some corrections.  It doesn’t go down as far as the skill, the physicality or the athleticism that Mohawk’s going to bring.  So, it'll be a good test for our guys on the back-to-back weekends,” said Langhurst.

Published 2/07/25

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Seneca East Showing Good Things

          Seneca East will be home for a pair of games in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference this week with Upper Sandusky on Thursday and Buckeye Central on Saturday.

          With a record of (12-5,6-4) coach Anthony Langhurst is pretty proud of the path this team is on.  “You're kind of aware of the record, but then someone kind of set it out loud to me and probably smiled and shook my head a little bit because we weren’t really sure what to expect with the pieces.  The guys are doing a nice job of staying together kind of riding the ups and the downs,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (12-4,6-3) comes calling on Thursday night.  The Rams hammered Wynford (76-41) in a conference game last Friday.

          Langhurst says with their experience and talent, the Rams are an excellent team.  “I put them right up there with Mohawk and Crawford, that's the cream of the crop.  We're trying to claw our way up there to be at that level.  They have got great upperclassmen, great balance, defend really well and I think their biggest strength is that they played together,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “That group has been together for three years in a row.  You just kind of tell they're comfortable with the system that coach (Jeff) Winslow has got there.  They're comfortable with each other, trust each other and they're real deliberate with the ball.  So, it's going to be a tough matchup for us.  We'll be able to hopefully you clean up some things from the first matchup that we had and give them a little better game.”

          Upper won the first game between the two teams (52-34) on December 14.

          Seneca East beat Buckeye (67-46) on December 20 in New Washington.

          Langhurst says the Bucks are good shooters.  “They’re kind of a dangerous team.  They have got some guard play.  They kind of gave us all we needed in the first half.  They shot the ball really well against us at their place.  So, that's going to be definitely something I bring up making sure guys are accounted for, making sure they're not puncturing our zone.  They kind of knocked us on our heels a little bit when they were at their place.  So, I'll make sure I bring that up to the guys and make sure we have a good game plan as far as making sure we locate the shooters and hopefully can attack them defensively,” said Langhurst.

Published 1/30/25

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Seneca East Expects Different Carey

          Seneca East will play host to Carey in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          Right now, the Tigers stand in a share of third place in the conference standings, three games behind Colonel Crawford.

          They beat Bucyrus (48-39) on Saturday in an “N10” game.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they had to make some plays in the end to secure the win.  “We kind of knew that coming in that they're playing probably the best basketball they've played in a couple years.  Guys are getting a lot better.  They found a defense that kind of works for them, shortens the game a little bit.  They have a couple athletes there on the outside playing on the perimeter.  Floyd is getting going too.  He's really efficient.  I'm really impressed with what he could do without really having to force a lot of things.  So, we're just fortunate enough to make a couple big shots. Our role players stepped up.  Just anytime it’s good when you can go on the road in the “N10” and get a “W,” he said.

          Langhurst says winning on the road in the “N10” is always tough no matter where it is. “The other team they have got some you know comfortability there.  Their fans are at you.  There's an unfamiliarity with the floor and everything.  So, just takes you out of your comfort zone.  If you can see the ball go in a few times that helps some.  We started off the game pretty decent.  I think we only had like a one point lead, but I felt good about the way we were playing.  Going into halftime, we stretched the lead out a little bit.  It’s a credit to Bucyrus, they just kept battling and won the third quarter.  Like I said, luckily we just made enough clutch plays in the fourth quarter to extend our lead and win at the end,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (10-4,6-3) host Carey (3-9,3-4) on Friday.  The Blue Devils taken to the woodshed (72-36) by second place Mohawk on Saturday.  Seneca East won the first meeting between the two (72-51) on December 12.

          Langhurst expects a close game this time.  “Those scores are a little bit deceiving because they're playing against some really good competition.  I think we were fortunate playing early in the season.  Probably still playing on some football legs.  They weren’t shooting ball particularly well at that point.  They're going to be a completely different team, so luckily we have them at home this time around,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “It’s tough playing at their place.  Hopefully, we can play like we did the first time against them.  We had some role players step up and play real well.  Justin Reiter did some nice things for us.  Lucas Bordner had a big game too.  So, hopefully those guys can have the kind of same kind of production they had before.  Luke Mason can get going a little bit and we can keep their guards and their bigs under control.”

Published 1/21/25

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Seneca East Moving in the Right Direction

          Seneca East travels to Bucyrus to face the Redmen on Friday night in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The Tigers (9-4,5-3) have won three its last four games, including (66-49) win over Wynford last Saturday.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says the players have bought into some new things they are introducing.  “The kids are playing good basketball.  We're trying to do a couple different things offensively and defensively to keep guys contributing on both ends of the floor.  We are throwing some new things at them and the guys are picking it up.  We're just taking advantage of some of the game time and working through some things hopefully so that way we're playing good once tournament time rolls around,” said Langhurst.

          A couple of kids in Bryler Beamer and Justin Reiter, who didn’t play last year when the Tigers went to the regional tournament, have made an impact.  Langhurst they have brought a lot to the table.  “I think the athleticism and physicality that Bryler Beamer and Justin Reiter give us are key.  Good guard play can take you so far, but you have got to get rebounds and defend.  It's a physical conference, so Bryler does some really nice things defensively and he's been pretty consistent scoring wise,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Justin's been pretty solid, just doesn't really make a whole lot of mistakes and does some really nice things defensively rebounding the basketball.  Without those guys we definitely would be a completely different team.  So, it's nice to see those guys contributing.”

          Bucyrus just won their first game of the season on Thursday night in beating Buckeye Central (56-44) on Thursday in an “N10” game.

          Langhurst says they will come in Saturday with some confidence.  “They were playing with some confidence (Thursday).  They played at home and won and got their first conference win.  So, they're going to be back at home on Saturday against us and feeling pretty good.  They have got really good athletes at the guard position.  So, we're going to have to stay locked and hopefully locate shooters and try to do some good things on offense moving the ball around and hopefully put the ball in the hole more than they do,” said Langhurst.

Published 1/17/25

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Seneca East Wants to Force the Issue

          Seneca East will be home for Wynford on Saturday night in play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The game was originally scheduled for Friday, but was moved so as not conflict with the Cotton Bowl.

          The Tigers were beaten last Saturday (64-45) by unbeaten Mohawk.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they kept battling in the game.  “We'll see who the best team going through the first round is, but it's between Mohawk and Crawford at this point and they played like that at our place.  They have got good balance.  They have got Flood inside, Boomer (Cleveland) runs their offense really well, their shooters were there shooting really well, we lost Haynes a few times there.  So, they had good balance.  Hayman was getting to the rim.  So, we just had a hard time and had a couple of defensive breakdowns, but I was kind of happy with the way our team competed.  We kind of got punched in the mouth there in the first quarter and then kind of made it a game at halftime and Mohawk just made a few more plays than we did the second half,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says are definitely some things they can take away from their performance against Mohawk.  “That was really encouraging because we could have definitely folded.  There are some teams at Seneca East that may have done that in the past, but our guys kind of buckled down and made a few plays offensively, did just enough defensively to kind of give us a chance.  I was really proud of them being down, I think it was like 19-3, to kind of just say hey man let's get a few stops here.  I liked the leadership there that a lot of the guys, Lucas Bordner, and the other seniors showed as far as keeping guys engaged and making plays on both ends,” he said.

          Seneca East (8-4,4-3) plays host to Wynford (1-8,1-6) on Saturday.  This is actually the second meeting of the season between the two schools.  Seneca East won (59-40) on December 21.

          Langhurst says their game plan will be consistent.  “It's a funky way to season's gone.  We played them, just feels like a week or so ago, but that's going to be like a makeup game from divisions going to seven and then bumping everything back around.  So, we're familiar with them.  I'm sure I'll watch a couple more of their games more recent games here, just kind of see,” he told Swankonports.com on Monday night, “We're going to probably see a lot of the same things we saw before.  They're pretty explosive at the guard position.  See what kind of new wrinkles they have got ready for us.  We'll attack them the same way we did the previous game and kind of see if can speed them up and make some bad decisions and hopefully our offense can click a little bit.”

Published 1/07/25

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Seneca East Preparing for a Lot

          Seneca East plays two more games this week as the Tigers play at New London on Thursday in a non-conference game and host the co-leading Mohawk Warriors in Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Saturday.

          After losing to the other co-leader Colonel Crawford (62-47) on Friday, the Tigers rebounded to smoke Danbury-Lakeside (84-45) in non-league play Saturday.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they responded pretty well Saturday.  “I thought the kids did a nice job.  A little bit sloppy in a couple areas.  So, challenged guys make sure we were boxing out.  Our shots weren't falling, so wanted our guys to attack the rim a little bit more.  I thought after a timeout and after halftime, we came out a little bit more focused on what we needed to do as far as what was working and what wasn't working.  The final was a little bit spread out there, but I think that Danbury was playing pretty hard and gave us a pretty tough match there they just kind of ran out of gas the second half,” he said.

          New London (0-7) has struggled out of the gate.  They lost (73-53) to Plymouth in a Firelands Conference game last Friday.

          Langhurst says the Wildcats will show them a lot of things.  “Coach (Tom) Howell does a great job.  I had a lot of respect for him when he was at Buckeye Central.  His group's getting better once they get a little bit more comfortable with him, what he's trying to do.  He mixes up the defenses a lot and tries to keep you off balance.  It’s just one of those things where we'll be on the road after the holidays, so it's going to be one of those things where we have to get up ourselves and just kind of take care of business.  We know if we're not playing good on any given night anybody can knock us off.  So, we'll harp on and try to stay focused and make sure we take care of business.  Then kind of focus on the Mohawk game after that one ends,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (7-3,4-2) plays at home against Mohawk (6-0,4-0) on Saturday night.  The Warriors have not allowed more than 30 points to be scored against them in the last three games.

          Langhurst says they are just an outstanding team.  “Ten seniors, you very rarely see that, if ever.  It's a special group.  It was the first time in football that they've all been kind of healthy and we saw what happened when everybody was on the field together.  They have got great athleticism, great guard play, great shooting,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Connor (Flood) is big inside.  So, there's not a whole lot of places that you can attack them you know offensively.  Defensively they throw a lot of different stuff at you.  We'll take a look at what we can do you know offensively and defensively in the next couple of days and hopefully try to keep it a little bit closer than some of these recent games have been.”

Published 12/31/24

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Seneca East Must Defend

          Seneca East will be on the road this weekend for two Northern 10 Athletic Conference games at Buckeye Central on Friday and at Wynford on Saturday.

          Last Saturday, the Tigers were smoked (52-34) by Upper Sandusky in a conference game.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says Upper played very well that night.  “I just told the guys hey that's an upper tier team.  I kind of thought that going into the season they have four their five starters coming back, so they had a lot of continuity guys were you know familiar with each other and you can see that on the floor passing the ball around well and buying into what coach (Jeff) Winslow was doing defensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “It was always going to be an uphill battle.  They started off and hit some shots and kind of found some holes in our zone.  So, again just told the guys they're going to go through it.  We're trying to kind of see what we have got.  I'm trying to work with my pieces and see where I can put them in their best spot.  We're going to face a couple teams this weekend that all three of us are looking to get right, so it should be some competitive basketball.”

          Seneca East (4-2,2-1) is at Buckeye Central (3-3,1-2) on Friday night.  The Bucks were taken to the woodshed by both Colonel Crawford (85-30) and Mohawk (76-37) in league games last week.

          Langhurst says the Bucks will be out to atone for that and they have very good guards.  “They're going to be hungry.  You play the best teams in the league and there is a chance you can get running clock, no question about it.  I think all the mid tier teams can vouch for that.  I think they're going to be hungry.  They're playing at home and they have got some you know explosive guard play. So, we're going to hopefully make sure our guys are locked in and try to keep the runs to a minimum and hopefully play some good basketball for four quarters,” said Langhurst.

          Wynford (0-4,0-3) has gotten off to a slow start.  Langhurst says this is another team with solid guards.  “They're kind of the same way.  They have got a couple of explosive guard pieces.  Some younger guys and I thought they played pretty well against Upper Sandusky and got some shots.  So, it’s one of those things where we're going to have to kind of lock in and stay focused.  It's going to be a back-to-back.  So, we're going to have to stay kind of locked in and keep our legs as healthy as we can.  It's kind of locate shooters, make sure guys don't go off and make it hard for guys to get open clean looks,” he said.

Published 12/20/24

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Seneca East Must Execute against Physical Play

          Seneca East hits the road for a pair of tough games in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference this week as they are at Carey on Thursday and at Upper Sandusky on Saturday.

          They won their conference opener last Friday (68-50) over Bucyrus.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says it was a good team win.  “That was kind of the focus postgame in the locker room to hey man were 1-0.  Had a nice bounce back game.  I thought that was good to see the kids after taking a tough loss.  It was mostly a team victory.  Guys were making extra passes and it helps when we’re knocking down shots and the other teams is not.  Just good to get back in the win column,” he said.

          Seneca East (3-1,1-0) is at Carey (0-2,0-0) on Thursday night.  The Blue Devils have a new coach in Zach Bame and are coming off a (54-28) loss to Liberty-Benton on Saturday.

          Langhurst says Carey is going to be physical.  “For those football schools it's kind of the same story.  It takes them a little while to gel and get through and get their basketball legs under them.  A new coach and I'm sure coach (Zach) Bame is still trying to figure out where all the pieces fit.  What you know about Carey is it's a tough place to play.  They have got physical kids, they have got hardnosed kids, they like the physicality, they're going to play you know really good man to man defense and they rebound the ball well.  Some new faces, but you know we're expecting a pretty decent battle (Thursday) night,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says they are going to see a lot of the same things from Upper Sandusky (1-1,0-1) on Saturday.  “They're bringing back a lot of guys from last year.  You could kind of tell toward the end of the season last year it started clicking for them.  There's a lot of parallels between their defense and Carey’s.  So, we're going to see some tight man to man defense and very physical,” he told Swankpnsports.com on Wednesday evening, “They have got they got some nice pieces and their system.  When guys are trapped guys instinctively rotate.  Coach (Jeff) Winslow has done a nice job of making sure all those guys kind of know their roles and everything.  So, definitely it'll be interesting, we’ll know a lot about the Seneca East Tigers here after a couple of tough road tests.”

Published 12/12/24

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Seneca East With a Double Weekend

          Seneca East jumps right into it with a double weekend to open the season by hosting Monroeville on Friday and traveling to South Central on Saturday for non-conference games.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst hopes they just play as hard as they can.  “I'll have a little bit of uneasiness until the ball goes up, but I feel like our guys are going to play hard and that's really at the start of the season kind of really I think what all of the coaches are hoping for are guys that are just giving their best effort as the game and the season goes on and you kind of tweak things and make adjustments,” he said.

          Langhurst says Monroeville has some big guys that will be tough for them to match up with.  “I got a little bit of film on them.  They have got some really good size.  They have got about two or three 6’5” guys they could throw in there and they're pretty thick and they have got some good athletes.  So, just one of those things where we're not really big, so it will kind of test our weakness early to see if we can rebound the basketball.  Hopefully, our guards can speed their guys up into some favorable situations for us.  So, it'll be an interesting contrast in what both teams are going to try to do on Friday,” said Langhurst.

