Wooster Generals/Ohio Cardinal Conference News

Wooster With a Young Group

          Wooster is going to be fielding a young group of players on their varsity basketball team.

          Coach Che Richardson says they have three guys back that played varsity basketball last year.  “We are going to be young.  We're going to be very inexperienced team that has to grow up really quick.  We return three guys that played varsity for us last year and then the rest are newcomers.  Guys that played JV or freshman last year.  So, we're very inexperienced.  We will have to mature very fast throughout the year and kind of be ready to go,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says he has seen some growth in the preseason and he hopes that continues.  “I think we are starting to grow up.  I think the biggest thing for us is thinking next play,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Teaching the guys in the varsity game you don't have time to kind of mope around and feel sorry for yourselves just because something goes wrong the game continues to go on and being able to weather that storm early and not getting so caught up in and emotions of the moment.”

          Wooster opens the season on Sunday, November 30 by hosting Cleveland JFK.

          Richarson says these young guys have to focus on what they are doing and learn to tune the crowd out.  “The game goes so fast.  Fans, and especially those “OCC” are amazing in the way they cheer and the way student sections are you kind of have to just kind of keep yourselves composed threw all those moments and then just play and just continue just think about what's happening and do what you can to win the game,” he said.

Published 11/21/25

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Wooster Has to Limit Big Plays

          Wooster entertains the Mansfield Senior Tygers in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Both teams are winless on the season.

          Last week, the Generals fell (42-14) to future conference opponent Dover.

          Coach Ray Leek says they were just a couple plays away.  “We were in it most of the game.  In the fourth quarter we had the ball down in the red zone.  It was a 28-14 game and threw a pick there.  It would have been a one score game late the game.  So, the final score wasn't what we wanted, but we're seeing progress.  Our kids continue to get better and continue to fight,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday afternoon, “We're in games that maybe we wouldn't have been in a couple weeks ago or especially week one.  So, I love the fight in our kids and the work ethic and the progress that they're taking throughout the week during practice.  So, it's definitely improvement and the progress that we're looking for.  So, I'm happy with their effort and where we're going.”

          Leek says in the game of football you must play four quarters.  “We've had that conversation before you have got to put all three phases together for four quarters to give you a shot.  We just didn't do that long enough Friday night.  I thought we played two and half, three good quarters, but you have got to put all four quarters together,” he said.

          Mansfeld Senior lost (48-19) to “OCC” co-leader Ashland last week at Arlin Field.

          Leek says the Tygers still have that explosiveness that they have always had.  “They're real athletic. Their quarterback, he’s only a sophomore, he’s got a great arm and makes huge plays with his feet as well.  They had some scores that are lopsided.  They definitely look like they want to sling the ball some.  They've got athletes that can get in space and they have explosive playability for sure.  So, we have got to stop that and limit their big plays,” said Leek.

Published 10/06/25

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Pass Defense Key for Wooster

          Wooster will host the Dover Crimson Tornadoes in a non-conference football game on Friday night.

          This, of course, becomes an Ohio Cardinal Conference game next year.

          Last week, the Generals (0-6) lost (39-6) to West Holmes in “OCC” play.

          Coach Ray Leek likes the fact that his kids continue to give great effort.  “They're very good, they're well coached, they play hard, they fly to the football and they don't make a lot of mistakes.  They're what we thought they would be.  They’re well coached and played hard,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “I thought our kids played hard as well.  I see a lot of progress from where we started.  So, I'm happy to see our kids keep working and get better every week.”

          Dover (1-5) has struggled this year too.  They lost (63-34) to Steubenville last week and (42-7) to “OCC” co-leader Ashland the week before.

          Leek says they play a very tough schedule.  “I don't think you could always go off the records.  They may be 1-5, but they've had a heck of a schedule as well.  They just played Steubenville last week and Ashland.  So, they haven't had an easy go at it as far as the teams that they played,” said Leek.

          Leek says a big key for them Friday will be the ability to defend the pass.  “I think they're a great team and great program.  They like to sling the ball around, so we're going to have to be able to stop the pass on Friday night,” he said.

Published 10/02/25

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Wooster has to be at its Best

          Wooster takes the bus to West Holmes to meet the Knights in a game in the Ohio Cardinal Conference on Friday night.

          It’s been a tough season for the Generals (0-5,0-3) so far.  They lost (42-14) to Lexington last week.

          Coach Ray Leek says they have seen improvement in their play.  “You want to see progress as you go throughout your season here.  We are playing a lot of younger underclassmen, who don't have as much experience.  You want to see them grow as well as the upperclassmen.  So, we just take it day by day, week by week.  There are a lot of things that people maybe don't see besides the scoreboard, but there's a lot of little battles getting won and progress being made.  Guys continue to improve and give effort.  That's all you can ask for from your guys,” said Leek.

          Leek says what you hope is the speed of game slows down for the inexperienced players.  “They get used to the game with the speed and the flow of the game.  Whether you're playing JV the year before or that you're getting them the game minutes against younger kids.  If you're a freshman this year and you played eighth grade last year it's a jump.  It's something that these kids are still getting used to.  The game does slow down the more reps you get.  The more you're going to be confident in there and understand the game and the speed of it,” he said.

          West Holmes (4-1,2-0) smoked Madison (35-0) last week in “OCC” play.

          Leek says the Knights are physical and he says they need to play very well to have a chance in this one.  “West Holmes is a good opponent.  They've got some younger guys playing as well.  They're well coached.  They fly to the football.  They run the football hard,” he told Swankonspots.com on Wednesday afternoon, “They're a very good opponent.  We've got to give them our best shot to give ourselves a chance.  Take care of the football and make sure that we get off to a fast start this week and try to put four quarters together because they're very good football team.”

Published 9/25/25

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Wooster Must Finish

          Wooster will be at home at Folis Field for the Lexington Minutemen in Ohio Cardinal Conference action on Friday night.

          Last week, they took an early (10-0) lead, but allowed four straight scores and lost (28-17) to Madison in “OCC” action.

          Coach Ray Leek says it was a good start, but they need more consistency.  “We started great and had the momentum.  We have just got to learn to ride the wave and you know play even keel the whole game.  You can't have ups and downs.  You have got to be consistent for four quarters.  So, there's definitely something that we learned last Friday.  We see a lot of improvement.  We have done a lot of good things.  We just have to finish and play four quarters football,” said Leek.

          Leek says they have to learn to become winners.  “You can’t let a lead slip away.  You can't lose that sense of urgency when you're up.  Nobody's going to give you a win, you have got to go and take it.  So, just definitely something we're preaching this week and making sure that our guys finish,” he said.

          Wooster (0-4,0-2) hosts Lexington (3-1.0-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, on Friday night.  The Minutemen destroyed an overwhelmed Akron North team (70-0) last week.

          Leek says Lexington is very good, but right now, it’s more able them.  “Lexington’s a good football team.  A lot of good talent.  They definitely pose some challenges.  Pretty even as far as run-pass.  Anytime you have got an “OCC” game, it's going to be a tough matchup,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday afternoon, “We're going to focus on us and the way we prepare.  Learn to finish and those are the things that we're focusing on this week and continue that momentum and try to build off our positives from last week.”

Published 9/16/25

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Wooster Has to Keep Plugging Away

          Wooster returns home to host the Madison Rams in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          They lost their “OCC” opener last week (42-7) in New Philadelphia.

          Coach Ray Leek says they just have to continue to try and get better.  “New Philly is always a good team.  They had an 0-2 record, but two good opponents and I think that'll change, so give credit to New Philly.  We have got to continue to focus on us and do the little things right because they add up to big differences.  So, just got to stay all in and continue to work everyday practice and have an intensity in practice that's game like and continue to get better every day we're out there,” said Leek.

          Leek says nothing builds confidence like winning, but he says they have to continue to make gains in practice.  “Winning fixes a lot of things.  Obviously, you play Friday nights to win, but again it's just taking care of you the little things and making sure that we learn how to win and how to practice and do things the right way both on and off the field to make sure that we're constantly getting better.  That's what we talk about continuous improvement one day at a time,” he said.

          Wooster (0-3,0-1) hosts Madison (1-2,0-0) on Friday night.  The Rams are coming off a (57-6) hiding at the hands of the Ontario Warriors last week in a non-conference game.