          When it comes to South Central, Langhurst knows they will play hard and both teams will not shy away from the three.  “(Coach) Dallas (Yost) got those guys playing really hard.  We watched them and played a little bit with them over at Willard over the summer and he's coaching those guys up.  They're playing really, really hard.  You go back through the through the years all those kids are usually pretty tough.  They have kind of got an edge to them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “I wouldn't expect anything different from those guys.  Dallas played there, so he's kind of got that edge too.  So, expecting those guys to be kind of be hardnosed and get after it.  I think they're a little guard oriented, so might see a few three balls there on both sides there for both teams.  So, hopefully an entertaining game on both nights.”

Published 11/28/24

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Seneca East Has Good Guards

          Seneca East shared the Northern 10 Athletic Conference title last season and reached the regional tournament for the first time in school history and they return two of the best guards in the league.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says he is very happy to have both Lucas Bordner and Lucas Mason.  “We graduated a lot.  We had a lot of good senior leadership and we lost a lot of big bodies, but the good thing is we're returning, in my opinion, our top two skill guys and Lucas Bordner and Lucas Mason.  We have got a couple guys that played JV last year they'll step in and do some nice things for us on a spot basis.  We have got some guys that are new faces.  They're hopefully going to be hungry.  We've lost some big guys, but I think we have got a little bit of speed that might be able to offset that,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says he is trying to get his team in shape.  He already knows they have very good chemistry.  “It’s kind of hard to assess this early, but you know trying to get those football guys, they had a great season, won a playoff games, we're trying to still get those guys into basketball shape,” he told Swankopnsports.com on Tuesday night, “Really harping on getting reps and getting up and down the floor a little bit.  What I like about this group, the senior group, they're pretty cohesive, they talk a lot, they enjoy being around each other and they're talking a lot on the floor.  So, having a good time that was a successful recipe for us last year, so I'm hoping that kind of follows us again this year.”

          The Tigers open the season next weekend with two games against Firelands Conference opponents Monroeville on Friday and South Central on Saturday.

          Langhurst says whatever they face he has confidence in his guards.  He says that was proven last year.  “I would never tell my guys this, but there were some games last year where I was a little nervous, but you know I would go into that locker room and I look at Lucas Bordner and Lucas Mason and I just know those guys are going to be ready to play.  We had some seniors that just enjoyed playing the game and didn't really matter who the opponent was.  So, any uneasiness, once you have a couple good guards that kind of goes away once the ball gets tipped up,” he said.

Published 11/20/24

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Seneca East is Confident

          Seneca East, of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, will be just down the road at Hopewell-Loudon, winner of the “SBC” River, in regional quarterfinal in division VI on Friday night.

          In their first playoff game they routed Western Reserve (56-20) in Collins.

          Coach Ed Phillips calls it their best performance of the year.  “I think that was our best game this year because it was a good football team we beat and we took it to them.  The week before in a loss to Mohawk, we did a lot of really good things there, just didn't finish the job.  So, I really do think we're playing our best football right now and that's where you want to be,” said Phillips.

          Quarterback Nicholas Parks threw two touchdown passes and ran for another in the win over Western.

          Seneca East (7-4) is at Hopewell-Loudon (10-0) on Friday night.  The Chieftains hammered Margaretta (43-8) last week.

          Phillips says they are very good in the trenches.  “They're really good up front.  They're offensive and defensive lines are very good and then they have good skill behind it, but I think with them it starts up front,” he said.

          In many of their games, the Chieftains put it away very early.

          Phillips says they can’t let them build and early lead.  “I think they probably think the same thing about us right now, which should make it a pretty exciting game.  I think they feel that way and I feel that way.  If I'm picking a game to go to Friday night that's where I'm going,” he said.

          The Tigers scored three times in the first quarter last week and led (37-6) at the half.  Hopewell led (37-0) at the intermission.

          Phillips says they have establish control of the point of attack on Friday.  “We have win up front.  One reason I think we're playing our best football right now is our guys up front have really improved as we've gone through the year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “I told them (Wednesday) when we left practice, I said you can tell really good offensive line by just listening.  I said you can close your eyes and you can hear the snap count hear the ball snapped and if you have got a great offensive line you can hear it.  You just hear the pop and our guys are popping right now.  I know their guys are too, which makes it an exciting game Friday night.”

Published 11/07/24

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Seneca East to Meet Speedy Western

          Seneca East will be up at Western Reserve in a division VI first round playoff game on Friday night.

          They played Mohawk in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference championship game last week, but lost (28-13) on Friday.

          Coach Ed Phillips says it’s time to move on.  “I think it's what you would have expected out of a championship game.  Two great teams slugging it out.  Unfortunately, we didn't come out on top, but we put ourselves in a position that we could have,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “Now just onward and upward to the playoffs.  If you don't win the conference a good consolation is getting in the playoffs and have an opportunity to go out and be successful there and that's what we're looking forward to.”

          Seneca East (6-4) is at Western Reserve (7-3) in an eight, nine game on Friday night. Western finished in a share of third in the Firelands Conference.

          Phillips says Riders offense tries to spread you out and create mismatches.  “They spread you out and they've got a quarterback and a couple backs that can run the ball very well, but then they will throw it also.  They've got speed kind of across the board at the receiver spots and like I said in the backfield.  They’re dual threat this year, that's for sure,” he said.

          Phillips says on defense, the Roughriders also count on their speed.  “The nice thing is that it was schematically for us they run some stuff pretty similar to what Mohawk does.  So, when your offensive line can see something similar from one week to the next that's a good thing.  The same thing they’re built on offense they are built on defense, that's their speed,” said Phillips.

Published 10/31/24

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Fundamentals the Difference for Seneca East

          Seneca East hosts Mohawk in what amounts to the Northern 10 Athletic Conference championship game in Attica on Friday night.

          It’s winner take all as the two schools sit atop the conference standings with on loss each.

          Seneca East last won a “N10” title in 2019.  Mohawk was the winner the year before in 2018.

          Tigers coach Ed Phillips says this is almost like a movie script.  “It's like you write the script to be playing in the game like this and against Mohawk.  I think that makes it even more special because they're a good rival of us.  I think both of us have believed in ourselves all year long and now I think other people look around and they believe also,” said Phillips.

          Seneca East (6-3,5-1) overwhelmed Bucyrus (59-6) last week.  Meanwhile, Mohawk (7-3,5-1) got past three time defending champion Carey (27-14) in a battle of rivals.

          Phillips says the teams are very similar in their makeup and what they like to do on the field.  “They are really balanced.  These two teams are so much alike in terms of offensively they run the ball and throw the ball,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “Defensively they play physical football.  They're well coached, so it's just a great match up.”

          Nick Parks of Seneca East and Ben Bogner of Mohawk are the two leading passers in the conference.  Plus, both have a number of good targets.

          However, Phillips says this game will come down to fundamentals.  “The basic stuff.  They always say it comes down to that, but blocking and tackling and taking care of the football.  I have no doubt that's what this game will come down to,” he said.

Published 10/24/24

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Seneca East Likes Playing Football

          Seneca East, one of three leaders in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, is over at winless Bucyrus in a conference game on Friday night.

          The Tigers (5-3,4-1) bounced back from their only conference loss the week before to Colonel Crawford (21-20) to hammer Buckeye Central (56-21) last Friday.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they came out on fire.  “The kids were really good and the coaches were really good.  They came out and they didn't mess around.  They made a statement.  I think we put 29 up in the first quarter and then continued to play really well in the second.  Then the other thing that I weas really pleased with at the end of the game, the young guys came in and they closed it out and executed stuff and played really well on their parts also,” said Phillips.

          Bucyrus (0-8,0-5) was blasted (48-12) by Wynford last week in “N10” action.

          Phillips says they have a very good back in Dernias Munn-Page and he says he respects the Bucyrus program.  “They’ve got some good skill guys.  They have got a running back that's a really good football player and does good job for them.  He is a lot like the other running backs you see in the league and a tough kid,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “I give kids like that a lot of credit and coaches like that a lot of credit.  It hasn't been a good year for them, but they're still different than a lot of other people in the world who don't have the courage to stick with it or to come out do it in the first place.  So, a lot of credit to their kids.”

          The Tigers play Mohawk, one of the other leaders next week, but Phillips says they are not about to let this be a trap game.  “Our kids are focused, their having fun, they enjoy football, they practice really well and really hard no matter what the circumstance, so it's been a good week,” he said.

Published 10/17/24

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Seneca East Battling Adversity

          Seneca East, a game back in the race in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, will be down at Buckeye Central in a conference game this week.

          It’s a trophy game, “The Battle for the Paddle”.

          Last week, the Tigers (4-3,3-1) lost their first “N10” of the season when Colonel Crawford scored near the end to beat then (21-20) last Friday night.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they have responded emotionally from that loss.  “We talk about if you handle failure correctly that that it can make you better than you ever were before.  We did that once this year and we feel like that's part of the process of being good at whatever you're doing is handling what comes at you,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “The kids have handled it and I think that we're better than ever.  We would rather go without that, but that's life.  Moving forward you know the kids have done a great job and are ready to roll this week.”

          Phillips says they have had good practices this week and he is not surprised by that fact.  “I've got a great team, coaches and kids.  They know how to handle things and we talk about having events and responding and then they respond the way you expect a great group of people to do it,” he said.

          Buckeye Central (2-5,1-3) lost (56-7) to Carey last week.

          Phillips says they do some good things.  “They've got some good playmakers.  They like to throw the ball around and they do it pretty well.  They don't throw a lot of formations at you.  They try to get their guys in space a lot like we do and they do a good job of improvising at times.  So, there's something to be dealt with,” said Phillips.

Published 10/11/24

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Seneca East Has to be Disciplined

          Seneca East shares the lead in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference and they play at home against Colonel Crawford in a big conference game on Friday night.

          The Eagles trail the Tigers and Mohawk by a game.

          Last week, Seneca East held off Upper Sandusky (14-7) to remain in first place.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they had to win a game like that.  “We had to have a game like that.  We had to go through some things where we had bad conditions and did what we had to do to win.  We didn't do it week three against Monroeville.  You go through it, that's one thing, but if you learn from it then then it meant something.  So, we took the week three that wasn't a good one for us and made it mean something by handling our business on Friday night against Upper in pretty much the same conditions,” said Phillips.

          Seneca East (4-2,3-0) will entertain Colonel Crawford (5-1,2-1) on Friday.  They smoked Bucyrus (58-6) last week.  Their only loss game three weeks ago (35-7) to Mohawk.

          Phillips says the Eagles are versatile.  “They're obviously a good football team.  You just look at schools with tradition and when they step on the field you can see they do what they do.  They’re going to come out and want to run the football and put their athletes off the perimeter and then they'll throw it to them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday afternoon, “Defensively, they're tough and fast.  So, they're a great challenge and something that we're excited for Friday night.”

          Colonel Crawford uses two quarterbacks in Peyton Baker and Brayden Holt, both with more than 400 yards passing.

          Plus, Phillips says they have a lot of guys to get the ball to.  “They've got a lot of guys that caught passes.  They'll throw it out on the edges to their split ends, they have got some slots that catch the ball, and tight ends.  They put their backs into the passing routes as much as anybody we see.  So, they make you be disciplined and cover all your bases,” he said.

Published 10/01/24

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Seneca East Has to Move Forward

          Seneca East broke Carey’s 27 game Northern 10 Athletic Conference win streak last Friday in beating the Blue Devils (34-31), but they can’t rest on their laurels.

          Friday night, they host Upper Sandusky in a conference game.

          Nick Parks found Taylor Young for the winning touchdown with 1:34 to play in the contest last week.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they were really outstanding in all phases of the game.  “It was fantastic that's for sure.  We knew that we were capable of winning big games, but you have got to go out and do it and they certainly won a big one on Friday night,” he said.

          Parks threw for 384 yards and three touchdowns.  Young had 158 yards receiving and two scores.

          Phillips says they have to still strive to get better and he believes they are doing that.  “I'm a true believer in momentum and we do have to build off that and I'm also a true believer that you can't be too happy about it because a happy football team is not a good football team.  We've got to find that balance between getting the ball rolling and being too happy with ourselves,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “I think the kids have found that.  We had just a great practice.  It was maybe the best of our season.  That's what we have got to do.  We just got to keep every night getting a little bit better and that will take care of everything else.”

          Seneca East (3-2,2-0) is at home for Upper Sandusky (2-3,1-1) on Friday.  The Rams beat Wynford (37-20) last week in conference play.

          Phillips says this is a team that can score quick and they are dangerous.  “They went out and played really well against Wynford and made the plays they have to.  They're a lot like us.  They have got some skill on the perimeter, in the backfield on offense.  Then defensively, they're very aggressive and they've got good speed there and some playmakers.  So, they're certainly a really good football team right now,” said Phillips.

Published 9/25/24

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Seneca East to Face Balanced Carey

          Seneca East takes the bus to Carey to face the Blue Devils in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          They smoked Wynford (36-15) last week.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they got better as the game went along.  “We did some nice stuff.  It was a good night, fun night.  I guess one thing that made it even better is we started a little slow.  They came out playing really well and we weren't really clicking on offense.  Then as we got into the second and then really third and fourth quarter, we did some really good things both sides of the ball.  I'm going to be honest, we've struggled against their run game the last couple of years and we played it as well as we've played it in a while,” said Phillips.

          Seneca East (2-2,1-0) is at Carey (1-3,1-0) on Friday night.  Carey opened defense of their title in the “N10” with a (40-3) thrashing of Upper Sandusky.

          Phillips believes both teams are prepared for league play.  “Their non league is tough, they don't play any slouches.  They played tough and all their games too against Lima Central Catholic and Galion and also Hopewell.  I feel like our non league was pretty good too and it got you ready for the league.  So, a big showdown here on Friday for both of us I think,” he said.

          Carey traditionally has been a very good run team, but Phillips says really they are pretty balanced.  “They want to run the ball.  I've said this for a while now you know they want to run the ball they're very good at it, but in recent years they've also become very effective throwing the football, which makes them even more formidable,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Then defensively they just throw a lot of speed out there.  They put a lot speed on the field from the defensive line and to the secondary.  So, that’s what you have to combat there.”

Published 9/19/24

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Seneca East Has to Avoid Turnovers

          Seneca East will be at home for the Wynford Royals in play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday might.

          The Tigers (1-2) lost to Firelands Conference power Monroeville (36-13) last week.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they made some key mistakes.  “It was kind of a game of missed opportunities.  We gave them some bonus opportunities because for the bulk of the game we played extremely well.  We turned the ball over a couple times in the red zone and gave them a really short field in about two minutes span the first half and if not for that we're in much different shape, but that is what it is,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “We have to eliminate those things because in our two losses that is what has gotten us.  We did make on the kind of objective side of it we did make good progress.  I would say improved pretty significantly in a lot of things defensively.  Now, we just have to come back this week against Wynford and put the whole package together again like we did week one.”

          Wynford (1-2) won their first game of the season last week outscoring Western Reserve (33-22) in a non-league game.

          Phillips says they certainly earned that win.  “They kind of put it all together against Western you know and played really well in adverse conditions.  They played really well.  They want to run the football and do really good job of it.  They have a really good team,” he said.

          Last week, Seneca East made two turnovers and Phillips says they have to cut down on those.  “That was one of the frustrating things about the Monroeville game is we through at time we controlled the game until the fourth quarter then that was the one quarter where I'd say they were probably more physical than us.  Again, we just have to take better care of the football and because that's a key too.  When the other teams get extra possessions too that wears on you a little bit.  We definitely cannot do that against Wynford.  In terms of being more physical than them up front that's key and also we need to be on the positive side of the take away ratio to come out and do what we want to do on Friday night,” said Phillips.

Published 9/10/24

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Fundamentals for Seneca East

          Seneca East is up at Monroeville to challenge the Eagles in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          They are coming off a (56-34) loss to Gibsonburg last week in a game where there were almost a combined 900 total yards.  The Golden Bears rans for 394 on the night.

          Coach Ed Phillips says it was a night when their aggression got them in trouble.  “It came down to, Gibsonburg is a really good football team with some really good backs, but we also had our eyes a lot of times where our eyes didn't belong.  When you do that against team that handles the ball well you get yourself out of position a lot.  I told the kids on Saturday watching film it was really some of the best film that I've ever watched with kids in the sense that if you really took advantage of it, you learn a lot from it,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “We're pretty young in some of the key spots and we're very aggressive, but against a team like that that can keep you out of spots sometimes and it did.  They made some really good plays too.  Offensively, we hurt ourselves a couple times or probably would have been like a 56-56 game going to overtime.  I may have been in another game like that, but neither team punted.  So, it was quite a game to be involved.  Then you throw in the conditions being so hot.  The credit goes to both teams and players making as many plays as they did and handling the heat like that.”

          Monroeville (2-0) beat Tiffin Calvert (26-9) last week.  They are going to be contenders in the Firelands Conference this year.

          Phillips says the Eagles are going to have fire in their eyes.  “They're pretty confident team right now as they should be.  It's a good challenge for us and we're excited about it,” he said.

          Phillips says they have to be disciplined on defense.  “We really have to be physical up front.  We've just got to read our keys better and be in the right spots defensively and if we do that it should be a good game all night long,” said Phillips.

Published 9/05/24

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Seneca East Has to Stop the Run

          Seneca East will be at home for the first time this year as they host the Gibsonburg Golden Bears in a non-conference game outside Attica.

          Last week, the Tigers beat Crestview (35-20) in their first game of the season.

          They scored four straight times in the first half.

          Coach Ed Phillips says after a review of the film it was an outstanding performance.  “It still looks pretty good.  It’s one that you can still feel pretty good about.  The kids just played really well after the second play of the game when we allowed a long touchdown.  They really focused and zeroed in and I think got the jitters out and played really well both ways,” said Phillips.

          Phillips says the week in practice they have been trying to get better.  “It's been really good yeah.  I think it helps to playing Gibsonburg because they got us last year and that still stings a little bit and we know they're very good football team too, which you know gets your attention equally.  So, yeah it's been a good week,” he said.

          Gibsonburg whipped Ottawa Hills (26-7) last week.

          Phillips says they know they are going to have to stop the run.  “They like running the football over there.  They have some good backs and it's just what they do.  They're one of these programs that that's what they do.  They had the Smith boy a couple years ago that he ran for all kinds of yards and now they have got his brother and some other guys are really good football players.  They're good up front.  On defense, they're really aggressive and they have good team speed on defense.  So, they’re certainly a challenge.”

Published 8/30/24

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Seneca East Looks for Physical Matchup

          Seneca East is at Crestview on Friday night in a battle between two teams that want to run the football and be physical at the point of attack.

          With it being the opening night of the season coach Ed Phillips says everyone is excited, “Kids are, coaches are, I think fans are.  It’s one of the most exciting times of the year for I think everybody that has a kid that is involved in high school football in one way or another,” he said.

          Phillips agrees that there are a lot of unknowns about week one and that makes it exciting.  “It’s one of those things that we've done it for this long and you don't think about it a whole lot, but probably more so than any other time of year because by the time you get to even the playoffs you have so much film on people by then you know who they are,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “There's a lot of unknown out there for everybody.  That's what makes it exciting and that's what makes it fun for the players, fun for the coaches when you go in and if you do have to make a change and we have faith in our kids they can handle that and that's an exciting part and exciting position to kind of be in.”

          Seneca East won this matchup (21-12) last season.

          Phillips calls this a typical Crestview football team that’s going to be tough and physical.  “They're always tough and physical and they have got a lot of skill back from last year.  Anytime you play a Crestview football team they're going to come out and be physical, smack you in the mouth kind of team.  Coach (Steve) Haverdill has them doing that again this year.  I like to think that we're that way, which makes for a good old backyard brawl,” said Phillips.

Published 8/23/24

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It’s About Blocking and Tackling at Seneca East

          Seneca East is another team in the good and balanced Northern 10 Athletic Conference that is looking forward to a good year.

          They lost quarterback Blake Foos to graduation, but they bring a lot of talent back from a year ago when they went (5-6) on the season.  Foos was second in the conference in total offense.  Nick Parks is expected to be the quarterback this year.

          They scrimmaged last Saturday against Hopewell-Loudon and coach Ed Phillips says they saw some good and bad.  “It was a good week for us.  We had a good scrimmage against Hopewell.  A great test for us.  I think we got what we wanted out of our first scrimmage in the sense that we had some good stuff happening.  Some stuff that can open their eyes and see how we can get better at this.  Then we followed up with a really good week of great practice,” said Phillips.

          Phillips believes they will really grow from the that first scrimmage.  In fact, they already have.  “Sometimes you don't get those moments of practice because going against yourselves you don't always expose a weakness.  When you go against somebody else they kind of expose where you may have to get a little bit better and that was the case.  Just like I said, a really good teaching tool for us and I think it's been very productive,” he said.

          The Tigers will scrimmage Kansas Lakota on Thursday.  They open the season at Crestview on August 23.

          Before next week, Phillips says they have to be more sound in their execution on both sides of the ball.  “We just have to be more assignment sound.  The good thing was early in the scrimmage we missed some assignments and then the second time around with stuff we were better.  We have to be assignment sound and just continue to tackle better.  We had we had some moments where we didn't tackle real well, but overall we were pretty sound defensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “Those are a couple keys.  I think the more assignment sound you get the better you tackle on defense and the better you obviously block on offense.  It truly does just come down to that, so I think that's two spots where we just want to continue to get better and I think we will.”

Published 8/15/24

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Seneca East Holds Off Mohawk

          Seneca East built a six run lead and then had to hold on for dear life to edge Mohawk (8-7) Wednesday afternoon in a division IV district semifinal at Galion High School.

          They will play South Central, a (12-3) winner over Plymouth in the night cap, on Friday evening in the district final.

          Caden Fritz went the distance of the Tigers to get the win on a day when he was not at the top of his game.  “Sometimes you don't have your best stuff and he didn't have his best stuff (Wednesday), but he's our ace and we're going to go with him.  There toward the end, he just kind of bent down and said hey I'm going to do this and we got it done,” said Seneca East Coach Rick Bowerman.

          The Tigers had six stolen bases and Mohawk had five errors and at least four wild pitches or passed balls.

          Bowerman says they were able to take advantage.  “It was good early in the game we put some runs on the board early.  We were aggressive on the base paths and took advantage of some mistakes they made and played some good defense, but then the middle innings our defense kind of let us down.  We dropped fly ball, we don't communicate another fly ball and we give them four easy runs and shouldn't have,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “When you get to this point in the tournament you are going to face good teams.  The last time Fritz threw against them I think they had three hits.  They made adjustments and he doesn't have his best stuff, so that’s when the other players have to step up.  We did just enough to get the win,”

          Seneca East (16-13) scored twice in the top of the first on an RBI single by Fritz and a run scoring double by Nathan Parks.  Then added two more in the second when Jackson Geyheart reached on an error, Blake Foos singled and stole a base, putting runners on second and third and lead off hitter Aiden Hines delivered a two run single.  It became (7-1) after two a half when the Tigers got three more.  There was a hit batter, two walks, and a two run single by Foos.

          Mohawk coach Zach Hawkins says they got themselves behind with some mistakes, but he says they never gave up.  “We put (Brayden) Chester out there.  I wanted my senior leader out there and he didn't have his best stuff and then the defense behind him definitely didn't help out.  If we catch a flyball and we probably limit a couple of those runs and then our catcher didn't have his best up behind the plate, but the kids absolutely rallied.  It's really easy there down 7-1 to pout and quit and they didn't allow that to happen you know off of Fritz who's got a 1.00 ERA all year long.  They battled and put good at bats together all day long and gave themselves a really good chance there at the end to tie it up or take the lead.  So, I'm extremely proud of their fight it would have been easy to quit there for sure,” said Hawkins.

          The Warriors (19-7) got the tying run on base in the seventh inning, but couldn’t get him in.

          Bowerman says they were aggressive and that led to some runs for the Tigers.  “Our plan is we want to be aggressive on the base paths and we did that and put pressure on them and led to some runs for us,” he said.

          Bowerman says their start to the game over those first four innings turned out to be the difference.  “The key to the game was our start.  Being able to score each inning for those first four innings put the pressure on them.  Then they got some momentum going there toward the end and put some runs together and make it a close game, but we were able to close it out,” said Bowerman.

          Mohawk really got busy in the bottom of the third when they got four singles from Owen Patrizi, Hunter Haynes, Travis Geary and Chester to cut it to (7-3).  Patrizi singled and Kaleb Bish reached on a dropped fly ball.  Haynes sent them home with a two run single and it was (8-5) after four.  They added two more in the fifth when Kaden Bish was hit by a pitch and Chester walked.  Then Braylan Mullholand drove them home with a single and it was (8-7) Seneca East.

          They was a key moment in the game there in the bottom of the fifth when nobody out an two runners on when Lance Frankart hit a line shot that was caught by Hines at short and then he picked off Mullholand who had strayed too far off third for a double play.

          Hawkins says kids did everything that he could ask to give themselves a chance.  “That’s what we told them all the time.  We knew with Fritz being in there and that we were going to have to be on it.  We've been prepping for that for weeks after we saw him in the in the league a couple weeks ago and then we knew we probably were going to see him here in the district.  So, we've been prepping for it and I'm proud of our kids.  I feel like we were peaking there at the end at the plate.  So, that's all you can ask and we put up seven runs against a pitcher like that I can't be mad at them,” said Hawkins.

Published 5/23/24

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Seneca East Maturing

          Seneca East hammered Plymouth (11-1) in five innings in a non-conference baseball game on Thursday evening.

          Caden Fritz had three hits.  Nathan Parks, Jake Bowerman and freshman Jackson Gayheart had two hits.  Blake Foos had two RBI.

          The Tigers have won four of their last six and coach Rick Bowerman likes the way they are playing.  “We're starting to put things together.  We usually play four sophomores and a freshman, so we're kind of young.  I told him (Wednesday) night, we got kind of a down game against Colonel Crawford, but I let them know you're not freshman and sophomores anymore,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We're 18 games into the season and it's time to step up and play like varsity players.  (Thursday) they responded, we played really well.”

          Right now, the Tigers (9-10,8-3) are tied with Mohawk a game behind first place Upper Sandusky in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.  They play Mohawk on Friday and Monday and Upper next Friday.

          Bowerman says they have a lot to play for.  “I told the guys (Thursday) night, we're still on the league hunt.  Two big games coming up with Mohawk and then with one with Upper.  So, trying to get that momentum going on our side and keep playing well,” said Bowerman.

          Plus, tournament play starts the week after next and Bowerman says they want to take some momentum into the postseason.  “Tournament is coming up very quickly.  Hopefully, the momentum is on our side and we can make a deep run,” he said.

Published 5/03/24

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Seneca East Outscores Wynford

          Seneca East banged out 11 hits and they won at Wynford (9-6) in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference opener for both schools on Tuesday evening.

          Caden Fritz, Jake Bowerman and Braydon Robinson all had RBI in the first inning and the Tigers added two more in the second.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says that start was key for them.  “It sure was, that was huge starting off the game with three consecutive base hits.  We score three in the first, two in the second, it was a big confidence boost, big momentum boost for us,” said Bowerman.

          Wynford had closed to (6-4) after five innings, but the Tigers put up a three spot in the sixth.

          Bowerman says against Wynford you have to keep adding on.  “They're a very good offensive team, so we knew we had to plate some runs early on and get things going,” he said.

          Nathan Parks had three hits on the day.  Fritz and Robinson both had two RBI.

          Fritz got the win in relief, giving up no earned runs over two innings.

          They play at home against Wynford on Wednesday.

          Bowerman says he was pleased to get the game played Tuesday.  He adds the league is going to be competitive again this year.  “You never know what the weather's going to bring.  Early this morning I had my doubts if we were going to play, but fortunately we were able to,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “It's going to be a tough race in the league this year, there are no give me games, that's for sure.”

Published 3/27/24

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Seneca East Counting on Some Young Guys

          Seneca East, who made the regional tournament last year, will have some returning talent, but they are going to need to have some younger players contribute too.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says they have gotten a good look at some of those younger players too.  “I like it, we probably been outside as much or more than we have been inside.  It's been good, we get a chance to look at kids.  Our basketball team made a trip to the regional, so I was out about six players six varsity players until just last week,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “It gives you a really good chance to look at our young kids and I like what I see.  They are hard workers, really working on getting better and they're going to play a big part of our season if we're going to be successful.”

          Earlier this month, Seneca East made its first ever regional tournament and Bowerman hopes they can take that excitement and make it be a benefit in the baseball season.  “It's great for the school and great for the kids.  The kids are excited coming off of a very successful season.  We're just hoping as baseball coaches that excitement and that confidence that they have runs right into baseball season,” he said.

          The Tigers open the season by hosting New Riegel on Saturday in non-league play.  Their opening series in the “N10” will be against Wynford next Tuesday and Wednesday.

          Seneca East has the reputation of very good pitchers.  Two of them have been Northern 10 Athletic Conference player of the year.

          Bowerman says they have the making of a good staff again this season.  “We return three starting pitchers from last year.  Caden Fritz who was an All-Ohio selection is going to be our number one, he's very strong and two of the seniors behind him,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “I think the top of our lineup is really strong.  Then it's going to be can we have some underclassman, we have no juniors on the team.  We have about seven underclassmen vying for some spots.  So, can somebody there step up and provide us with some depth on the mound.”

Published 3/20/24

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Seneca East Going to be Loose

          Seneca East plays defending division IV state champion Richmond Heights in regional semifinal Tuesday night at the Canton Fieldhouse.

          It’s the Tigers first ever appearance in a regional tournament in boys’ basketball.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst wants his players to embrace playing in an old building like the Fieldhouse.  “I think it's kind of cool.  Like a lot of the newer schools now are like kind of cookie cutter.  I kind of like my gyms with a little bit more personality, you know what I'm saying, like the old school gyms kind of appeal to me a little bit.  I know they just got some renovations done.  A whole new scoreboard there in the center and everything, but it's got a lot of history.  So, hoping that the boys after we get there, we get a little chance to kind of take it all in,” he said.