          Leek says the Rams are going to show a lot of pressure on defense and come with a lot of looks when they have the ball.  “They've got some playmakers really.  They're bringing back a couple of good receivers.  I think you know it's always good to be back home.  I think that you know we should be competitive here and try to go get one Friday night,” he told Swankonsports.com, “Defensively, they're going to mix it up with three man and four man fronts.  For us, we get a couple different books there.  They're trying to put some pressure on your quarterback there with that.  We have just got to take care of business, take care of the ball, playing disciplined, fly to the football and then handle the things that we can control.”

Published 9/11/25

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Wooster Trying to Get Better

          Wooster makes the trip to New Philadelphia to open play in the Ohio Cardinal Conference on Friday night.

          They dropped to (0-2) on the season with (43-13) loss to North Royalton last week.

          Coach Ray Leek says he thought they did show some improvement from week one.  “We have just got to take it one week at a time and make sure we're going to continue to improve.  Keep buying in and just work hard Monday through Thursday because each week we're going to get a little bit better and make sure that we're taking the strides here.  So, I think we did a lot of things better week two just not enough, so hopefully week three we continue to grow,” he said.

          New Philadelphia (0-2) lost (21-13) at Beloit West Branch last week, scoring both of their TDs in the fourth quarter after going their first seven quarters this season without a point.

          Leek says the Quakers are just going to do what they do.  “It's New Philadelphia, the “OCC” is here.  Anytime you get a league game it's just going to be tough.  They're well coached, they're physical, they're disciplined, so we just got to worry about ourselves and take care of the ball.  Make sure we fly to the ball and tackle.  They look pretty balanced offensively.  Defensively, they're going to run a 3-4.  They're true to themselves and who they are, but we have got to make sure that we're doing things the right way and control what we can control,” said Leek.

          Wooster has been able to move the ball this year, but they have been their own worst enemy at times.  Leek says Friday they have to score when they get down close.  “Anytime you get in the red zone you expect the score.  So, we have got to make sure that we execute and take care of business,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “Once we move the ball we have got to finish drives, especially once we get into that red zone.  They're a good team.  They didn't give up many points this year.  They had two good opponents in Louisville and West Branch.  They're going to be ready Friday night.”

Published 9/05/25

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Wooster Has to Clean up Mistakes

          Wooster is at home for North Royalton in a non-conference football game on Friday night, it’s their home opener.

          They lost (56-23) at archrival Orrville last week.

          Coach Ray Leek says they can’t continue to make that many mistakes on the field.  “Yeah, we have got things we have got to clean up.  We had too many penalties.  We have to stay more disciplined.  Just do our job.  Trust the guy next to you.  All easy fixable things if we continue buying in and make progress like we have.  So, back to work.  We went in Monday and watching film over the weekend, the kids had a great week of preparation.  They're still bought in and they're getting after it all week.  So, you have got to love to see that and hopefully we bounce back big this week,” said Leek.

          Leek says he believes his kids are bought into getting better this week in practice.  “It doesn't just naturally happen.  You have got to work for it.  That starts Monday through Thursday.  Our kids are truly bought into that.  I've seen that progress throughout the week.  So, happy with the effort just got to make sure that we continue to stay disciplined and clean up penalties.  Little things that make a big difference in the game.  Again, the good thing is they're correctable mistakes and we've got to learn from it and move on,” he said.

          North Royalton also lost (33-29) to Parma Holy Name in their first game.

          Leek says this is a team that’s going to throw it a lot.  “They lost a close one or a nail biter last week.  So, they're going to be hungry.  They have a huge passing game.  The quarterback is 6’8”, so they're going to sling the ball around a little bit more than Orrville did,” he told Swankonsports.com om Wednesday afternoon, “It's about us and doing our job and making sure that we're11 hats to the ball, trust the guy next to you and playing disciplined football on the defensive side.  Offensively, they run a very similar defense to Orville so, it shouldn't be something that's unfamiliar to our kids and hopefully we clean up some of the mistakes we made Friday night.”

Published 8/28/25

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Wooster Excited to Play Orrville

          As usual, Wooster starts off the football season with its biggest rival as they visit Orrville to tangle with the Red Riders on Friday night.

          They have played 114 times.

          First year coach Ray Leek likes what he has seen for his kids so far.  “As we progressed through two a days and then we had our first scrimmage, second scrimmage there and now we have the real test this week.  So, we definitely seen growth across the board in all positions offensively and defensively.  We’re not perfect yet, I don't think anybody is, as we haven't even played a real game yet, but if we keep growing and we keep getting after it like we are in practice.  I like our progression to this point now if we can continue that as we go from week one to week 10 and hopefully to the playoffs,” said Leek.

          Leek says after a long summer, his kids will be ready to play.  “It's week one, so you haven't hit somebody from a different team yet and then you add your rival to it that’s a huge week one for us right out of the gate.  So, our kids are excited they're going to be ready to go Friday night,” he said.

          Leek says Orrville has talent all over the place and he feels like it’s going to be a real battle Friday.  “Without giving them away too much of what we have got on them.  They're pretty balanced run and pass.  They have a returning receiver (Breylon) McDuffie, who's a heck of a kid.  They have two good running backs, solid offensive line,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Defensively they fly around to the ball.  They have a 3-4, 5-2.  They love walking outside linebackers up, very aggressive.  I thought they tackled well in the scrimmages and they played hard.  So, it should be a good game Friday night.”

Published 8/19/25

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Wooster Getting Ready

          Wooster has a new coach and the Generals are trying to work their way back into contention in the Ohio Cardinal Conference.

          Coach Ray Leek, at Dalton last year, says they have made good progression during August.  “The kids are working hard.  We have one scrimmage under our belt going into another one here (Thursday) and week one is next week.  So, I think that we're progressing and we're starting to pick up our schemes offensively and defensively.  Things are starting to sync out for us.  So, if we continue to make this progress all year, I think we'll be satisfied.  We don't want to peak right now.  We want to keep making progress as we continue throughout the year.  Our kids if they continue to put in this effort and energy during practice that's all you can ask for at the end of the day,” said Leek.

          Leek is confident they are going to be good in the trenches.  He says they are working with a somewhat inexperienced skilled group.  “We talked before we're going to be pretty solid up front I think with five guys returning from last year across the board.  We've got some depth up front, but we lost all our skill.  We lost all the receivers, all running backs, the quarterback.  We are replacing all those guys.  It's just catching those guys up to the varsity level.  The speed is a little different.  The decision making has got to be quicker.  So, we have just got to make sure that we continue to make that progress like we talked about and making sure that guys can fill a role and develop and play at that level,” said Leek.

          Wooster has a scrimmage against Cloverleaf on Thursday.  The open the season at traditional rival Orrville on August 22.

          Leek says they can’t wait for next week.  “You go two, three, four weeks depending on your schedule here where you're hitting the same guy every day.  You have a couple of scrimmages here and there, but it's you got to love the game at this point.  So, our kids are ready to see somebody in a different color jersey I guess,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “It means more week one especially for us.  We've got Orville, a huge rivalry over there, so our kids are excited for week one and just getting into the season.  Playing games that mean something.  Those are our paydays for our kids.  They work all offseason to get to that point.  We have just got to continue to make sure our kids are developing and taking the right path and making sure that they get better from week one through 10 and we're continuing to see that progress as we continue.”

Published 8/14/25

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Wooster Shuts Out Midview

          Wooster blanked Midview (10-0) in a division III district semifinal on Monday evening.

          The Generals (24-4) will take on Uniontown Lake in a district final at Thurman Munson Stadium in Canton on Thursday.

          Coach Steve Young says they got a terrific start from Sam Nielsen and executed well with the bats.  “It was good.  Our guys understand the time of the year it is.  They had a good demeanor about themselves approaching the game the right way.  They came out and we were clean defensively.  Sammy, our starting pitcher, went six innings and gave up two hits, one walk and eight strikeouts.  So, pretty efficient night for him on the mound, which helps the offense kind stay hot, working counts, being aggressive on the bases.  Overall, good team win and now we're on to Lake on Thursday,” he said.