          They will be playing the first game.  Langhurst says he believes they are going to walk on the court ready to play.  “The thing that helped this group that in our first game, our first time, that we played over at districts we were the second game, not to say that my guys weren't going to be ready and we're going to be up for the challenge, but it was nice for them to kind of see the intensity that Crawford and Mansfield Christian played with.  Every single possession, the no calls that were going on, so they could see with their eyes and hey this is another brand of basketball that we have got to be ready for.  So, that kind of helped, but like I said, and I've been saying it all year, I have got a great group of competitors and no matter if we're playing a game at Canon McKinley or if it's an open gym, those guys try to lace them up and try to go out there and get after it,” said Langhurst.

          Richmond Heights waltzed through its district tournament in beating Berlin Center Western Reserve (62-26) and Cornerstone Christian (95-53) on Friday.

          Langhurst says they are not like any other team they have played this year.  “It's a different beast than anything we played against you know in the past this year.  So, great athleticism, good bigs, there's really not one thing you could pinpoint and say okay let's let them do this because they're really good shooters and they crash the boards hard and all that kind of stuff.  So, we're going to try to tweak our zone a little bit, trying to make things hard for them.  We're a dangerous team when we make shots, so if there's any way we can find any open space where guys can create a little bit if we hit some shots we're hoping that we can kind of keep it competitive for however long we can,” said Langhurst.

          Langhurst says they don’t mind the underdogs role.  He says they have been playing that all year long.  “That is king of the sentiment that we've preached to our guys.  We're going to be playing loose, there's nothing for us to be scared of.  They have got all the pressure on them.  It's been like that since day one this year.  A lot of people didn't really expect us to be in contention for the “N10” and all of the sudden you see the season go along and things were starting to go our way.  Obviously, saying the same thing once tournament started,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “They were saying, hey that's a nice regular season story, but Crawford and Lucas, they've been there before and maybe they'll handle business.  It's just nice to see the guys kind of step up when the games were tournament time.  They're obviously different animals, but we're going to play fast and loose.  We have got nothing to lose and our guys are going to be out there running around and playing as hard as they can.”

Published 3/12/2024

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Seneca East Races Past Lucas

          Seneca East held Lucas to just one point for the final 6:25 of the second quarter and the Tigers downed the Cubs (76-66) in a district semifinal in division IV on Tuesday night at Willard High School.

          They return to “House that Haas Built” on Friday night to play Colonel Crawford again in the district final.  The Eagles beat Mansfield Christian (63-59) in the lid lifter on Tuesday night.

          Blake Foos exploded out of the gate Tuesday night as he scored eight of his team night 20 points, on four field goals, in the game’s first 3:27 and the Tigers had a (10-9) lead.

          Seneca East coach Anthony Langhurst says the athletic Foos always plays with a lot of energy.  “I need some of that magic on some of my other players for next game, but again you can kind of tell he's always playing at 100 mph.  Sometimes it's not good, sometimes it gets us in trouble, but you want kids like that that just play as hard as they can.  So, it's just been fun watching him play,” he said.

          Foos finished with 20, Luke Mason added 15, and Aiden Hines and Lucas Bordner both had 13 for the Tigers.

          Langhurst says that kind of balance has been a positive all season for the Tigers.  “That's the way it's been all year.  It's one of those things where guys aren't looking for themselves.  They’re looking for that extra pass.  It's just fun watching this group of guys.  They trust each other and that's something that we preach.  It's the same thing on defense.  You have got to trust your teammate on defense.  So, it's just been a total team effort the whole way through,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East outscored Lucas (20-5) in that second quarter and Cubs coach Taylor Iceman says that has kind of been what their season has been about this year.  “We talked about it, we've kind of done a lot this year.  We come out and play well, we get a little tired and then lose focus on defense and they had a big quarter.  I think we probably played being fairly even the rest of the way, but put yourself in a hole like that, you can't come back from that at this juncture,” he said.

          Lucas (19-6) put together a nice run to the first quarter, outscoring the Tigers (7-0) over the last 1:45 of the quarter to take a (21-14) advantage.
          You don’t win seven straight sectional titles by mailing it in and the Cubs would battle.  They got with six at (63-57) after an Aiden Culler three, but it was not to be.

          Langhurst says they expected that Cubs will ponce and attempt to get themselves back in it.  “That was another talking point, Lucas is not going to roll over you know what I mean.  They've been here and they've have a great tradition.  I told Coach (Taylor) Iceman since I've been at Monroeville, a long time ago, just to watch him, the way he's done with that program is impressive,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win Tuesday night, “If our kids play as hard as his kids you're going to be in a lot of games.  So, it's impressive to watch those guys.  We have got a resilient group.  They're competitors, so I knew that when push came to shove, we'd be able to attack back.”

          Seneca East (20-5) runs a non-typical 1-3-1 zone with match-up principles in it and Iceman says that made it difficult for them.  “It's not like a traditional 1-3-1.  We've seen everything this year.  It’s essentially the same type of deal, they are just going to pack the paint and try and keep you out of there.  It's not a traditional 1-3-1, so you can't do a lot of things that you would normally do against a 1-3-1, but it's a zone so you can't run a lot of your offensive sets.  Again, it forces you to change what you do.  Obviously, if we got to pick, we’d say we want you to play man and we will run our stuff,” he told Swankonsports.com in the locker room after the game, “Early we may jump shots and you know it would give us a lead and then we quit making jump shots and against a zone, especially when they're packing like that you have got to be able to make some jump shots to bring them out, so that you can get to the rim.  We knew we weren't going to shoot it well all night.  I'm glad we shot it well for at least a portion of the night and that gave us a chance.  When you're not shooting then you got to sustain it on the defensive end that much more.  We chose a bad time to do both, not shoot it and not play real great defense.”

          Logan Toms, the Cubs all-time leading scorer, had 24 on Tuesday night.  Fellow senior Aiden Culler added 17.

          Seneca East shared the Northern 10 Athletic Conference title Colonel Crawford and two others and they beat the Eagles twice, (46-40) December 29 at Crawford and (53-44) on February 9 in Attica.

          Langhurst says this one will be tougher.  “To me the boys looked like they even got bigger than the last time we saw them. So, we're going to let the boys enjoy tonight and kind of get to work (Wednesday).  Rest a little bit of legs, watch a little bit of film on the first couple games and just try to put a game plan together and see if we can stop some of their athletes,” he said.

Published 3/06/24

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Seneca East Faces Physical Lucas

          Seneca East will play Lucas in a division IV district semifinal on Tuesday night at Willard High School.

          The Tigers (19-5) are co-champions of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference and are making their first district appearance since a lot of us had floppy discs.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they just want to play to their potential.  “It's something that we have talked about as a coaching staff because with Lucas they've been there before and they've done that.  We're kind of hoping that what you don't know, you don't know.  So, hopefully the kids kind of just take it like another game.  That's kind of how we're going to stress it.  Just try to play good basketball.  We're going to focus on that.  If you win the game great, if you don't just play as hard as you can basically,” he said.

          Lucas is making its seventh straight visit to Willard in March.

          Lucas (19-5) won the Mid-Buckeye Conference again this year.

          Langhurst says they play very good defense and they are efficient on offense.  “They're just typical Lucas team.  It's a testament to what coach (Taylor) Iceman been doing there for a long time.  They play really good man to man defense.  That's one of the things I was going to be stressing, just cuts, passes, nothing really comes easy on the offensive end for their opponents.  So, we are going to be stressing that.  Defensively, they got a couple of studs.  You just got to know where (Logan) Toms is and where (Aiden) Culler is at and they have got some role players that do some nice things for them.  We're just going to try to slow their guys down and play good basketball.  They are pretty efficient offensively.  If there is anything that can throw them off, we are going to get in the lab and try and do,” said Langhurst.

          Lucas has had some issues making perimeter shots in recent games.  They didn’t make any in their sectional final win (49-40) over Monroeville.  Langhurst says they want to keep them from getting to the rim, but that is easier said than done.  “I'm sure that every team that they have played has had the same game plan, so we're going to try to see what we can do.  That's the big thing, Toms is a strong kid and Culler is the same way.  They have got a good inside outside game.  Tom is pretty slick with the ball, so even when you don't have that much space, he still finds a way to score through it,” he told Swankonsports.com, “We're going to kind of stress that. See if we can take away some space for those driving lanes and try to be as strong as we can.  Those guys crash the boards really hard too. The thing I think that they probably don't get enough credit for is they're really strong in hitting the glass.  So, there's a lot of things that we got to try to clean up defensively, but hopefully the guys will be up for the challenge.”

          He is not one of their leading scorers, but Langhurst says Blake Foos is going to be important to them on Tuesday night.  “He’s going to be all over the place hopefully.  Just have a normal Blake Foos game for us.  He kind of sets the tone.  He's a physical kid and he's gotten those football players to buy in and that kind of carried over a little bit to our basketball season.  Our football guys are our physical too.  They know they are going to up for a challenge as far as a physicality standpoint.  Maybe past teams that I've had might shy away from contact or it might affect them negatively, but I think this group of guys, whether or not they can handle it is yet to be seen, but it's one of those things where they're probably not going to back down.  We'll hopefully have them up for the challenge,” said Langhurst.

Published 3/05/24

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Seneca East Working on Their Zone

          Seneca East, a co-champion of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, will entertain South Central of the Firelands Conference in a division IV sectional final on Friday night.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst believes the rugged “N10” has prepared them for the tournament.  “I mean it was like a boxing match every week or every game.  It's just one of those ones where things were going to be physical, guys were going to defend and you had to play really good basketball.  So, I think is really going to help us out for however many tournament games we're going to have,” he said.

          South Central (3-19) lost to Plymouth (50-38) in a conference game on Friday night.  Seneca East (18-5) beat the Trojans (76-56) on January 30, a night they didn’t have two of their starters.

          Langhurst says they want to make their 1-3-1 zone more effective.  “I mean they're a team, coach (Dallas) Yost has them playing pretty scrappy.  They have got guys that have a little bit of an edge to them and they have got some shot makers.  So, it's one of those things, I don’t think we really defended them all that well the first time around,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “They found a couple holes in our zone, so we took a look at the film (Thursday) and saw what we could do to kind of patch some things up and be there on the catch a little bit more.  If we can come out with a little bit of energy like we had (Wednesday) night I think we should be in pretty good shape.”

          The Tigers won a semifinal (65-31) over Mansfield St. Peter’s on Wednesday night.

          Langhurst says they want to have the same mental approach on Friday night.  “That was kind of the sentiment we had (Tuesday) night and we talked about again (Thursday).  It's one of those things where we think that we have the advantage in a lot of areas, but you let a team hang around and they feel a little bit more sure about themselves.  They start hitting more shots and then we start getting a little bit tight.  So, that's definitely something we're going to be echoing.  I know the kids are really locked in (Wednesday) night and I kind of see them having that kind of same mindset going out (Friday) night as well,” said Langhurst.

Published 3/01/24

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Seneca East Has Got to Win

          If they can get some help Seneca East has a chance to do something that hasn’t been done since we thought “Wham!” was cool, win a conference basketball championship.

          Okay, “Wham!” was never really cool, but Joe Tait saying “Wham with the right hand!” sure was.

          The Tigers can claim a share of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference title if they win at home against Wynford and Mohawk beats Colonel Crawford and Upper Sandusky downs Carey.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says his kids have done everything he has asked.  “I mean that’s a testament to the kids and the way they handled the season this year.  Obviously, we need a few things to happen for those guys to get the ultimate goal.  I mean if we win our game and some things happen the right way for us on some of the other scores and they're celebrating a share.  They're playing good basketball going to be one of those games when we're going to play really well because Wynford’s explosive,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (16-5,9-4) hosts Wynford (13-8,6-7) on Friday night.  The Royals have struggled down the stretch and have lost five of their last seven games and have only won one conference game in the last month.

          Still, Langhurst knows they are dangerous because they can make shots.  “They definitely have shot makers, so we're going to be stressing that.  Whether we're up seven points or down seven points or whatever the lead is it's really not safe because they can take a lead and cut it down pretty soon if they have just a couple good possessions.  So, we're going to stress that it's going to be a four quarter game whether a team goes on a run, we just have got to stay locked in and just concentrate on playing good basketball,” he said.

          The Tigers beat Wynford (69-61) on January 12.

          Langhurst says they must take good shots and make sure Wynford doesn’t get very many.  “I think that the big thing we're kind of harping on is high percentage shots because against Mohawk we took some shots that we didn't necessarily like as far as what our best option was.  Against really good teams, and you see that pretty much every night in the “N10”, if you don't take advantage sometimes they come back and bite you I thought we might have might have done last week against Mohawk,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “We're going to concentrate on that and make sure maybe that extra pass is the right play for our guys.  So, hopefully focus on that.  Defensively just kind of be there on the catch.  These guys don't need a lot of space and they have got some good athletes, so if we have a chance to clear possessions, clear possessions.”

Published 2/21/24

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Seneca East Better Prepared for Mohawk

          Seneca East, one of the three leaders in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference with two games to play, will host Mohawk in a huge game in the conference on Friday night.

          Mohawk trails the Tigers, along with Carey and Colonel Crawford by just a game.

          The Tigers moved back into a share of the lead when they beat Colonel Crawford (53-44) last Friday night.

          Coach Anthong Langhurst says they played with a lot of energy.  “I mean you just tell the guys had a different type of energy.  It started with Blake Foos, he was all over the floor just making plays.  We were just fortunate enough to knock down some timely shots.  Crawford had a couple that didn't go in.  I just thought the guys kind of had a rebounding intensity and energy intensity that we needed that obviously carried on to the floor,” he said.

          Seneca East (15-4,9-3), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, plays at home against Mohawk (14-6,8-4) on Friday night.  The Warriors have won seven of the last eight, including beating Wynford (60-43) in a league game last Friday and New Riegel (56-50) in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          Langhurst says they are playing better than anyone in the league right now.  “They're super dangerous.  Coach (Paul) Dunn has got them playing probably the best basketball out of anybody in the “N10” in my option.  They're super versal, they got you know five guys that can put it in the hole.  They have got a big that kind of protects the basket.  They mix their defenses up.  They're super scary and they're playing really good basketball.  We had a little bit of a wake up call (Tuesday) night with Danbury.  Guys didn't necessarily play with the focus I would like them to have played, but I think that kind of woke us up a little bit and we'll be ready to go on Friday,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East beat Danbury (82-72) in a non-league game.

          In their first meeting, Mohawk stuffed the Tigers (54-30) on January 6.

          Langhurst says they have made some adjustments to their game plan.  “I mean they gave the other teams in the league the blueprint.  They pressure our guards really well and then obviously Floyd, he was really disciplined inside, he picks his time to try to block shots and he was really effective that way.  That with their defensive intensity in their way they cut up our zone it made for a nightmare scenario for us,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “We made some adjustments I think that was a key for us for our defense.  Then obviously our offensive has been kind of a work in progress too.  I'm just hoping that our balance kind of shines a little bit more than it did when we were over at Mohawk.  That's just it's a tough place to play and just the way they handled business that night, it was a rough night for us for sure.”

Published 2/15/2024

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Seneca East With Big One

           Seneca East trails Colonel Crawford by a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference and they host the Eagles a huge game in the conference on Friday night outside of Attica.

          They suffered a tough loss (35-27) to Upper Sandusky in a league game last Thursday, but they rallied to beat Buckeye Central (54-41) on Saturday night.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they couldn’t get anything going against Upper.  “Upper is a tough place to play and coach (Jeff) Winslow actually has got that team playing really good basketball, so it didn't surprise me.  We knew we were going to be in a slugfest.  The game was going to be a little bit low scoring.  I just wish our offense would have stepped up to the plate a little bit more.  We didn't really handle a lot of the adversity that we had, but of course a lot of that was the way Upper defended us.  We did a nice job of bouncing back at Buckeye.  Their a little bit down this year, but that's the rivalry game for us, so I was kind of happy with the way we stayed focused and took care of business on Saturday,” he said.

          Seneca East (13-4,8-3) is at home for Colonel Crawford (14-4,9-2), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles are coming off a big (48-39) win over Carey on Saturday night.  That win gave them sole possession of the conference lead.  “They run their stuff.  They're really good at dictating the pace of play.  I like to think that we can go either way.  I think that was a big reason why we played well against them because we kind of slow it down too.  They all know their roles.  It goes with their great coaching staff that starts with coach (David) Shelton.  They have the great athletes Trevor (Vogt) and Payne (Degray) and then the thing that I'm seeing most is the guys that are stepping up are the role players.  Goddard, Bruner and McMichael, those guys are just All Stars at their role.  Their team is just kind of buying into that concept and they obviously they just find a way to get it done.  So, we're hoping our balance this is something that hopefully we can kind of take up against theirs and maybe just make a few plays here to keep it kind of close at our house,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East won the first game between the two (46-40) on December 29 in North Robinson.

          Langhurst says right now, Crawford is more confident offensively.  “That's obviously a testament to the coaching staff.  They're going to hang their hat on their defense and it's always going to be there.  Then they just kind of say the defense is going to keep us early in the season where we want to be and then let the guys get a little bit more comfortable with what they want to do and expand their roles a little bit more.  Guys are shooting it with a little bit more confidence,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “They always had big, strong guys and they'll take care of business inside.  So, it's all kind of coming together for them.  The more things change, the more they stay the same with Crawford up top.  If you want to make any noise in this league you have got to take care of the Eagles.”

          It has been a number of years since the Tigers have won a conference championship in basketball.  Langhurst says these are the kind of games you want to play in.  “This is what is all it's all about man.  I'm happy for the kids up until this point because we've had some pretty memorable games and some things they can think about after the season is over.  They put themselves in a great opportunity.  It's going to be crazy, Crawford is going to bring a lot of fans, we'll be pretty jacked up on our side of the gym.  It's just one of the things we're just going to stress it beforehand and just enjoy the moment.  We'll put the ball up in the air and hopefully we'll be able to compete and the better team will come out on top.  It's one of those things the little guys in the crowd, they see it and they see the atmosphere and hopefully it kind of like triggers something for them.  For those guys that are in it right now man just enjoy it, it's great thing to be a part of,” said Langhurst.

Published 2/06/2024

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Seneca East Needs to be Physical

          Seneca East, now just a game behind Carey in the race in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays at Carey on Friday night in a huge conference game.

          The Tigers (9-3,6-2) beat Bucyrus (67-46) on Saturday night in a league game.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they did a good job maintaining focus.  “That was just a big thing for the boys.  We told them ahead of time just stay in the hunt.  They were going to make a couple of runs because Bayless is kind of explosive and they had a couple of pieces that can give any team some problems.  So, I was proud of the way the guys kind of came together.  We obviously didn't have the start that we wanted, but once we kind of settled in we took care of business.  When the score kind of went our way it set up kind of a big game for us on Friday at Carey,” he said.

          They actually play Crestline (2-12) in a non-conference game on Tuesday and Langhurst says they have to be focused for that one too.  “They have got some guys that can shoot.  I mean just depending on how well and how focused we are if we lose some guys they definitely some guys that can put it in the hole.  I think from last year's team, we have got a lot of guys coming back, and that was one of the games where they gave us everything we wanted in the first half at their place.  So, I'm thinking that's going to be fresh in their memory and I am going to be sure to bring it up.  It's one of those ones where we just don't want to take it lightly.  We don't want to look ahead to Carey.  We don't want it to be a trap game.  It's one of those ones just like at Bucyrus, we want to take care of business and then once that games in the books we can kind of focus on what we need to do against Carey,” said Langhurst.

          Carey (9-4,7-1) lost for the first time in conference play on Saturday when Mohawk beat them (47-46) in game that came down to the wire.

          Langhurst says they know what is riding on the game on Friday.  “I mean even without that score last week it was going to be a big one for us to kind of see where we were at and plus that give us a chance to kind of claw our way back up to the top.  It kind of fell in the place where it's even that much more important for us and that we're trying to do,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Even though they lost their point guard as kind of a tough break that's tough losing Brayden (Young).  With coach (Jamie) Young, this is a testament to what he's built there where they can just keep on plugging away and keep on winning games.  It’s going to be a tough environment, it always is there.  They're a very physical team, it's hopefully going to be just a fun experience for the guys.  Hopefully their going to be ready to compete and we'll give the fans something to cheer about on both sides, hopefully it's the competitive game.”

          Carey won the first time the teams played (55-50) on December 14.

          Langhurst says they have to match the physicality that Carey brings to the game.  “I'm watching their film and it’s like they got some big kids and then they come over to shake your hand before the before the warm ups and you're like man these boys are big.  So, we had a little bit of trouble with their size and their muscle the first time around.  We’re a different team, just like they are.  I think again them being at home, that's going to be comforting area for them.  We're just going to have to be that much more locked in as far as handling the pressure, handling the bumps, physicality and boxing out even harder and gang rebounding as a team.  So, hopefully we can take what we learned at Wynford, at Mohawk, at Crawford and put all that together.  What did we do good?  What did can we do that was successful.  Hopefully, we put it all together and have a good like four quarter four quarter game plan,” said Langhurst.

Published 1/23/2024

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Seneca East to Play Bucyrus

          Seneca East, in second place in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays over at Bucyrus in a conference game on Saturday night.

          Last Friday, they outlasted Wynford (69-61) in an “N10” game to stay two games behind Carey.

          Coach Anthony Langhurst says they are hanging around entering the second half of “N10” play.  “That's what we told the boys in locker room afterwards.  We were just kind of staying in the hunt with the first round done.  It's in a good spot to be.  We know and we have kind of been stressing at any given game, top to bottom, the “N10” is going to be competitive, so we have got to stay focused on the next component for sure,” he said.

          On Saturday, beat Arcadia (52-44) in non-conference action and Langhurst says they have some of their role players step up.  “They have got really good coaching and they have got a couple like younger players that are playing really well.  They do a good job of like kind of playing their pace and they threw a triangle and two at our guys.  It took us a little while to get comfortable with it.  We had some guys outside of you Luke Bordner and Luke Mason kind of step up and do some things, so that was kind of nice.  That kind of allowed us to kind of cruise a little bit towards the end of the game.  When you get a “W” it's a good night,” said Langhurst.

          Seneca East (8-3,5-2) travels to Bucyrus (3-8,1-6) on Saturday night.  The Redmen have won their last two, including (68-57) over Buckeye Central in league play last Friday.

          The Tigers won the first game (76-53), but Langhurst says they have matured a lot since early December.  “They're just one of those teams that you're scared of because you know if Malachi (Bayless) gets going he's tough to stop.  We were fortunate enough to play them first game in the “N10”, so we caught them early and they had a couple of sophomores playing their first “N10” game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “They're going to be a little bit more seasoned than they were the first time we saw them.  Coach (Brian) Hargis is going to have them ready to go and it's going to be a home game for them.  I’m expecting their crowd to be jacked up.  I think they have some sort of a gym dedication and then obviously you know Malachi just breaking all kinds of scoring records there's probably going to be a nice buzz in the gym.  So, our guys are going to have to be ready to step up to the challenge.”

Published 1/19/24

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Seneca East Looking to Bounce Back

          Seneca East, two games back in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays at Wynford in a conference game on Friday night.

          It’s been a very good season so far for the Tigers and coach Anthony Langhurst says they have gotten great leadership from their seniors.  “Well, it starts with the senior class.  This is my third year at Seneca East as the head coach and so it's kind of like my third year with a bunch of those guys.  So, we had a couple rough seasons there with those guys, but the maturation process is paying off.  Those guys are having a really good senior season for us.  You mix those guys in with a couple of talented underclassmen it’s a recipe for a good start to the season so far,” said Langhurst.

          The Tigers are tied with Wynford and Colonel Crawford for second place in the conference, two games behind Carey.  They lost (54-30) to Mohawk on Saturday night.

          Langhurst says they have to learn from the loss.  “It's like I told the kids, the league so tough, if you have an off night it's going to hurt and that was an off night.  Obviously, Mohawk have a lot to do with that, but it’s a learning process for us.  We're doing some new things.  We have got some new pieces, so it's one of those things where we can kind of hopefully take some learning opportunities from that loss.  Hopefully it makes us a little bit better going forward,” he said.

          Seneca East (6-3,4-2) plays at Wynford (9-2,4-2) on Friday night.  The Royals got beat at the horn by Colonel Crawford (65-63) last Saturday.

          Langhurst says the Royals are really talented.  “I'm sure everybody in the “N10” kind of looked at Wynford as the team to beat.  They had everybody coming back from last year minus their point guard, who was pretty solid.  I think he led the league maybe assist, but they had a really high ceiling,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “I think they had the highest ceiling I would say my opinion of all the teams.  They're just solid all the way down, they have got length, they have got shooting, ball handling, their explosive.  So, they're a nightmare you just hopefully catch them on an off night and keep it close and maybe make one more play like Crawford did.”

Published 1/09/2024

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Seneca East Gets Crawford Again

          Seneca East gets a chance at revenge in the same season as they travel to North Robinson on Friday night to face the Colonel Crawford Eagles in a first round playoff game in division VI.

          Crawford won the first meeting (29-14) in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on September 15.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they look forward to the opportunity.  “It's different, it's a little weird in football doing it.  It’s the first time I've ever done it, but it's exciting.  A lot of times you go in, I don't want to say blind, but not knowing that team till that week.  So, there's excitement that this brings.  It’s kind of a chance to… you get another shot at somebody because usually you have got to wait 365 days get that extra shot and we get this year, which is pretty cool,” said Phillips.

          The Tigers (5-5) were hammered last week (55-6) by “N10” champion Carey.

          Crawford (9-1) smoked Buckeye Central (45-6) in a conference game.

          Phillips says the Eagles are just good all over.  “They run the ball really well and they're just really sound and fundamental on defense.  They are also explosive in their passing game.  They move guys around and they have got a lot of guys make plays.  So, they're just a really solid program,” he said.

          Seneca East actually won the second half (14-0) last time they played and Phillips hopes they can build on that for Friday night.  “In the second half last time we got some stops on defense and we moved the ball pretty consistently on offense,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “That's where we're going to be for all four quarters this time.  That half gives us some excitement something to build on I think for (Friday) night.”

Published 10/27/23

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Seneca East Must Defend the Run

          Seneca East is at home for the Carey Blue Devils in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday.

          If Carey wins, they will win their third straight “N10” title.

          Last week, the Tigers surrendered nearly 600 yards of total offense and Wynford outscored them (66-34) in a conference game.

          The Royals scored 33 points in the second quarter and coach Ed Phillips says things kind of snowballed on them.  “They got away from us.  We got it cut down and had chance to get it to two scores and didn't.  So, just one of those nights.  We played better in the second half,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “We made some plays on defense and the offense actually played a really good second half, threw the ball around a little bit.  So, we came back.  We had had a pretty good month of football and a bad half and just have to get better from that point.”

          Seneca East (5-4,4-2) hosts Carey (7-2,6-0) on Friday night.  The Blue Devils whipped Upper Sandusky (61-14) on Friday night in “N10” play.

          Phillips says you know what to expect from Carey.  “It's typical Carey.  They're big up front and they've got some big backs.  Then on defense, they're very athletic.  I think a lot of these kids have played two, three, four years so there are some familiar faces,” he said.

          The Tigers gave up 389 yards rushing last week to Wynford.

          Phillips says Carey will run it at them too.  “When you play Carey that's where the story is at.  We feel that way about ourselves too.  They're different, they like to run the ball like Wynford, but they do it differently.  So, that's challenge for us, but one that we're getting ready for,” said Phillips.

Published 10/18/23

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Seneca East Must Win Trenches

          Seneca East trails Carey by a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference and they get their chance against the Blue Devils next week, but they must first beat Carey this week.

          They kept themselves knocking on the door with an impressive (30-7) win at Mohawk last week.

          Coach Ed Phillips says it was a complete game.  “We did a lot of things pretty well against them.  We still left some points on the board, but we were good on offense, we were good on defense, we put some points on the board, our point after touchdown attempts.  Our kickoff we need to be better, but just a lot of things we're clicking for us and it was pretty good overall game,” said Phillips.

          Conference rushing leader, quarterback Blake Foos had 243 yards on the ground and two TD’s versus Mohawk.

          Seneca East (5-3,4-1) is at Wynford (4-4,3-2) on Friday night in “N10” action.  Wynford lost a heartbreaker to Colonel Crawford (37-34) in a conference game last week.

          Phillips says they have a very effective run game.  “They run the ball really well.  They have a lot of speed at the skill spots on offense and they run the ball really well.  Their quarterback is much improved this year, you know throwing the ball, he wasn’t great at it last year and they improved a lot there.  They're pretty sharp there this year now,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “Defensively, they're pretty aggressive, their big up front.  So, it's a big challenge for us, but one we're excited about having an opportunity like this at this point in the season.”

          Seneca East prides itself in the tremendous job their kids do in the trenches do and so does Wynford.  Phillips this that is what is going to be the difference on Friday night.  “There's no doubt that you have got to have your offensive line play well, your defensive line your has got to play well because if you don't you could be a long night.  We are trying to put together a plan and go out there and put their effort together like we did last week,” he said.

Published 10/10/23

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Seneca East Plays Mohawk

          Seneca East, in a share of second place in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays at Mohawk in a conference on Friday night.

          They trail Carey by a game and play them on week 10.

          They scored 26 points in the first quarter last week and went on to hammer Bucyrus (44-14) in an “N10” game, outgaining the Redmen 442 to 224 in the process.

          Coach Ed Phillips says that start allowed them to get some less experienced players into the game.  “We came out really fast and played really well offensively and defensively.  Just a nice game for us.  We were able to play the young kids a lot in the second half, which is something we haven’t been able to do this year yet,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “That's something that I really enjoy, take a lot of pride and when we can get up like that and get our young guys in there on Friday night and get a little bit of taste.  So, it was nice to be able to do that.”

          Seneca East (4-3,3-1) is at Mohawk (1-6,1-3) on Friday night.  Mohawk gave Carey all they wanted last week before losing (28-13) to the Blue Devils.

          Phillips says the Warriors can play.  “They're a really good football team and when you look at their season and the teams they play and the scores they've had, they're in every game, they're a good football team.  I think in this series anyway it is true, you throw the records out.  For most part, we both had a lot of success in the last decade.  Yeah, it's one that it's going to be a war,” said Phillips.

          Mohawk quarterback Ben Bogner is second in the league in passing yards and also in the top 10 in rushing yards.

          Phillips says he is a lot to handle.  “Their quarterback is a really good football player and they got they got others also, some backs and good receivers and he can spread it around.  He can also run it.  He does lots of the same things that our quarterbacks do,” he said.