          Wooster have advanced to the regional tournament the last two seasons and Young feels that helps them this spring.  “We were talking before the game to some of our seniors and kind of made very clear that this is their last ride and to make sure that they're kind of bringing the other guys that haven't been there along with them. We had a home game (Tuesday) night in the district semi, which is kind of unique.  This is the first time we've had that.  It allowed some of our other guys to settle into the atmosphere a little bit and kind of get a feel for the game.  At this time of the year everything's obviously heightened.  There's a different feeling at the ballpark at this time of the year.  So, for our guys they have been there, they've done it, there's not much they haven't seen at this point.  So, it's really about like going out executing the game plan and being clean,” said Young.

          Lake (16-11) beat Alliance (11-2) on Tuesday and Young says they will certainly be a challenge.  He says they want to stick to their game plan.  “They are good team top to bottom.  They have some guys that can swing it.  They have two really good arms.  One of those arms threw (Tuesday) night at Alliance, so we won't see him.  We're fairly certain we're going to see Noah Kubasky, who is a lefthanded pitcher committed to UNLV,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “Again this time of year, you are going to see a good arm no matter who you play.  For us again, it's about going out having an approach to make sure that we're executing our game plan at a high level and see what happens.  Put the ball in play and make them make plays.  If we have opportunities put pressure on them on the bases.  For us the other side, fill it up, throw strikes and play good defense and we'll see what happens.”

Published 5/28/25

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Wooster Remains on Top

          Wooster maintained its hold on first place in the Ohio Cardinal Conference with a (13-0) thumping of Ashland in league play on Monday evening.

          They lead New Philadelphia by a game with three to play.

          Coach Steve Young says they played an outstanding game.  “It was a make up game from early April.  We were able to throw our number one against them knowing we had to have it to try and maintain our lead in the league.  They threw their one as well.  I thought guys had really good approach to the plate.  I thought we were focused, we relaxed and ready to go and it's a big week for us.  We're very well aware of what's in front of us and we're just trying to play clean baseball and take one game at a time,” he said.

          Young says they feel confident anytime they give the ball to Brady Bowen, Wooster’s all-time leader in pitching victories.  “He's had a lot of experience obviously as we've talked before, but he's had a lot of really, really good teams he's pitched against.  A lot of huge, big name programs that he's had to go up against and stands toe to toe with them.  He was able to just kind of go about his business and do what he does and not get caught up in any of the extra curricular stuff.  We always have a game plan going into a game and he's executing it.  He's definitely our leader and the guy we turn to and the guy that we can rely on when we need a win.  So, it was good (Monday) to get him in there and got a big lead and we're able to kind of get him out and keep his count down pretty low, so should be fully ready for us end of the week now too,” said Young.

          Bowen got his sixth win of the 2025 season going three and a third innings and giving up one hit and fanning six.

          Wooster (17-4,8-1), #1 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, is scheduled to play Mansfield Senior Tuesday and Wednesday, weather permitting, and then the big showdown with New Philly on Saturday.

          Young says it will be nice to be able to throw Bowen against the Quakers.  “I made the comment to our AD that I'm not aware, I'm sure it's happened somewhere, but I'm not aware of anybody during my tenure playing four league games in a week.  That's what we're going to try and do this week, but again right now just one game at a time focus and make sure that we keep getting the one in front of us and worry about tomorrow tomorrow,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “I will say (Monday), and I told our coaches (Monday) morning, I said it'd be a dream scenario for us that we can get up kind of big and kind of get him out and keep that pitch count down because we're going to need him to come back on Saturday.  So, we're set up well now for that.  We have to make sure it means something by taking care of (Tuesday) and Wednesday.”

Published 5/13/25

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Wooster in Front… For Now

          Wooster grabbed a one game lead in the Ohio Cardinal Conference as they downed New Philadelphia (2-1) behind Brady Bowen on Wednesday evening.

          They now lead the Quakers by one in the standings and play them again, this time at home, on Thursday.

          Coach Steve Youngs says it was a huge win, especially on the road.  “It was big one.  We were supposed to have them at our place on Tuesday and the whether didn't really cooperate and really hasn't for most of the spring.  So, we ended playing the first game of the series down at their place.  Every time we go down there it's a funky type game.  We knew it would be going down and our guys were ready and our guys were excited for the opportunity.  I thought for the most part we did a pretty good job.  We had a couple of things early that we could have put up some crooked numbers and have to give credit to them, they made some pitches, made some plays.  For us on the mound, Brady Bowen took a no hitter into the seventh. So, the pitching performance from him once again was outstanding.  We played pretty solid defense behind him too, so it was a good team win,” said Young.

          Bowen is Wooster’s all leader in pitching victories and Young says he was on point again on Wednesday.  “He's been doing it for four years.  It was a situation where he was asking the last half of last week he was saying he wanted the ball at New Philly.  He wanted to throw down there and we as a staff made a decision no you are going to throw the first game at our place,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We tried to explain to him that we have got to get one before we can get two.  So, for him to have the opportunity with the rain out to go down there and kind of fulfill kind of what he wanted to do and set the tone and kind of be a stopper.  So, that was a big one to get it just makes (Thursday’s) game that much more important for us.”

          Wooster (15-3,7-1), #1 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, plays host to New Philadelphia (12-5,6-2), #3 in our poll, on Thursday and Young knows that game is probably even bigger.  “Like a lot of teams in our league New Philly is well coached, they're going to be scrappy, they're going to fight against us, they have got a lot of talented players.  So, our guys are well aware of what we're going to see (Thursday).  They're going to be feisty they're going to kind of be fight for their lives.  So, we have got to make sure that we answer that.  We have tried to tell them after the game and when we got back to the high school (Wednesday) night try to make sure we enjoy it and then (Thursday) morning we have got to lock it back in and get focused because I think (Thursday) will be a toughest game of the season for us to this point,” he said.

Published 5/08/25

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Wooster Bombs Lexington

          It must have felt a bit like a blitzkrieg to Lexington on Tuesday.

          Wooster didn’t almost push them into the Atlantic, or the Clear Fork Reservoir if you will, but they did send 17 batters to the plate in the first inning and put 11 runs on the board on their way to a (17-0) five inning destruction of the Minutemen in Ohio Cardinal Conference action.

          The Generals had six hits in that first inning alone and coach Steve Young says he liked their approach at the plate.  “That was little unusual.  We have been really harping on guys in practice on their approaches and being on a swing plane and just pitch selection.  So, they did a good job in the first inning of kind of putting some pressure on them early and things kind of snowballed from there.  But that's a good team, a good coached program, so we know (Wednesday) we have to come back ready to go.  They're not going to lay down, so we got to come back (Wednesday) same focus same intensity and try and do again,” said Young.

          Lexington had at least one chance to get out of that first inning with less damage, but didn’t make the play.

          Coach Jeff Strickler says it wasn’t their day.  “Sometimes it happens.  Give them credit, they came out hitting the ball really well.  There were a few of them where we didn’t make a play on and that was that.  Once we got by the first inning we did make a few plays, but still not enough,” he said.

          Wooster didn’t hit any home runs in the game, but they totaled six doubles and Young says they had got a lot of batting practice the last several days and it showed on Tuesday.  “We started the season really, really slow offensively.  I really think it was due to a lack of really any kind of consistent practice time outside of the cage.  So, we've had a really, really good several days of work here since last Thursday.  Getting on the field, hitting for hours.  Guys getting to see the trajectory of the balls they are hitting,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We start off on the tee making sure we're staying inside through the baseball.  I think the guys starting to see it's working, so we have got we got sick with it.  We have got to make sure that we stay strong on our backside, have a good, strong top hand and hit line drives everywhere.”

          Wooster’s home baseball field was not ready until last Friday.  The Generals (8-2,5-1) hosts Lex (7-4,4-1) on Wednesday at their place.  Both trail New Philadelphia by a game in the “OCC” standings.  The Quakers beat Ashland (9-6) on Tuesday.

          After the explosion in the first inning, Wooster added two in the third and four in the fourth.  Young was happy with their focus.  “That was a big key.  After we got their three outs in the bottom of the first we brought them up and we said hey we have got to maintain focus.  We didn't come here to play a half of an inning or one inning.  We came here to play seven innings.  So, we wanted to make sure that we kept our demeanor, our same approach, our same intensity for all for all seven innings.  It just so happened that we ended up playing five.  I'm proud of that.  In the past we've had teams that have kind of relaxed.  Last year we were up 9-0 on West Holmes and it ended up being a 9-8 game, so we brought that up as well.  Just make sure that we're playing the game the right way at all times,” said Young.