Published 10/05/23

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Seneca East Needs Focus

          Seneca East, a game back in the standings if the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, will host the Bucyrus Redmen in a conference game on Friday night.

          Carey is the conference leader and the Tigers play them on week 10.

          They beat Buckeye Central (42-14) in a “N10” last week.  Blake Foos scored four touchdowns.

          Coach Ed Phillips says he was proud of the effort.  “We started fast and played pretty well.  Hit a little bit of a lull in the game.  I told kids we just have to make sure that we don't have those.  The defense played pretty consistent all night long.  I'm real proud of the kids for the effort they put out,” he said.

          Foos leads in the “N10” in rushing and is third in passing yards.

          Seneca East (3-3,2-1) plays at home against Bucyrus (0-6,0-3) on Friday night.  The Redmen were tared and feathered (70-18) by Wynford last week.

          Phillips says they have some weapons on offense.  “They can put points up.  Their pretty talented at receiver and the quarterback spot.  They make big plays.  They’re not afraid to chuck it downfield and once they get the ball in their hands they're really good on the run after the catch,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We just need to put some pressure on the quarterback and not let anybody run free because they're good at creating mismatches and freeing the guy up and we can't have that.”

          Phillips says the Redmen may be winless, but they can’t take any wins for granted.  “We have to have focus that's for sure and every game needs so much.  You want to be as clean as possible.  So, it’s really important for the team and important to keep getting better.  I think we've improved every week, even weeks we got beat, and it's super important to make sure that happens no matter who you're playing,” said Phillips.

Published 9/29/23

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Seneca East Faces Buckeye Central

          It’s the Annual “Battle for the Paddle” on Friday night as Seneca East is at home for rival Buckeye Central in Northern 10 Athletic Conference action.

          “The Battle for the Paddle”, currently in the hands of the Tigers, is a trophy given to the winner of this game, a practice that was started in 2014.

          Seneca East fell (29-14) to Colonel Crawford in an “N10” game last week.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they played some very good football in the second half last week.  “We didn’t play well the first half and then we came out and played maybe our best half football all year in the second half.  For our kids, that's kind of rolled into this week's practice.  Colonel Crawford is a really physical football team and last week in the second half we came out and we kind of matched their level and played probably as physical as we played in a while and that's continued in practice this week.  They’ve been hitting and got a little bit of an edge about them and so that's been a good thing.”

          Being physical is going to be important to the Tigers this week, according to Phillips, with that trophy up for grabs.  “It's really important because this is a big one for both us and Buckeye Central.  It's a trophy game and we “Battle from Paddle” and that's a really unique thing, a great thing for both schools and something I think both teams get excited about and both fanbases get excited about, so it's exciting thing,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “They have got some big guys up front that we need to deal with and handle.  So, that will be being physical and coming out and kind of getting after them is super important for us.”

          Buckeye Central (2-3,0-2) lost (41-0) to defending “N10” champ Carey last week.

          Phillips says the Bucks have a versatile offensive attack that they will have to defend.  “They have some big guys up front and they will try to run the ball, but they will throw the ball a lot and they have got some good skill at wide receiver and running back.  Their quarterback, he gets it out quick and does a good job with that.  So, yeah it’s a really good challenge for us on Friday,” he said.

Published 9/21/23

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Good Start Important for Seneca East

          In a key early season matchup in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference features Seneca East traveling to North Robinson to face the Colonel Crawford Eagles.

          Last week, the Tigers won a shootout as the held off Upper Sandusky (46-44) in an “N10” game.  Quarterback Blake Foos threw four TD passes and ran for two more.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they just kept swinging.  “It was a gutsy game by our kids.  Just their resilience and their ability to come back when we're down.  They were playing really well in the third quarter and you could kind of feel us getting momentum.  I think the offensive line was taking over and then we threw a pick six and that put them up by 12.  I told kids that point, I told that we're wearing them now and just try to keep swinging and they did and they came through,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We got up and then on Upper’s last drive they were taking their own swing at it and our kids made the plays they had to when it came down to it and got out of there with the win.”

          Seneca East (2-2,1-0) plays at Colonel Crawford (4-0,1-0) on Friday night.  The Eagles crushed Bucyrus (56-6) last week.

          Foos is the leading rusher in the league, but the Eagles have three kids, Trevor Vogt, Micah Thomas and Connor McMichael in the top ten.

          Phiilips says this is a traditional Colonel Crawford team.  “Colonel Crawford is Colonel Crawford.  They come out and they graduate some guys, but they do a lot of the same stuff that they've done for years and they do it really well.  They run the football and have a good play action game and get the ball to some different athletes on offense.  They're just really sound on defense so you know it’s big challenge for us, but one that we're excited for.  They’re 1-0 in the conference and we are and will go out and see what happens,” said Phillips.

          This season on three occasions Colonel Crawford has gotten off to really strong starts and Phillips says they can’t let that happen Friday night.  “I think that's really important for both of us.  I think everybody wants to do that every game, but I think it's important for us to get out to the good start because if you can put pressure on them.  River gave them a good game, but it'd be nice to get out get out front, get out fast, and put a little pressure on them and get after it for four quarters,” he said.

Published 9/15/2023

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Seneca East has to Get the Momentum

          Seneca East hopes to capture the momentum early as they head for Upper Sandusky for their first game of the year in Northern 10 Athletic Conference play on Friday night.

          They gave up 336 yards rushing last week in losing (40-21) to the Monroeville Eagles in non-conference action.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they got behind (20-0) in the first quarter and that was too big of a hole to dig out of last week.  “They did a really good job.  We had some chances early to get momentum and we didn't and that really hurt us.  First driving right down the field and we got a penalty and kept us out of the end zone.  We had a couple other drives that we just didn't finish.  It's that thing that gives you the energy and when we didn't and they kind of capitalized and they got their team momentum.   We put some scores together in the second half, but just never really getting on the board in the first half.  It was difficult for us.  We've got to fix that and when we have a chance to get on the board we've got to do that because Upper certainly a big challenge for us this week,” said Phillips.

          Upper Sandusky, also (1-2) on the season, was pounded last week (41-6) by Galion.

          Despite last week, Phillips says Upper can light up the scoreboard.  “They're pretty talented.  They got a great group of skilled people back, good offensive and defensive line.  So, they are certainly an explosive team that we've got to control them up front so that we can slow down their skill.  When they're on defense, we've have got to control the front, so that we can get points on the board and get ourselves on top and rolling early on,” he said.

          Momentum again is something Phillips feels will be important on Friday night.  He says they need some early scores.  “I think you had some similar teams.  I think you have got a lot of parity the “N10” this year.  I think they are a team that is similar in their makeup to us and in their strengths.  So, it's the momentum that is key to any high school football game.  The ability to like capture it and get it on your side and then sometimes when it's not on your side having the focus and discipline to recapture it is huge,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “I've done this for a long time now and I'm still amazed as a coach at the kind of ebbs and flows of a high school football game and any football game and how it goes back and forth.  Sometimes it's amazing to watch teams not have momentum and capture it and just go back and forth.  I think that is what makes football such a great game and why in the United States of America that’s the game, that’s the sport.”

Published 9/05/23

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Seneca East Wants to be Physical

          Seneca East celebrates military night as they host the Monroeville Eagles in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          All military, past and present, will receive free entry into the game, a meal and an ice cream sundae.

          Last week, the Tigers (1-1) turned it over five times in losing (12-8) to Gibsonburg.

          Coach Ed Phillips says it was a sloppy game in a number of ways.  “We moved the ball pretty well, but we had five turnovers.  We would get down there in the red zone and we shot ourselves in the foot a few times.  Then on the sloppy field.  Just didn’t get it done the way we need to.  Played really, really well on defense, but just didn’t put the whole thing together.  Tip my hat to Gibsonburg, they did on kind of a crappy night and did what they had to do to get the win,” said Phillips.

          Phillips says there are some things they are working on this week to become a better football team.  “Just being physical and some of the stuff (Monday) night was there was a couple circumstances on Friday night where something you take for granted like a little bit of alignment here or there, a little bit of maybe ball plays here there and let the conditions affect us a little bit,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “I've never seen a week like we had last week with what it's done to the fields.  There were plenty of things under our control that we could have done to win the game.  I don't think ball security is something we take for granted.  We work on it all the time, but just the little things like that.”

          Monroeville (1-1) lost in a particularly heartbreaking fashion when they lost (35-34) in overtime to Tiffin Calvert last week.  They had what appeared to be a game winning two-point conversion called back by penalty near the end of regulation.

          Phillips says the Eagles do a lot of good things on offense.  “They're a good football team.  Coach (Tylor) Nester has done a really good job with them over.  They’re playing good football.  They're running game is very good and they do a good job up front and their backs and tight ends are doing a really nice job blocking and running the ball.  Their quarterback, he's pretty good trigger guy that runs it and throws it equally well and then does a lot of things for them,” he said.

Published 8/29/23

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Seneca East Must be Disciplined

          For Seneca East it’s another tough opponent on Friday night as they travel up to Gibsonburg, the runner up last year in the River Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference, for a non-league game.

          Tigers quarterback Blake Foos ran for 113 yards and three scores as Seneca East beat Crestview (21-12) last week in their first game.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they reacted very well in the first game that meant something.  “It was a great way to start the season.  I think two teams that have a great history and in the same region.  So, it was nice to see because I know that we put a lot of guys out there that that hadn't played a lot on Friday nights and for their first time out there and having that pressure and that intensity they did a super job,” he said.

          Phillips is particularly pleased with the way his inexperienced offensive line played against Crestview.  “They don't know what's like and you don't know how they're going to respond.  All you can do is prepare them.  The credit there goes to my coaches.  The coaches did a great job getting them ready.  We had a good and different mix of kids out there than we did last year.  Pretty much a completely new offensive line and to be able to go out and beat a quality program like Crestview with a completely new group up there.  Their experience that they had coming back was in the “O” and “D” line, so it was kind of veterans versus to a certain extent rookies up front and our guys did a really good job,” said Phillips.

          Gibsonburg (0-1) lost (29-6) to Ottawa Hills last week.

          Phillips says the Golden Bears will force them to be disciplined on defense.  “Ottawa Hills is a really good program too.  You've got every team that we've talked about here so far is one that that has had I think a tremendous amount of success lately.  Ottawa Hills was a really good football team that they played last week and they played them well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “They did some really nice things and they certainly have some explosive guys on both sides of football.  They're a difficult team to match up with because they come out and do some old school wing-t stuff that really makes you be disciplined with your reads and such.  So, they're a tough matchup coming (Friday) night.”

Published 8/25/23

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Seneca East Has to Stop the Run

          Seneca East hosts Crestview in a battle between well established football programs on Friday night in non-conference play outside of Attica.

          Coach Ed Phillips says the Tigers are ready to go.  “We're ready to play some football and play it for real.  They have worked hard.  We've had a good summer with some stuff in June  andJuly and camp in August so they're ready to roll,” he said.

          Crestview is the defending Firelands Conference champion and Phillips says they are a physical football team.  “They've been in the playoffs a lot like we have.  We have a pretty good idea of what they did after watching their scrimmage.  They're just a physical, smash mouth type football team.  They do throw it well, I don't want to give that impression.  They are a very good football team obviously.  It's nice to have a challenge like this to open up the season,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “It's a huge opportunity for us.  It's fun to play somebody form the Firelands.  It's a conference that butts right up against us.  So, it's exciting to go see how we match up against on of the top teams in the Firelands every year in and year out.”

          Phillips says they must stop the Cougars from running it, that’s got to be their first priority.  “If you don't stop the run then I don't know if they’ll throw it.  That goes for any good football team.  If they can cram it down your throat in high school, they're probably going to do it.  I think that is what they would rather do, but when they throw the ball they're pretty efficient at it and they don't mind taking some shots down the field either,” he said.

          Crestview has had some changes in their defensive staff.  Phillips feels they are going to blitz them from a lot of different spots.  “Defensively, it looks like they run an odd front.  They'll bring some pressure at you, they'll bring some linebackers it looks like and do some creative things with their pressures.  So, we did work hard at that this week to kind of try to throw the kitchen sink at our kids so that you're ready for it on Friday night.  For us we are pretty raw up front and that's a big challenge for us right off the bat, but I think our coaches have done a good job getting them ready and that will be a good test for us,” said Phillips.

Published 8/18/23

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Seneca East Defense Better

          The difference for Seneca East this year might be their defense.

          Last year, they scored some points, but they gave up some too.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they have seen some good things this week, especially in the trenches.  “We have got a good mix.  Our skill is pretty experienced.  We are little raw up front, but the last two days of two a days here the guys have come a long way and have done some things to make us feel pretty good about us up front too,” he said.

          The play at the line of scrimmage has always been key to Seneca East football.

          Phillips says they are developing on the offensive side and on the defensive side, he thinks they can be very good.  “It’s the heart for anybody.  We've been fortunate through the years to have some really good ones.  We have some unknowns in the sense that we don't have a lot of guys offensively that have done it on the line coming back, but what we've got some guys that will have the potential to be very good and it's pretty exciting right now after a couple of days,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “We are pretty experienced on a defense front line.  Defensively, we've got some guys that played tight end and running back to that also play on the defensive line.  So, we're a little more experienced really all around defensively then we are offensively.  That feels good because we need to make some improvements on defense this year.  We weren’t as good as we wanted to be last year.  I've always been a true believer that you know one thing that that makes you better defensively is when you can work on some of those things the weight room.  Our kids have worked on those.  I think our speed up front defensively is a little better than it was last year potentially.  So, we're doing a lot of good stuff that's pretty exciting and things to feel good about a couple days in.”

          The position of defensive lineman has changed in recent years and Phillips says they want some speed and athleticism there. “If can put some speed out there on the field and wreak some havoc.  it obviously helps your pursuit, but it also puts you in position to make some negative plays and create some turnovers and that's what we're hoping for,” said Phillips.

Published 8/02/23

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Seneca East Goes Down in Regional

          Seneca East’s run through the division IV tournament ended on Thursday evening with a (2-1) loss to White Oak in a regional semifinal game played at Beavers Field at Lancaster High School.

          White Oak would score in the bottom of the second on an RBI single up the middle by Ian Griffith.  The Tigers would tie it (1-1) in the top of the third when Brandon Hines followed a walk to Caden Fritz, with a double over the leftfielder’s head with two out.  The Wildcats (27-3) regained the lead when Landon Barnett scored on a passed ball in the fourth.  Then added another in the fifth on a bases loaded double play.

          The Tigers left seven runners on base, including the bases loaded in the first, then didn’t score Hines in the third, left a runner on third in fifth and runners on second and third in the sixth.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says there were just too many missed opportunities in a game at this level.  “That was key.  Bases loaded there early on.  We need a ground ball, fly ball, something and we just can't get it done.  There at the end, guys on second and third, a chance to score.  We just didn't put the ball in play.  You can't have two strikeouts in a situation like that.  I thought about suicide squeeze, but your down two runs, you have got to do it twice, you have got to make sure it's perfect.  The guys up and they're playing back and a ground ball is going to score us a run.  If it’s a one run game, then maybe you squeeze then,” he told Swankonsports.com after the game, “They're the number two team in the state for a reason.  Their pitcher did a nice job.  We just needed to put the ball in play a little bit more.  We watched too many fastballs go by.  We don't execute suicide squeeze early on.  Our runner on third just missed a sign and forgets he has to run until he sees the bunt down.  We can't do that in a regional game.  You’re not going to win those games.  I loved the fight we had.  Our defense was solid all game. Caden Fritz pitched another great game.  We have five seniors leaving and it's always tough their last game.  There's always lots of tears and lots of emotion.  They put a lot of time in, so we have some big shoes to replace, but I think we've got the talent to come back and try to get back here next year.”