Published 4/23/25

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Wooster Responds; Hammers West Holmes

          Wooster kept itself in the Ohio Cardinal Conference race as they smoked West Holmes (10-1) on Wednesday evening.

          Right now, they trail Lexington and New Philadelphia by game in the “OCC” standings.

          Coach Steve Young says thy had a better approach on Wednesday.  “It was a good response for us coming off Monday.  Their guy threw it really, really well on Monday.  We were up 3-1 late and kind of felt like we kind of gave it away.  Actually, our focus was on cleaning some things up, getting a lot of good swings and we kind of came out with a much better approach and attitude (Wednesday).  So, it's good to kind of jump out early and tacking a couple late.  Our pitchers did a great job too.  Kind of filled it up and making sure the ball was in play and trusting their defense.  So, we'll take it,” said Young.

          Wooster (6-2,4-1) plays Lexington in its “OCC” series next week.

          Young knows there is a lot of hard work in front of them.  “We have got a long road ahead of us and a long way to go to be the ballclub we want to be.  So, each and every day we’re trying to keep getting better,” he said.

          Wooster lost (5-3) to West Holmes on Monday.

          Young says Tuesday they got in some good practice.  “I have got to give a lot of credit to our guys because realistically, I mean just shooting you straight here, we've been on a field to practice three times going into our game on Monday.  So, the one field reps have not been there for us yet this year.  We were actually able to get to another local high school (Tuesday) and get on the field and practice.  So, it was kind of good to get out and kind of rep some things, flush some things.  It was a really good work day (Tuesday),” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Even (Tuesday) when our guys got into practice, they had different demeanor about them.  They were ticked off.  They knew we kind of give one away on Monday.  They were ready to respond and they're ready to get after it.  It's one of those situations where you kind of wish you could just play (Tuesday), but it was also good for us to be able to get a practice on actual baseball field for one of the few times this year so far.  So, love the mentality, love how they approached practice and how they approached the game (Wednesday) and we’ve got to continue to do that as the season goes on here.”

Published 4/17/25

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Wooster Handles Ashland

          Brady Bowen broke the Wooster record for career pitching victories and the Generals beat Ashland (10-3) on Wednesday evening in Ohio Cardinal Conference baseball action.

          Coach Steve Young says they were able to get some things going on offense and put some pressure on the Arrows.  “We were fortunate enough to kind of get ourselves in some good hitters counts and capitalize a little bit.  Our guys had a decent approach at the plate.  Slowly but surely getting better throughout the year as we go on here.  Good approach and got ourselves in good hitters counts and able to capitalize.  A big part of our game is to get guys on base trying to cause some havoc and kind of create things and put pressure on the defense,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “It's a lot easier to do when we have got base runners and we were fortunate enough to get some.  We had two big innings, but realistically they had a couple guys that threw it pretty well (Wednesday) night.  So, we were kind of fortunate to kind of get this one.  We'll kind of look to build off of it going to (Thursday) and try and do it again against a good quality opponent.”

          Young says Bowen and freshman Lucas Shiplett were able to get the job done against Ashland.  “We have had Brady Bowen on the mound for us (Wednesday).  He is a four year starter for us.  I think he would even tell you he wasn't really his sharpest.  On a good cold night like this we were very, very lucky to kind of keep him under 80 pitches.  He picked up the win, which actually was our all time career school win record with 23 now.  We had a sophomore Lucas Shiplet come in for the last two innings.  He is still getting his feet wet a little bit at the varsity level.  It was good to see him come in and fill it up and be efficient and kind of let the ball be in play and trust his defense.  So, those two guys combined to throw a pretty good game.  A couple mistakes being made, but it's part of baseball.  So, try and get it corrected and try to be better next time,” said Young.

          Wooster (3-2,3-0) is scheduled to host Ashland (5-1,2-1) on Thursday, weather permitting.

          Young says Bowen has been a cornerstone of their program for four years.  “We were talking about this on the bus on the way home.  Brady wasn't really supposed to pitch for us his freshman year.  We had a couple injuries and next thing you know he's 5-0 his freshman year and was able to just kind of come in as a 15 year old freshman and throw four pitches for a strike in any count.  So, that's kind of been a teachable moment for all of our guys in our program.  If you can throw multiple pitches for a strike at any count you can be effective in high school.  Brady is the prime example of that.  He’s had a great career.  We have got a long way to go this year, but super excited for him, proud of him, great kid, great family, couldn't happen to do a better person than he's earned everything he's got,” he said.

Published 4/10/25

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Wooster Gets Past Madison

          Wooster edged Madison (2-1) to open play in the Ohio Cardinal Conference in a game played at the College of Wooster on Tuesday.

          Coach Steve Young says his team rode the pitching of Brady Bowen, their ace.  “Brady Bowen was on the mound for us (Tuesday) night.  He's been a pitcher for us since he was a freshman, so we know we're always getting pretty good outing from him.  He did a really good job of throwing three or four pitches for a strike really in any count.  No free passes, six K's.  They got him for three hits. Realistically I could make an argument it was probably more like one hit, but we'll take it.  Played fairly good defense behind him,” said Young.

          Young says he was not pleased with their execution at the plate.  “Their guy threw it pretty well too and was able to throw a lot of pitches for strikes.  We didn't do a very good job adjusting offensively.  To be honest with you we're not really thrilled with our offensive performance (Tuesday) night.  That was a point of emphasis after the game.  So, hopefully come back (Wednesday) and make some corrections and be a little bit better offensively,” he said.

          Wooster (1-1,1-0) plays at Madison (0-2,0-1) on Wednesday in the rematch in “OCC” play.

          Young says they have some things to work on if they are going to become a better team.  “We told him after the game it's a lot better to learn from a win than it is a loss, so we'll take it.  Early on here arms are a little bit ahead of the sticks, so we got lots to improve upon and again a long way to go.  Definitely something that we can take away from this, hopefully learn from it, make some corrections,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “Some of it just approach, some of it's just basic fundamentals on our swing.  So, we'll do everything we can to kind of get things fixed.  It’s a quick turn around (Wednesday) as we go back to their place.  Our guys know it was not up to our standards, but again we'll take the win.  We know Madison is going to come out are ready to go, so we have got to come out focused and ready to go and try and get another one against the good, quality opponent.”

Published 4/02/25

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Wooster Hasn’t Proven Anything Yet

          Wooster is one of the preseason favorites in the Ohio Cardinal Conference this year, but the Generals are certainly not counting their chickens before they’re hatched.

          Coach Steve Young says they have made some good progression this spring.  “It has been good.  We got all four scrimmages in this year, which we're fortunate to do so.  For us, we're a little bit of a unique circumstance.  We don't really have a field right now to practice on, so we are getting awfully creative using our football turf. We've been lucky enough to use the College of Wooster a few times, parking lots and couple open fields.  So, we've been very creative.  It's been a little bit of a grind.  So, again very, very fortunate to get all four scrimmages in and saw some good things, saw some growth and we're definitely kind of starting to kind of grow into the season a little bit as we get ready to launch here,” said Young.

          They open Saturday against Medina Buckeye in non-league play.

          Young says they hope to be playing on their home field by sometime in April.  “We are at the point right now where hopeful that our field will be done and ready for us to get on by the second week of April.  That's the hope, that's the goal, so kind of kind of taking it day by day.  There's a lot of moving parts at the moment.  A lot of the excavation is pretty much done, so now it's just fencing company and turf company.  Once that process starts hopefully it goes quickly.  So, at some point this year we will be on it and we're hoping it’s sooner rather than later,” he said.

          Young says they have good, veteran talent, but they also have some young guys who will be new to varsity baseball.  “We talked to our guys about these expectations it's not a real tangible thing.  So, we talked to our guys about just kind of handling their business and make sure that we execute at a high level, which we have a team that's capable of doing,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “A lot of guys have been playing varsity baseball this be their fourth year.  So, we've been there, we've done it, we do have quite a bit of experience.  At the same time, we're breaking in a lot of new arms.  We're breaking in couple young guys in a couple key spots.  So, kind of make sure that we're bringing those young guys along at a pace that hopefully allows us to be growing and strengthening as the season goes on and kind of reach our stride once we get towards the back half of the season and the postseason.”

Published 3/27/25

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Wooster to Face Very Good Lexington

          Wooster is the only team to beat Lexington in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game this year and they get another chance on Friday as they travel to Lexington.

          They trail the Minutemen and Mansfield Senior by a game in the conference standings.

          They beat Lex (75-68) on December 17 at Wooster.

          Coach Che Richardson says they were just very good that night.  “I told our guys to beat a team like Lexington you have to play perfect and you have to do everything just the right way.  I feel like we shot the ball really well.  I feel like when they went on their runs, we didn't get rattled.  We were able to handle all their runs.  I feel like we just played together as a team.  We just did everything that we were supposed to do to win a game like that,” said Richardson.

          Of course, in December the Minutemen didn’t have Brayden Fogle, the reigning “OCC” player of the year, who was dealing with a hand injury.

          Richardson says Fogle is a difference maker.  “He just adds like another layer.  I mean obviously he's the “OCC” player of the year last year and he's a really good football recruit.  He just adds a different level of athleticism.  They have a guy that they could go to when they need a bucket.  He just adds that extra layer that honestly makes them probably one of the best teams in the state,” he said.

          Lexington was already an athletic team with the likes of guard Seven Allen and post Joe Caudill.  Richardson says their schedule prepares them for teams that are good offensive rebounders.  “The best thing that happened to us is we played against a team like Massillon where like they're just as athletic as Lexington.  So, we've have known we have to make some adjustments to help us rebound better and just kind of continue to grow within that,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “I think with our schedule that we play, we play against similar teams in our non-league that play a similar style of basketball.  I would say it just prepares us for going into conference.”

Published 1/23/25

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Wooster Needs to Finish

          Wooster does not play an “OCC” game this week instead they are at Massillon to do battle with the Tigers in non-conference play on Friday night.

          Coach Che Richardson says playing games like this one is important.  “That’s what I've always told our guys is everything we do right now is preparing for tournament and to go against teams like Massillon you're preparing for teams that would be more athletic.  Also, being at Wooster everything is 30 minutes or further away, so you're preparing yourself on those bus rides to be able to one get yourself mentally prepared for a game and then kind of go out there and compete against some of the best teams,” said Richardson.

          When it comes to personnel, Richardson says Massillon reminds him of a couple league schools.  “They're good, they're athletic, they press well.  I would say they compare to in our league probably like Lexington or Mansfield.  They score well.  I think they're averaging close to almost 70 points a game.  So, they do a lot of scoring.  We're just going to have to be able to just sit down and get stops and be able to score ourselves,” he said.

          Wooster (7-5) has played well at times, they beat Lexington earlier this year, but Richardson says they must be more consistent.  “I would say just playing two halves.  Right now, I feel like we're playing one good half and then either the first half was good and the second half was bad or the first half was bad and the second half was good,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “I just think we're just trying to figure out a way to play complete games and just finish out games as well as I think we can.  I told our guys the biggest thing is you don't want to hit your stride too early.  The good thing is like we've kind of run through some adversity and still trying to learn some things.  I'm hoping that we could start hitting our stride here soon and kind of get things rolling again.”

Published 1/17/25

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Wooster Seeks Improvement

          Wooster, a loser in their last two “OCC” games, plays at home against Mansfield Madison in a game that is Thursday night.

          The Generals were leading the conference standings, but lost (61-45) to Mansfield Senior last Friday and (54-52) to New Philadelphia on Tuesday night.

          Coach Che Richardson says they goal has to be improvement.  “I would say just continue to get better.  (Tuesday) night we just struggled and had a bad second quarter.  I think we just got caught just being too content with us just being up to big at the time and we gave them momentum going into the second half.  We just struggled to score the ball.  So, I would say just focus on the little things as far as like making sure when we screen, we're screening the body and we're trying to get our teammates open and we're not just looking to settle, but we're looking to attack too,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says they must play a full four quarters, not just part of the game.  “That's been our stressor this year as far as like we have got to pay the full game and there's been a lot of games, especially games that we've lost to where either we played a good first half and lose in the second half or we played a bad first half and lose in the second half.  So, the key to us right now is we have to play 32 minutes and giving it our all and just continue to just bounce back and get better,” he said.

          Wooster (6-4,4-2), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, entertains Madison (4-8,1-5) on Thursday.  The Rams lost (72-51) to Ashland in a league game on Tuesday.

          Richardson says the Rams are dangerous because they have some good guard play.  “They have solid guard play over there.  They have got guys that can shoot and kind of make their own plays.  I think coach (Davey) Hipp over there is doing a good job with what he has.  It's a tough game for us because it’s a league game and last year they actually came into our place and they were beating us the entire game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “I continue to remind our guys, you have got to go into this like it's a conference game.  This is kind of like a must win for us to get us back on track.  So, our guys understand the stakes right now as far as where we're at especially in the “OCC.”

Published 1/09/25

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Wooster Has to be Physical

          Wooster, the Ohio Cardinal Conference leader, will entertain Mansfield Senior in a big game in conference on Friday night.

          The Tygers trail the Generals by a game.

          Last week, Wooster hammered West Holmes (68-34) in “OCC” play.

          Coach Che Richardson says after a slow start they played pretty well.  “I thought our guys came out a little sluggish.  I think we came out and were hoping West Holmes was just going to kind of roll over and let us do whatever we want.  So, we had a slow start, but I was happy the guys picked it up and we were able to kind of just get the lead where we needed to be and continue to build off of it.  It was a good win for us in the road,” said Richardson.

          Wooster (6-2,4-0), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, hosts Mansfield Senior (5-1,3-1), #2 in our poll, on Friday.  The Tygers have not played in two weeks.  They are still sitting on that (74-70) loss to Lexington on December 20.

          Richardson says they have excellent guard play.  “This would be probably the best I would say guard play that we've played so far this year as far as just the consistent scoring from those guys. Then they also have the (Kyevi Roane) guy, who I feel like he's probably been there for five years now,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “He's a good leader for them and he can also score.  They score the ball.  This will be a tough task for us.  Being at the top of the “OCC” I think you're going to get everyone's best and I'm hoping our guys are understanding that and come out ready to go.”

          Richardson says the Tygers will pressure you hard and they get on the boards.  “They're tough down there.  They have some guys that are just super athletic and if you don't get a body on them it's going to be a long night. We’ve tried to focus a lot this season as far as like let's limit the offensive rebounds.  They're going to have them, but let's just try to limit them as best we can.  Just be physical down there and I think if we're physical and box guys out we'll give ourselves a chance,” he said.

Published 1/03/25

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Wooster Doing Good Things

          Wooster, one of the leaders in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, will host the Ashland Arrows in an “OCC” game on Friday night.

          On Tuesday, they downed Lexington, the defending champion, (75-68) in a conference game.

          Coach Che Richardson says it was a very good win for them.  “It was a big win for us.  I thought after having two losses in a row against good Perry and Medina teams I love that our guys were able to bounce back.  I feel like we played a complete game.  We did all the right things.  Against Lexington you have got to kind of play perfect.  I feel like we made shots and we got stops when we needed them.  So, it's a huge win for the program,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says they were prepared for what Lexington brought to the table.  “I think like with our scrimmage schedule we had we played against a lot of teams that got up got up in us and pressed us this preseason, so that definitely prepared us.  I know early on we struggled against pressure, but now I think our guys have kind of matured a lot and got the reps that are needed to kind of handle that pressure,” he said.

          Wooster (3-2,2-0) will be at home for Ashland (3-2,1-1) on Friday night.  The Arrows are coming off a (66-59) loss to Mansfield Senior on Tuesday night.

          Richardson says Ashland is a very good team and they have outstanding guards.  “It's a tough game.  It’s kind of like a rivalry still for us.  It's a tough game to go into, especially after beating Lexington.  You just hope that your guys are still ready to go and understand like now that you beat one of the best teams in the league all eyes are on you and how are you going to react to that,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Ashland has some good guards I know (Gabe) Baith and Paxson (Ediger) are two of the best guards in the league.  So, we just have to make sure we stop them and defend.  Then we'll score the ball again and I'm excited to see where we're at against them.”