          Fritz was again very good on the mound four hits, walking four and striking out six.

          Bowerman says he mixed his pitches well and White Oak did not get a lot of hard contact on him Thursday.  “I mean they did what they needed to do.  They put the ball in play.  Their first run is a ball that just sneaks through the middle and not hit very hard at all.  The second run, a ball off our catcher’s mitt, which happened very rarely this year.  I mean this surprised me, it hardly ever happens, it's one of those things and very few other hits were hard.  Caden was being Caden and he's doing what he's done the last three or four weeks.  Spotting his fastball, throwing his curve, getting people out their front foot.  He lost it there a little bit in the fifth inning.  I think the top of the fifth, he struck out with you know with runners on, which something he does very infrequently.  I think he let that get to him and then he had some base runners with big leads and stealing bases and he just lost his focus for a while, but he was able to get out of that inning, battle back and complete the game for us,” said Bowerman.

          Seneca East (16-13) ended up winning seven of its last nine games.  Bowerman says they got better and the end of the season.  “We started out the year 1-4.  We had some ups and downs as the season went on.  We lost to Bucyrus late in the year.  I said before I was wondering if we were going to finish above .500 and then we started playing well and we ran off some wins.  We got some confidence going.  That confidence led us into the tournament and we end up in the regionals.  I told the kids it shows what happens if you focus on the little things and you get better and that's what we did this year,” he said.

Published 6/02/23

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Seneca East Outlasts Lucas

          Seneca East scored one in the first and one in the seventh and held off Lucas (2-1) on Wednesday night in a division IV district semifinal at Hiese Park in Galion.

          They will play Colonel Crawford (15-12) for a district title on Friday evening in Galion.  The Eagles beat Mohawk (4-2) on Wednesday.

          Lucas starter Andrew Smollen walked Aiden Hines to start the game, Nicolas Parks got a sacrifice bunt to move him to second, there was a passed ball and then a sacrifice fly by pitcher Caden Fritz to score the run.  There was no scoring until the top of the seventh when the Tigers Cody Heibertshausen was hit by a pitch, Graham Gibbs bunted for a hit when no one covered first base and Heibertshausen scored when the Cubs made an error on a ball hit by Parks.

          It was (2-0) Tigers, but the Cubs wouldn’t go quietly.  With one out, Conner Rice reached on an error, moved to third on another error and scored on a wild pitch, but Fritz got the final out to secure the win.

          Fritz went all seven, as did Smollen.  Fritz allowed only two hits and he struck out only three.  However, the Cubs only hit the ball out of the infield only four times.

          Seneca East coach Rick Bowerman says Fritz gets a lot of soft contact.  “He's able to mix his pitches, hit his spots, he doesn't throw a lot of meat fastballs, so he gets that weak contact.  This is district baseball, it's low scoring you have got to make plays,” he said.

          Smollen permitted only three hits while striking out three.

          Lucas coach Courtney Church says they have had some issues with good pitching and that continued on Wednesday.  “We know over the past couple of years the problems we have had.  That’s what I reiterated to everybody when we started this journey.  I told them our bats have to pick up.  You’re going to start to see better pitching and you are going to have to square baseballs up and doing the little things.  (Seneca East) found a way there in the first inning.  We had that little bumble there and in the seventh and the ball goes through his legs.  At the end of the day, (Bobby) Grover is a hot mess right, but this this doesn't fall back on Grover shoulders.  You have to square baseballs up and I mean we have one in there we have the runner on and I mean you don't see too often the pitcher makes three outs,” said Church.

          Bowerman says they didn’t get many hits, or guys on base, but they executed when hey did.  “I know we did a great job the first inning.  We get a walk, a SAC bunt, passed ball and then we scored a SAC fly.  That's how you manufacture runs.  Same thing there in the last inning for the last run, we get a walk and we get a base hit blunt and I got a guy who I am very confident, so with two strikes I'm telling him, hey, you are bunting anyway and he places it perfect,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win on Wednesday night, “I didn't even see what happens next, a bad bounce base hit or an error under the legs.  I was watching our guy coming from second to third and the ball gets by the shortstop and we were scoring.  So, I'm very proud of the kids.”

          Of course, Seneca East (15-12) and Colonel Crawford are in the same league.  The Tigers won both meetings, (8-7) on April 18 and (4-0) the next day.

          Bowerman says he expects a battle.  “We played them twice in the regular season.  We were lucky enough to beat them both times.  They are definitely a very dangerous team.  I anticipate a low scoring game.  Both games we won were close.  So, it’s going to be a battle,” he said.

Published 5/25/23

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Seneca East Trims Plymouth

          Caden Fritz allowed only one hit and Seneca East held off Plymouth (2-1) to win a division IV sectional title on Thursday evening.

          Fritz went the distance allowing one unearned run in the seventh, walking one and striking out six.

          The Tigers (13-12) also got two out RBI hits from Fritz and Brandon Hines to get the win.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says it was a very good team effort.  “We got a great pitching performance from Caden Fritz, our pitcher, he gave up one hit and that was an infield single in the seventh.  We only had four hits, but a couple of real timely hits, those two out, man on second base, hit, score a run.  That's what you need.  Once you get the tournament play the competition is going to be good and you have got to take advantage of every scoring situation and luckily we did that,” said Bowerman.

          Plymouth scored their only run in the seventh, but Fritz stranded two runners on and got a ground out to end the game.  Bowerman says he had good control and put pitches where he needed them.  “He was able to hit his spots, make pitches, he kept them off balance, throw his curveball and change up at times.  He made one mistake and that was the infield hit he gave up.  He as up one and two and he left the ball down in the zone instead of up a little bit where he wanted it, but other than that.  Again, he hit spots and made them go after his pitches,” he said.

          Seneca East (13-12) will play Mid-Buckeye Conference champion Lucas, who beat New London (12-0) on Thursday, in next week’s district semifinal.

          Bowerman has been talking about his defense a lot this season and he says against Plymouth they did a pretty sound job.  “We had two errors (Thursday) night, but other than that we played some really good defense.  An inning ending double play in the fourth, our freshman third baseman made a couple of outstanding plays on some tough balls.  One of our runs came when they dropped the fly ball, not an easy play, but coming in and it’s off the guy’s glove and then we take advantage by coming up with a hit after that and scoring a run.  So, yeah you have to eliminate the mistakes and then take advantage of the opposition's mistakes,” said Bowerman.

Published 5/19/23

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Seneca East Beats Norwalk

          Seneca East scored four times in the third inning and never trailed as they beat Norwalk (6-3) Thursday night in a non-conference baseball game.

          They also beat Sandusky of the Lake Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference (16-2) on Tuesday.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says they are looking to play teams that will make them better, even if they are bigger.  “We played Sandusky on Tuesday and Norwalk (Thursday) and at end of the year we're looking to play a schedule to get ready for tournament, so (Thursday) was a really good tune up,” he said.

          Jake Bowerman went five innings Thursday night giving up no earned runs and Brandon Hines went two hitless innings for the Tigers.

          Caden Fritz had three RBI.

          Coach Bowerman says going into the tournament you want to know you have faced quality pitching.  “That was kind of our plan you know try to play a competitive schedule that gets you ready for the tournament,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win over Norwalk, “Once you are in tournament you're going to face good pitching, everybody's number one, so you try to prepare yourself and you know we played well (Thursday) night.”

          Seneca East (11-10) will play either South Central or Plymouth in a division IV sectional final at Galion.

          Bowerman says they are starting to do the kind of things that you need to do to be successful in the postseason.  “We are almost there, we're getting there.  We're starting to hit the ball a little bit better.  We have to shore up our defense some.  This past week we're making some little errors here and there.  So, this was about getting better, get that defense better, and get ready for tournament time,” said Bowerman.

Published 5/12/23

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Seneca East Rallies to Down Crawford

          Seneca East, down four runs going to the bottom of the fourth inning, would rally and hand Colonel Crawford its first league loss (8-7) on Tuesday evening outside of Attica.

          They scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth to tie it (6-6).  Crawford would score in the top of the fifth to retake the lead, but the Tigers got one in their half to make (7-7) after five.  Seneca East then manufactured a run in the seventh to win it.

          Coach Rick Bowerman says that fourth inning was huge for them.  “I mean we always know when we play Crawford it's going to be a battle.  (Tuesday) was kind of an ugly one.  I think there were 11 errors total between the two teams, but you always take the ugly win rather than a good looking loss, so we'll take that.  It was a battle, it was back and forth,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night after the win, “We get down (6-2) and a key two out hit by Cooper Skeel to make it 6-4 and then Caden Fritz comes up and hits a two run home run.  We go from down four to tie it up and that was just a huge momentum boost for us.”

          Bowerman says a freshman in Nicolas Parks played a big role for the Tigers in the bottom of the seventh.  “We get a guy on first with a wild pitch on the strike out and then I think a walk and then we lay down a perfect sac bunt to get second and third.  Then my number nine hitter is up, a freshman, he takes two bad swings to start the plate appearance and down 0-2 and then he just fights his butt off and gets a ground ball to the shortstop for a fielder’s choice and the winning run,” said Bowerman.

          Seneca East (4-6,3-4) plays Colonel Crawford (9-3,6-1) in North Robinson on Wednesday.  The Eagles now trail Upper Sandusky by a game.  The Rams smoked Bucyrus (15-2) on Tuesday.

          Bowerman says the kind of game that Tuesday was is a learning experience for his kids.  “It sure is you know learning to be not only disciplined at the plate, but do a job, execute and good things can happen.  Even though you're down 6-2 you're never out of a game.  So, yeah it was a good win and a lot of learning experiences,” he said.

Published 4/19/23

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Seneca East Starting to Hit

          Seneca East is starting to put things together as they pounded Buckeye Central (11-1) on Wednesday evening in play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Cooper Skeel, Nate Sauers, Jake Bowerman and Nathan Parks all had two hits for the Tigers on the day.  Caden Fritz had two RBI.

          They also scored 12 runs on Tuesday and coach Rick Bowerman says they starting to swing the bats better.  “We finally started to put some things together.  So far this year before this week, we kind of struggled finding holes and squaring up the ball and these last two days we've been able to do that, so that's a very positive note,” said Bowerman.

          Bowerman says that this week a couple of kids got hot and it just started to spread.  “We started (Tuesday) and it was just contagious everybody started hitting the ball putting them in play and making things happen and they continued on (Wednesday),” he said.

          The Tigers play Old Fort in a non-conference game on Thursday and then league leaders Upper Sandusky on Friday, that’s a makeup game, and Colonel Crawford next Tuesday and Wednesday, so their schedule is challenging.

          Seneca East (3-4,2-3) has already played a tough schedule and Bowerman believes if they can continue to hit they can starting beating these good teams.  “I mean our pitching and defense all year has been very good, take away one inning against Upper,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win on Wednesday, “It was just trying to come up with key hits and situations and early in the year that didn't happen, but the last two days it has, so we hope that continues and I think good things can happen the rest of the year.”

Published 4/13/23

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Seneca East Expecting to be Competitive

          Seneca East again should be a factor in the race in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference this season.

          They finished in a share of third last season and coach Rick Bowerman says they bring quite a bit back to their lineup and especially on the mound.  “I'm looking forward to it.  We should be pretty experienced, we have eight seniors, so I have a lot coming back.  I have my entire pitching staff back.  We've gotten really good leadership so far early this spring, so yeah I'm excited about this season,” he said.

          The Tigers have a couple scrimmages next week with Shelby and Oak Harbor.

          Bowerman believes they are going to have a quality pitching staff with some depth.  “Having guys back that have pitched before at the varsity level makes a big difference.  We've got two pitchers, two seniors, in Brandon Hines and Cooper Skeel that both pitched as sophomores, so they got two years under their belts,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “Then we have got some juniors with good arms that threw for us last year.  So, yeah that makes a big difference.”

          The Tigers and scheduled to open the season at New Riegel on March 25.  Their first two “N10” games are March 28 and 29 against the Carey Blue Devils.

          Bowerman thinks they are going to be able to score in a variety of ways this spring.  “I think we'll be able to string hits together.  We're not going to be a big, powerful team that’s going to hit a lot of home runs, but we've got good speed on the bases, I think we've got some good contact hitters.  So yeah, we should be fun to watch what.  We’ll run and put the ball in play and make things happen that way,” said Bowerman.

Published 3/17/22

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Trenches Key For Seneca East

          Seneca East heads for Hopewell-Loudon on Friday night for a first round playoff game in division VI.

          The Tigers (7-3) are coming off a (56-12) trashing from Northern 10 Athletic Conference champ Carey last Friday.

          Coach Ed Phillips believes they were competitive in the game.  “We actually came out in the first quarter and had it 14-12 and got the ball back and a shot to go up on them, but they got a stop.  They made all of the plays and they kind of rolled after that, but I think we did some things against them and played as well, especially in the first quarter and a half as most people have in a long time.  So, there were some good that came out of it even though we didn’t finish it.  There was something good, but we just didn’t finish it with them,” said Phillips.

          Hopewell-Loudon (8-2) whipped Gibsonburg (40-23) in the championship of the River Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference last Friday.

          Phillips says they will show a lot of things on offense and be very disciplined on defense.  “They run the ball well on offense.  They throw they throw it well.  They have that balance.  They do some things similar to us in terms of multiple formations.  They are able to go out with one or two tight ends and they are also able to go out and spread you out with three or four wides that are pretty quick and athletic,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Defensively, they are really disciplined.  They have a couple of fronts they throw at you.  They want to cover you up on the edges and not give you much for free.  They will definitely challenge you.”

          Phillips says to get the win, they must win the point of attack and they can’t have a bunch of turnovers.  “We have to play really good up front and we have to tackle well.  Whoever wins the turnover battle is going to have the edge.  We need to win that and take care of the ball on our own,” he said.

Published 10/25/22

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Seneca East Plays for a Share

          Seneca East will share the championship in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference with a win at Carey on Friday night.

          The Blue Devils, the defending champions, already have their share of the title.

          The Tigers just might be the most exciting team in the “N10”, or hell the State of Ohio, as they won for the second week in a row on the last play of the game as they edged Wynford (32-31) on a pass from Blake Foos to Korbin Beamer with :04.

          Just call them “Kardiac Kids” because when Seneca East plays the game isn’t over until the clock reads triple zeros.  They have five comeback fourth quarter wins this year.

          Coach Ed Phillips says the kids have confidence they can do it.  “As I pulled into the drive to go into the weight room Saturday morning, we put scores on the fence, I set there looking at scores, and you have been through it you know, but you set back and you look, you realize what a special regular season it has been and that has been what has put us where we are at.  Last week, when there was like 1:20 left, I thought we are going to do this again and the kids knew than too and then they went out and did it and on the last play of the game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “That is the stuff that kid’s dreams are made of.  They think about that as kids.  To do it not just once, but two weeks in a row and have some other comeback wins is a pretty special deal.”