Published 12/20/24

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Wooster to Play Talented Wadsworth

          Wooster plays its first game on Tuesday night as the Generals entertain the Wadsworth Grizzlies in a non-league game.

          Coach Che Richardson says they have been tested and are ready to go for the opener.  “I felt like we got better as time went on.  We had a kind of a brutal scrimmage schedule this year, which I thought was really good for us to kind of just go through kind of a gauntlet of just good basketball teams and kind of see we're at and kind of trying to see that growth this year.  So, had a really good preseason. I'm excited to kind of see where it all plays out for us this year,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says they won’t be very big this year and they and going to do a lot of things well in defense.  “I think our identity is going to come kind of as the season goes on.  We're smaller this year.  We don't really have like a true five man this year.  We'll be small, so that'll make us quicker and have to kind of do a little different things defensively.  So, I think our identity will kind of come as the season goes on,” he said.

          Richardson says they know what to expect from Wadsworth and know it will be a tough game.  “They beat us last year and they beat us this summer.  They have a really good coach over there and they have a really good program,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “They have guys that can score the ball, they have guys that can just kind of do a little bit of everything.  So, the biggest thing is we just have to come in ready to compete and understand that's just not going to be won in one possession and that we have to kind of take care of the ball and do the little things to give ourselves a chance.”

Published 12/03/24

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Wooster Needs to Contain Lexington Athletes

          Wooster heads to Lexington for a game in the Ohio Cardinal Conference on Friday night.

          Both need wins pretty badly.

          Wooster (1-3,0-2) lost (35-24) at Mansfield Madison on Friday night.

          Coach Austin Holter says they made some mistakes again and Madison was just the better team that night.  “A disappointing loss for us.  All of the credit to coach (Brent) Becanson and his staff and their team at Madison.  They played really hard and played a more sound football game than we did.  Offensively, we had a crucial turnover, we had some crucial penalties in that game that got us behind the chains.  Defensively, we gave up a couple big plays and didn't tackle particularly well.  So, there are some areas of the game that we have to clean up.  It felt like we had a great week of practice this week emphasizing those things.  We have got to continue to move in the right direction to get those things cleaned up to finally win some ballgames,” he said.

          Lexington (1-3,0-0) beat Akron North (49-6) in a non league game on Friday night for their first win of the season.

          Holter says the Minutemen have some explosive athletes.  “I'm going to tell you what Lexington’s got some dynamic athletes.  Their quarterback is a big kid.  I think they've got him listed at 6’4”, 220 pounds.  He's an absolute load in the run game and has a very strong arm to push the ball downfield, very accurate even in his intermediate throws.  They've got some wide receivers too that catch the ball very well.  #8 is a lengthy kid who could take the top off of it.  He certainly will win on the jump ball and and runs good routes.  The same with #2 they have got another wide receiver out there #2.  I think he catches the ball very, very well with his hands,” he told Swankonsports.com om Thursday afternoon, “Offensively, they're going to be tough to guard.  Their run game has been good.  They've got some great athletes on the outside.  We've got to stay disciplined.  We have got to stay over the top.  We have got to read our keys in the secondary and take care of some of their vertical threats.  Then we have to tackle well.  Their running backs are big and strong, their quarterbacks big and strong, so we have got to do a great job of tackling an rallying to the to the ball carriers.”

          Wooster has been able to move the ball this year.  Holter says Friday they have to win their individual matchups when they have the ball.  “Offensively, we're going to have to focus on doing our 1/11^th.  They do a great job in their defensive schematics trying to force themselves to put you in tough situations in the run game and account for gaps plus one.  Coach has done a good job there on their end with their defensive schematics.  So, we're going to have to win our one-on-one battles up front and then we're going to be able to win on the edge.  We have to have some of our playmakers step up on the perimeter to make some big plays for us to find a way to make some big plays so to add the explosives to what we're doing and be able to put some points on the board,” said Holter.

Published 9/20/24

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Wooster Must Limit Turnovers

          Wooster looks for its first Ohio Cardinal Conference win at Madison on Friday night.

          They lost their league opener to New Philadelphia (28-7) last Friday.

          Coach Austin Holter says it started out bad and they never got any consistency.  “Certainly not the start you're looking for there.  We gave up an opening kickoff return for a touchdown.  I was proud of the way we responded after that from an offensive perspective.  We did put together and sustain a drive that ended with a score to tie it up 7-7.  Then had a defensive stop then that ensuing offensive possession we had a turnover.  Turnovers, we had three of those in that in that game against a very talented New Philadelphia team.  They were physical in the trenches.  They did a great job in the box.  We were never really able to sustain drives through the course of the game or necessarily able to establish the run like we'd like to.  So, credit them and what they did, but we have got to limit turnovers.  We hurt ourselves at times in that game and that's something we're looking to improve on.  So, it's been a point of emphasis early in this this this week of practice and something we're focused on right now,” said Holter.

          Holter says turnovers have really killed them all season.  “As you're striving to be the best you can that's certainly huge.  Even in the course of our first three games I mean it's been a huge factor.  We've had six offensive turnovers total in the two games we've lost and one win we had no turnovers.  So, that's certainly huge for us on the offensive side.  Then at the same on the defensive side trying to just create turnovers.  We're able to successfully do that in the Kent Roosevelt game and haven't been able to really get our hands on that outside of that.  So, we have got to be aggressive to the football.  We have got to attack the football on the defensive side.  Then on the offense side, we have got to protect it and we have got to be able to establish the trenches.  So, I thought the first part of practice this week's been good and certainly things that feel like we're improving on,” he said.

          Madison (0-3) was smoked (34-14) by Ontario in a non-league game last week.

          Holter says Madison tries to do a lot of the same things they do.  “I think Madison's tough in the trenches.  They have got some kids inside that get off the football, use their hands extremely well on the defensive side of the ball.  Was very impressed with their interior linebacker play as well.  They've got some big kids in there that play extremely hard.  So, we're going to have to match that hard edge up front and play very sound in the trenches.  That'll be critical if we want to try to develop some consistency in the run game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “On the other side of the ball, they've got a quarterback, that I think is a very good talent.  He's a dual threat kid.  He's got good arm strength.  They have got some good athletes around him to throw to.  They do a multitude of things.  So, we've got to be very sound in our alignments defensively.  We have got to rally the football.  We have got to be aggressive to it.  The great thing is this week they're very similar to us on both sides of the ball.  We’ve seen some four man front.  They’re kind of a spread based offense.  So, it's a week where we're really emphasizing and focusing ourselves trying to continue to improve in our daily assignments, take care of the football, attacking the football, and just becoming better as a football team.  So, very excited about where we're at looking forward to the competition with Madison on Friday.”

Published 9/12/24

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Trenches Key For Wooster

          Wooster kicks off its Ohio Cardinal Conference season on Friday night by hosting the New Philadelphia Quakers.

          The Generals (1-1) picked up a win last week by downing Kent Roosevelt (31-14) in non-conference play.

          Coach Austin Holter says they were much better than in a (41-18) loss to Orrville on week one.   “I was proud of our kids.  I thought we responded really well obviously coming off of the opening day, week one loss to the crosstown rival.  We definitely didn't want that to define our season.  I felt like our kids went back to work with refocus, recharge, this past week and responded in all three phases.  We were better on offense, eliminated the turnovers, played better defensively, we didn't give up a big play and even on special teams, we had a special team score and our kicking game came around a little bit.  So, certainly proud of our kids response.  Excited to get that first win under our belt and very motivated this week to play against very talented New Philadelphia team,” said Holter.

          New Philadelphia (1-1) lost to powerful Steubenville (27-21) after beating Louisville (12-7) in their opener.

          Holter says they have a tremendous quarterback.  “I'm going to tell you coach (Mike) Johnson does a great job down there with that team.  They're always very disciplined, they execute their assignments extremely well on both sides of the football,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “They've got as good of a quarterback in this conference as we'll see.  Their quarterback has been playing football for them for a long time and he is a true dual threat kid.  He’s got incredible arm talent, but even more so can really run.  I think in the week one matchup with Louisville he had over 100 yards himself on the ground.  The kids an extremely explosive athlete.  They're tough and big in the box.  They have got some big kids up front that have been playing a lot of football for them here and for quite some time and so they're big in the trenches.”

          To have a chance to win, Holter says they have to compete up front.  “It's another one of those weeks where we've got to be tough inside.  We have got to match their physicality.  We've got to play discipline driven football, executing our assignments.  This team is always well coached in all three phases, so we’ll have to be at our best,” he said.

Published 9/05/24

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Wooster Working on Execution

          Wooster will be at home for Kent Roosevelt in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          The Generals moved the ball well last week, but kept shooting themselves in the foot in a (41-18) loss to arch rival Orrville.

          Coach Austin Holter says showed they can do good things.  “Offensively, I think we put up around 450 yards.  We had a running back rush for 280 yards, but we had three offensive turnovers.  They had a surprise onside kick as well, so you count that as your fourth turnover.  Then offensively, we got stuffed on two fourth down conversion situations inside our own territory.  So, it was a tale of us not being able to execute to the best of our ability there and allowing a couple big plays for them.  You have got to get a lot of credit to coach Zuecher and his team over there.  They played extremely hard, they played a very disciplined football game.  Just really beat us in all three phases.  So, we've got to regroup, we've got to respond this week.  We can't let that Friday define our season and that's what we're working on right now.  Working on getting back to work, focusing on ourselves, focusing on our job and trying to improve,” said Holter.

          Holter says they have to clean up those mistakes.  “That comes down to your daily habits and your practice habits and the way you prepare daily.  Kind of an analogy I use with our kids this week is you can't expect in a basketball game you can't expect to go out there on Friday and change your shot.  You're going to shoot your shot and that's a shot you've developed through the course of your offseason that you developed in that week of practice.  You can't just assume it's going to change on a Friday night.  Kind of the same with football.  The type of discipline, the execution, you have on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday practice that's going to be the result on Fridays.  So, we're focused on being at our very best and every play this week in practice and working to allow that to translate for us on Friday night,” he said.

          Kent last week beat Ravenna (14-7) in their opener.

          Holter says must have sound execution if they are going to win.  “I'm going to tell you defensively they're extremely sound obviously only giving up seven points to Ravenna is huge.  They're very gap sound, they're disciplined, their defensive line gets off the football.  They’re not as big up front as what we saw a week ago with Orrville, but boy they're defensive line is fast and do a great job shooting their hands, so we're going to get off the football.  We're going to win with our snap count, win with our first step up front to try to establish and sustain the run.  Certainly, we want to hang our hat on that.  Then we're going to have to create some big plays in the pass game as well.  They do a great job corralling around the run game and having kind of a heavier box to try to eliminate some of that run, so we're going to have to make some plays in the pass game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “On the other end of it, offensively they're not afraid to push the ball downfield.  They've got some terrific athletes on the edge.  Their quarterback has a strong arm and they're willing to throw it vertical.  So, based on last week and what we did defensively we've got to do a better job in pass coverage.  We have got to be more disciplined in our assignments on the back end there to try to eliminate some of those vertical passing game concepts they're going to bring to play there.  Then up front we have got to get some pressure.  We have got to apply pressure on the quarterback early.  Put them in a situation and try to get the ball out quick getting and have our defenders makes the plays.  So, we're excited.  I think we had a great Monday practice.  Like we said, it's each and every day just trying to make small improvements to get better Friday night.”

Published 8/28/24

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Wooster to Face Rival Orrville

          Friday marks the renewing of a tradition that started before World War I when a lot of the travel in Ohio was by horse as Wooster hosts Orrville in a non-conference football game.

          Coach Austin Holter says they have had a good month heading into the opener.  “You certainly prepare the best you can and I've been really proud of this group.  We had a terrific two a day camp, fall camp, and they've worked their tails off.  We had great scrimmages with Westlake and Lorain and also Cloverleaf this past Friday.  There's no better way to get a football season started than with a rivalry game with the team across town.  The 113th meeting means a lot to us, means a lot to our community.  We're trying to dot those I’s cross those T’s this week as we get prepared for Friday,” said Holter.

          When you play your biggest rival there is always a lot of emotion, but Holter says execution is the key.  “At the end of the day it still comes down to you doing your 1/11^th to you doing your job as consistently as you possibly can.  Doing it better than the guy you line up against.  So, it's about those individual battles on a down in down out basis for us on Friday.  That's what we're focused on right now in practice.  Our kids are focused on identifying their job and execute it to the best of their ability.  I've been very, very proud of the work they put in here early in the week.  So, have been real proud of their effort.  We’re excited to represent the community Friday night here Folis,” he said.

          Wooster has won the last three games in the series, including (33-31) last season.

          Holter says they must match Orrville’s physicality.  “I'm going to tell you they're a tough football team.  We had an opportunity to watch some of their tape.  They're big up front, they're disciplined, there's a lot of guys experience returning for them in the trenches, so their physical football team.  I was really impressed with the running back play.  Their running back runs hard, finishes runs.  They have got a young quarterback who's doing a great job, makes good decisions.  He's got a strong arm, he's very lengthy as well.  From the defensive side, we're going to have to play very gap sound football on the defensive side.  Knowing your assignment, execute at the highest level you can,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon. “Offensively we're going to have to turn it around.  We're going to have to play disciplined, assignment driven football up front we're going to have to match that physicality in the trenches.  We're going to try to find a way to establish the run early because they're experienced in the box.  That's going to be an area that they're going to hang their hat on and we've got to find a way to match that and continue to get better.  So, we're excited for that challenge on Friday.”

Published 8/22/24

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Wooster Excited for the Season

          It was a un-Wooster like season last when the Generals finished (3-7), but they feel they will be back this year.

          Coach Austin Holter says they have been doing a lot of good things.  “I'm going to tell you what we set a couple of team goals going into fall camp.  We want to really continue to develop team chemistry and continue to develop great personal self-confidence. Those were two areas that we felt like were measurable goals and we could work on.  A week and half into our two days I think these kids are doing a phenomenal job with that.  We had we had a fantastic scrimmage last Friday with Lorain and Westlake, those two teams came down from up north, and competed with us here at Folis. I really thought we saw our team come together.  I thought I saw our team really improve on a down in down out basis on the field.  Have been very happy with that.  We're excited this Friday to travel to Cloverleaf for kind of our preview scrimmage with them.  Coach Vorhies has got a great team over there, so it'll be a good competition for us.  Each and every day our kids are working on building great relationships with each other and developing personal confidence and self-confidence through preparation and I think you will see our kids getting better every day, so we're super excited about that,” said Holter.

          Holter says they will return a lot of skilled players that can make big plays for them.  “I think we have got great senior leadership.  We have got 16 seniors, a lot of these young men have been playing a lot of football for us at the varsity level, a lot of them been playing have been playing since their sophomore year.  Many of which are skilled players.  We've got quite a few returners at wide receiver and the defensive backfield as well as our running back, quarterback play, so there's a lot of experience in those skilled positions,” he said.

          Holter stresses that their level of success this year is going to be based on what happens up front.  “The area for us that's got a little less experience is going to be in the trenches.  Our offensive and defensive lines, we do have a few guys who have some varsity experience, a couple that have some substantial, but we're going to be playing a lot of guys there that that don't have as much experience.  Not necessarily a young group.  We'll have quite a few juniors mixed in there with some seniors as well.  So, for us right now it's developing that identity in the trenches, determining what type of team this will be,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “I have gotta tell you through the first week and a half, I've been very proud of that group on both sides, our offensive and defensive line, and they're in ability to improve each and every day.  We've got to set a hard edge up front. We have got to be tough in the trenches.  We ask our kids every day to do three things.  We want them to be tough, mentally and physically, we want them to try hard and everything that we do we want them to have fun.  I think that group is taking that mentality, taking that mantra on, they're continuing to develop great physical mental toughness weekly.  They're giving us great effort and they're certainly having fun.  So, if we can develop in those areas and continue to grow, I think this team has got an opportunity to have a great season.”

Published 8/14/24

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Wooster Has to be Really Good

          Wooster takes on Twinsburg in a division I regional semifinal on Thursday afternoon at Oberlin College.

          The winner of that game with play either Massillon Jackson or North Canton Hoover for a ticket to next week’s state tournament.