          Seneca East (7-2,5-1) plays at Carey (9-0,6-0) on Friday night.  The Blue Devils were pushed last week by Upper Sandusky and had to rally past the Rams (20-14) on Friday night.

          Phillips says Carey has great speed.  “Their speed is very good.  They are big, don’t get me wrong, but they were really big last year.  Their speed on offense and defense is very apparent when you watch them.  Their defense is pretty quick up front, their linebackers, their secondary and then the same thing on offense.  So, their speed is something that catches your eye this year,” he said.

          Phillips says nobody really expected them to be in this position this week… expect for them.  “We talked about that at the beginning of the year that we wanted to be in this position.  I told the kids at times this year that was where we wanted to be.  The kids believe in it and they believe in each other and they have gone out and shown it.  I think a lot of people didn’t expect us to be in this position.  When you put some hard work together and you believe in your teammates and your coaches believe, good things happen,” said Phillips.

Published 10/19/22

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Seneca East Continues to Play Together

          Seneca East hosts Wynford in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night outside of Attica.

          It’s a must win for the Tigers in terms of the conference championship.  In fact, a loss by the Tigers could give the title to first place Carey, who leads Seneca East by a game in the standings.  The Tigers play Carey next week.

          Last Friday, Seneca East made a tremendous comeback as Mohawk kicked a field goal with :50 seconds left to take the lead, but the Tigers put it in the end zone with a Blake Foos one-yard run with :01 left to take a (34-31) win.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they the kids had confidence they could do it.  “Our defensive coordinator Justin Ruffing and he kind of inspired me, he told the kids, hey, that is good, because we have two time outs and 50 seconds and we are going to go down there and score a touchdown and win the game and he said that three times to them and I didn’t really say anything after that because he said it all,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “My coaches do a great job.  We talk about the kids believing in each other and my coaches believe in the kids and I believe in them.  I think just simple things like that are important.”

          Last week was the fourth time this season the Tigers have rallied to win in the final minutes.  Phillips believes the comradery they have is a major plus for the team.  “A lot of our success this year has come in the fourth quarter and in crunch time.  I think we have some really good football players and some talented kids, but I think what makes it even better is when you take the pieces and put it together I think they are an even better team then they are a group of individuals.  That is saying a lot and that is wat you want as a coach,” he said.

          Seneca East (6-2,4-1) plays at home against Wynford (2-6,2-3) on Friday night.  The Royals were beaten by Colonel Crawford (49-7) in an “N10” game last week.

          Phillips says Wynford will want to run the football.  “You don’t have to watch them very long to see that is what they want to do and they are good at it.  Every week I say, the “N10” is just a very competitive year this year as much as any other year and I put Wynford right in with those teams that are really competitive.  They got beat by Mohawk (12-8) I think and they beat Bucyrus (20-14) and those are some teams that played us well and given us a challenge.  We have to be ready and bring our best game,” said Phillips.

Published 10/11/22

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Seneca East Has to Win the Line of Scrimmage

          Seneca East will be at home for Mohawk in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          Right now, the Tigers (5-2,3-1) and Mohawk both trail conference leading Carey by a game with three weeks to play.  Seneca East plays Carey on the final week of the regular season.

          The Tigers took care of Bucyrus (38-17) last week, running for 391 yards on the night.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they did a very good job in trenches.  “We have run the ball pretty well all year and that was another really good performance for us running the ball.  We got a lot of players involved in the run game too.  I think the offensive line, the way they came off the football was the best we have done all year because there were just times that we came off and got under them and just moved them backwards,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday, “That gives you a good feeling as a coach.  The guys knew that they were doing that too and they were pretty proud and pretty happy with themselves and that’s what it is all about.”

          Mohawk (3-4,3-1) lost (48-0) to Carey last week, but had won their previous three games.

          Phillips says the teams are similar.  “I think they are playing as good as they have all year.  I think we have two teams that are pretty similar and do a lot of stuff very well.  If you watch film on them, you can see them progress as the year has gone on.  They are definitely a very good football team.  That’s what the “N10” is all about this year with a bunch of teams that are very good and very competitive.  You have to be ready to go or you are going to get it handed to you,” said Phillips.

          Phillips knows how important the point of attack is going to be in this game.  He says they have to win up front.  “I think that holds true in the “N10” every week.  Anytime Seneca East and Mohawk get together that is probably what is going to be the difference.  The team that is physical and exerts their physicality is going to come out on top.  Certainly, we know that is the key for us,” he said.

Published 10/07/22

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Seneca East Plays Bucyrus

          Seneca East travels to Bucyrus to face the Redmen in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          They got back on the winning track on Friday night when they downed Buckeye Central (33-15) in a conference game.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they did a good job of adjusting to some surprises shown to them by Buckeye.  “We played pretty well all around.  One of the really good things that we did was they came out and did some creative things on offense that we hadn’t seen done to us before,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “They had a really good game plan, so we made one particular adjustment on defense.  We did it right in the first half.  Just like that the kids jumped in it.  We had never done it before and they did it really well and it helped us out quite a bit.”

          Phillips says you have to be able to make adjustments and sometimes you can’t wait until halftime.  “That’s a lot of fun, I think.  That’s a lot of fun for us and a lot of fun for the kids.  It’s a challenge and I think anytime you have a challenge and step up to it and kind of do something on the fly it is something to be proud of.  I am certainly proud of the coaches and the kids for pulling that off,” he said.

          Seneca East quarterback Blake Foos leads the “N10” in passing TD’s and is second in rushing yards this season.

          Bucyrus (1-5,0-3) has lost its last five games, including a (20-14) setback to Wynford in conference play last week.

          Phillips says they aren’t overlooking the Redmen.  “They are better than their record, I know that.  They have explosive players on really every position on offense.  Their quarterback, receivers, running backs, they have good players.  I would say they are as dangerous as anybody we have played so far,” said Phillips.

Published 9/29/22

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Seneca East Has to Finish Plays

          Seneca East, now a game back in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays at rival Buckeye Central in an “N10” game on Friday night.

          They were smoked (42-0) by Colonel Crawford in conference play last Friday.

Coach Ed Phillips says they were close to making a lot of plays, but they didn’t finish them.  “Ironically, it was probably one of our best first quarters of the year.  The defense actually played pretty well.  They scored on their first drive and then we settled down for three or four drives.  We forced them to punt and we had a special teams error and then they kind of got on a roll.  The same thing applies.  The defense started pretty well, but we need the offense to click a little quicker.  We were so close,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “There were several plays where we were a block here or a little detail there for getting a touchdown or making a play to put us in position to make points and we didn’t.  We made a lot of those plays this year in the first five games, but we didn’t Friday night and we just have to get back on track this week.”

Phillips says this week they have been pretty focused in their preparation for Buckeye.  “(Monday) was one of our best practices of the year.  The kids came back Monday were disappointed and had a great practice.  We did a lot of really good things (Tuesday).  It was not a perfect day, but it was good in the sense that we had a couple of things that weren’t great, but we still finished off the practice in a really good fashion,” he said.

Seneca East (3-2,1-1) is at Buckeye Central (3-2,0-2) on Friday night.  The Bucks are coming off a (48-7) loss to defending state champion Carey last week.

Phillips says they are well coached and do some very good things scheme wise.  “Coach (Chad) Jensen has done a good job with them.  They have a balanced offense.  They can run it and they can throw it.  Defensively, they are very sound in what they do in their schemes.  So, it’s a good challenge for us.  We call it the “Battle for the Paddle”, so in high school it is kind of neat to have a trophy game with a close rival.  We are excited to go over there,” said Phillips.

Published 9/21/22

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Trenches Key for Seneca East

          Seneca East hosts Colonel Crawford is a key early season game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          It was another late rally for the Tigers last week, as they beat Upper Sandusky (41-34) when Blake Foos found Austin Perry for a score.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they have to get off to a better start to the game starting this week.  “We just want to make sure our fans get their money’s worth when they come and they are certainly doing that.  Seriously, they have character and heart, but four weeks into the season to do that three times is fantastic.  We need to stop putting ourselves in that position.  We need to start a little faster.  That needs to be something that we do so we are not having to come back,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “It is nice when we do it, but it makes you work hard and eventually you are going to put yourself in a spot against a team that you re not able to.  We just have to start faster.  We have gotten better each week and there is not doubt about that.  Friday was probably our best game.  Upper has got some guys and they are going to have a good rest of the season.”

          Seneca East (3-1,1-0) is at home for Colonel Crawford (3-1,1-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles smoked Bucyrus (63-12) last week.

          Phillips says they are different kind of teams than they have been defending so far this year.  “They are different from what we have seen the last three weeks.  They want to run the football.  They do have a very good quarterback that can throw it well and some good receivers.  They are going to pack it in a little bit more.  They are going to try and play good power, run the football type of game and balance that our with play action and take shots down the field,” said Phillips.

          On defense, Phillips says Crawford plays the same kind of football.  “There personality on offense is their personality on defense.  They are physical and tough and disciplined and we have to be really good up front.  That is going to be the deal, whoever wins the trenches and comes up and plays tough, physical football will take the “W” home,” he said.

Published 9/13/22

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Seneca East Defense to be Challenged Again

          Seneca East hosts Upper Sandusky in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night on week one of league play.

          The Tigers (2-1) suffered their first loss of the season (35-24) to Willard last week.

          However, coach Ed Phillips says they didn’t play too bad.  “They were explosive, but we did a pretty good job for the most part.  We had a couple of turnovers.  They had a pick 6 on us and another turnover that hurt us.  I really think in a lot of ways it was out best game yet, but we still have some of those errors that we have to get rid of especially as we head into the league.  There are no excuses now.  We have to play a clean game to get what we want to get week in and week out,” said Phillips.

          Phillips thinks this will be a very competitive year in the “N10” top to bottom.  “It is one of the most interesting years in the sense that I don’t know if you came into the season knowing a lot about every team in who might come out and be a dominate team or be head and shoulders about everybody else.  You have Carey, who was state champs last year, but really they lost a lot.  They reload, but a lot of the teams in the league reload.  I think it is one of the most interesting seasons heading into the league that in terms that there are a lot of unknowns,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (1-2) comes off a (28-7) loss to Galion of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference last week.  Kaden Holman leads the league with 765 passing yards this year.

          Phillips says the Rams are going to do a lot of the same things on both sides of the ball that they have been seeing.  “They are really explosive.  They do a lot of things like Willard does.  They spread you out and throw the ball around.  They have so good backs too and their quarterback throws the ball well.  So, offensively there are a lot of similarities,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “For us, that is good because we have dealt with that offense for a couple of weeks now between Fostoria and them.  Defensively, they are a lot like Willard too in the sense they run an odd front and they like to bring a lot of pressure from different spots and be really attacking.”

Published 9/09/22

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Seneca East Must Tackle Willard

          It’s the home opener Friday night the Seneca East Tigers as they are home for explosive Willard in a non-conference game.

                They rallied late last week to beat Fostoria (18-13) when Blake Foos scored with about four minutes to play in the game.

          Coach Ed Phillips says again the players delivered in the clutch.  “They showed tons of character and tons of confidence.  The “O-line” and the guys up front really took over in the last part of the third and the fourth quarter.  We really ran the ball well to win the football game.  That makes you feel really good about things when you can do that and finish off the game in that manner,” said Phillips.

          In both of their wins the Tigers have gotten off to poor starts.  Phillips believes as they get more experience that won’t be a big problem.  “I think just experience.  I think we have gone through some things now and we have couple under our belt.  I think that can help to calm you down and I think that’s it,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “The things that have slowed us down are just basic football that we have worked on a lot, but we worked on them a little more this week.  I think that just gets you a comfort level.  With a combination of those things, I feel really good about our guys.”

          Willard (1-1) smoked Plymouth (77-35) last week.  Quarterback Isaac Robinson threw for 526 yards and five touchdowns for the Flashes.

          Phillips says they have to physical and get some pressure on Robinson.  “They are doing a good job of giving their quarterback time to throw and getting their receivers in some open spaces and they are pretty efficient at it.  We have to come out and be really physical with them and put some pressure on them and tackle really well in space,” he said.

Published 9/02/22

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Seneca East Getting Better

          Seneca East erased a four score deficit last week to win and they hope they don’t have to do that when they travel to Fostoria for a non-conference game on Friday night.

          Last week, they trailed Northwood (24-0) in the second quarter, but rallied to beat them (34-30) in the end.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they got some momentum when they needed it.  “It was not a pretty start.  We got down 24-0 and I have do some checking, but I think that might be the biggest comeback victory we have ever had.  We have had some great ones just when I have been around.  I kept telling the kids when they came off that we just needed to get something on offense and get a spark,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “With about 2:00 to go in the first half they did that and then came back and played some smart football and saved some clock and got the ball back with about 1:45 on the clock and then made it 24-14 and everybody was feeling a little different about the game.  Then the kids came back and really finished well in the second half.”

          Quarterback Blake Foos accounted for four scores.

          Phillips thinks that some of their younger players were nervous last week and hopes they have gotten that out of their system.  “There were some little things that we had to take care of in the first half.  I have said all summer that we have a mix of youth and vets.  Some of our kids said, we were nervous.  When you go through that once, I think it makes you a little better and hopefully now we know how to handle our nerves.  I told them I have been doing this a long time and I still get nervous before every game.  You just have to handle it and focus on fundamentals and that takes care of business,” said Phillips.

          Oak Harbor crushed Fostoria last week (55-7), but Phillips says they have some speed and athleticism and it will be important for them to not look past the Redmen.  “Oak Harbor is a much bigger school than them.  I don’t think that is a true indicator of how good they are.  They have some talent, they have some speed and they have some good size up front.  So, they are a team that we definitely have to be ready for and not take it for granted or we will find ourselves in trouble in the first quarter like we did last week,” he said.

Published 8/23/22

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Seneca East Ready for Real Game

          Seneca East opens the season on the road at Northwood on Friday night in non-conference play.

          Coach Ed Phillips says they the kids really are ready to strap it on for the first time for real.  “I am pretty happy with where we are at.  You can get to the point in camp where that you need a little direction from a game, so it is nice to get into game planning mode and starting to get ready for a game because that gives you something to focus on and it gives you something different to look at.  So, I think the kids are happy,” he said.

          One of Phillips’ big concerns for this week is the fact that the kids have yet to start school, that happens next week, and that can lead to some focus issues.  “The tough part about this time of year is we are not in school yet.  We don’t start school until next Tuesday.  The kids don’t want to start school, but school is a good routine to get into to help your football team play well.  So, part of the challenge to get ready to play week one is the added fact that we are not in school.  The kids have practiced well, so that is a good sign that they are doing things they have to do to win on Friday night,” said Phillips.

          Northwood replaces Northmor as the first week opponent for Seneca East. 

          The Rangers were (4-5) last season, losing to Crestview in the opening round of the division VI playoffs.

          Phillips says they will need to play assignment football because Northwood runs the triple option.  “Northwood is a little different to prepare for because they run some triple option type stuff.  I guess in way we are fortunate because we played Carey for years and they have done that in the past.  So, it is not something that we are not familiar with,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “We run some triple option ourselves.  One reason we went to the triple option was we knew it could be a good weapon for us and we knew it would help us to defend it.  We have gotten more physical and are excited to play a game.”

Published 8/17/22

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