          Wooster is making its second straight regional tournament appearance and coach Steve Young says he thinks that helps his kids.  “I think it definitely helps.  Our preparations this week have been pretty good.  Last year, you could kind of see where everyone was kind of happy to be there.  I don't want to say relaxed, but almost like this is really, really cool and this year the feel has been totally different.  The feel, the focus has been locked in.  Our practices have been a lot cleaner.,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “A lot more focused and even our tune up game that we had (Tuesday) with Waynedale was super clean.  We didn't make an error and executed everything we need to do.  So, I think obviously it helps being there.  It's something that we don't take for granted and we know nothing but tough teams are left at this point, so we have got to go out there and be clean, execute and play as well as we can.”

          Wooster (18-5) meets Twinsburg (21-6) on Thursday.  The Tigers beat Dover, who will be in the Ohio Cardinal Conference next year, (3-0) in their district final.

          Young says they have great pitching.  “At this point I know everything about them.  They have got a lot of good arms.  They're going to be very, very good defensively.  They're going to pitch it well.  They have got guys that can spot up with pretty high velocities.  They have got guys that can throw a lot of off speed and again locate spot on.  So, they've got a lot of options on the mound.  Like I said, defensively they're clean, very well coached.  This is a team that last year I think was 1-11 in their league play and this year they had a league title.  So, quite the turnaround.  They have a veteran team with 12 seniors,” said Young.

          With the bats, Young says Twinsburg will be fundamentally sound.  “Offensively, they have got a couple guys with a little bit of pop, but overall they're going to put the ball in play.  They're going to execute.  Their going to hit behind runners.  They're going to do the little things right.  So, again it's one of those where at this point it could come down to one mistake.  So, we have got to go out there and be prepared for a tough fought ballgame game and we have to try and be the better team for 21 outs,” he said.

Published 5/30/24

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Wooster Gets Past Medina

          Wooster got a measure of revenge on Tuesday when they beat Medina (2-1) in a division I district semifinal played at Brookside Reservation.

          Now, they have a chance to play Cleveland St. Ignatius, a team they beat last year in the same game, in the district final on Thursday.

          Medina beat the Generals last year in the regional semifinal, but coach Steve Young says this year they were more ready.  “It was a good ballgame.  We knew what we were up against because last year we saw them in the regional semis and same pitcher.  We threw the same pitcher.  So, (Tuesday) night, we were a little bit cleaner.  We executed a little bit better and sometimes you know that's baseball.  So, proud of our guys, proud of the preparation, proud of guys doing whatever the team needed them to do.  Play a little bit selfless.  We'll see what happens on Thursday,” he said.

          Young says there is no question they were thinking about last year’s loss to Medina.  “That's one of those where it's really fueled us all for almost a full calendar year.  Last year regional semis and go to Gilmour Academy and just felt like we didn’t really play our best and execute.  We were kind of out of our game.  We talked about it in our exit interviews last year, all fall, all winter and preparation in the spring and it just kind of fell into place.  We played them again this year and we were very, very well prepared.  The guys were super excited for the opportunity to go play a good team and they did what was needed.  We didn't really have a whole lot of firepower (Tuesday) night, but we pitched it well, played good defense, had some good base running and had timely hitting and we came out on top.  So, we'll take it anyway we can get it and just know that we have a big opponent ahead of us.”

          Last year, Wooster beat St. Ignatius (3-2) in a district final.  In a regular season game this year on May 4, the Wildcats smoked Wooster (11-1).

          Young says they know they can compete.  “To be quite honest it's really no coincidence that we scrimmage them every year and play them every year.  We try and get eyes on them multiple times a year.  Last year, we got the big win in the district championship.  We know that's going to be very, very fresh in their minds, the forefront of their minds.  So, similar to us against Medina (Tuesday).  It's going to be Ignatius against us on Thursday, so big task ahead. We know the challenge ahead,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “They have got just a ton of talent.  Very well coached team.  Their coach got his 400^th win this year.  So, everything on paper maybe appears to be a mismatch, but we didn't really care.  We want to go play, we want to go compete, we want to play the best in order to try and accomplish your goals.  Everyone has played tough games.  So, this time of year you want to play tough games, you want to play good opponents and that's what we have in front of us on Thursday.  (Wednesday) have a good day of practice, good day of prep, have our scouting reports ready and we'll go play and see what happens.”

Published 5/22/24

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Wooster Keeps Going

          Wooster won again Tuesday, they edged Madison (3-1), and they need to do it again Wednesday and get some help.

          They trail Mt. Vernon by game going into the final Ohio Cardinal Conference games of the season.  Tuesday, the Jackets beat New Philadelphia (12-1) to lock up a share of the title.  If the Quakers win Wednesday, they will share the title too, something Wooster would do if they beat Madison.

          Coach Steve Young liked the Generals (14-4,10-3), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, approach on Tuesday.  “We're slowly building for the postseason tournament here.  I actually really, really liked our approach (Tuesday) night.  I liked a lot of our at bats.  We had a lot of very, very loud outs, a lot of barreled baseballs.  It was one of those nights where sometimes you hit it right to him and you have got to give their kid credit.  He pulled it up and threw three or four different pitches for strikes.  On the mound, really liked how we threw strikes ourselves.  Brady (Bowen) was right around 75 percent strikes, 80 percent first pitch strikes.  So, when we can get a get ahead of hitters and work however we'd like to when we’re ahead in the count.  That’s a lot easier than when your behind in the count 2-1, 3-1.  We’re building and it’s coming together a little bit.  We’ll what happens,” said Young.

          Young says that Bowen has been a warrior for them.  “Since his freshman year he's been huge for us.  He stepped in, honestly wasn't supposed to even be pitching league games his freshman year.  We had a guy go down and he stepped up and stepped in.  He just competes, he wants the ball, he asked for the ball in big games, he asked for the ball in away games.  He even says he likes to play the villain a little bit.  So, it's kind of his mentality which you love in a pitcher.  You love the competitiveness, the fire, the passion for the game.  On the field he just throws four pitches for a strike and can locate his spots.  He's been an absolute competitor for us for three years and we're happy he’s on our side,” he said.

          As far as defending the “OCC” crown, Young says all they can do is beat Madison.  “We had a real good run the last three years and this year we just had a few games we just weren’t as clean as we would like to have been or as we needed to be and got beat.  We haven't controlled our destiny for a while now, we've understood that.  To be quite honest, we have just tried to play the next game in front of us.  We've just talked to our guys about continuing to build for the postseason.  Whatever happens with the league happens with the league.  We don't control it, so we're not really going to worry about it and see what happens,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “Mt. Vernon got a big win (Tuesday) night.  New Philly, they're competitors, they'll be ready to go (Wednesday).  Again, we have our own business to attend to.  The most important game in our season is the next one and that's (Wednesday) against Madison.  A good, well coached, fundamentally sound team that's going to scrap, claw and compete and we have got our hands full with them.  So, we'll just come to the field (Wednesday) and try and play clean, put our best foot forward and see what happens.”

Published 5/08/24

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Wooster With Big Win

          Wooster remains a game back in the race in the Ohio Cardinal Conference after a (3-1) win in nine innings over Ashland on Monday evening.

          Coach Steve Young says they found a way to get some runs late in the game.  “It was a good one.  Objectively, Luke Bryant from Ashland, I think he's the best pitcher in our league.  Coming into it we knew we were going to see him for a second time this year.  We have seen him for four years and I've never seen that kid pitch any better than he did (Monday) night.  We were just telling our guys to kind of hunt fastballs and try and hit the top half of the baseball and put it in play and make them make plays.  I think towards the end there we were able to do that in the seventh.  We were able to execute a little bit of small ball and some good base running and just kind of scratch one across to kind of keep the game moving.  Then later just kind of became execution.  Honestly, I just felt that we stayed locked in for every single pitch and that's what I'm most proud of,” said Young.

          Wooster (10-3,7-3), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, got some good pitching too.  Young says all three of the guys they put on the mound did the job.  “We threw three different guys (Monday) night.  Brady (Bowen) did a heck of a job keeping us in it for the first five.  Went to a A.J. Litkowski in the sixth inning.  He went two outs and then just match up wise we had the opportunity to go left the on lefty, so we put Sam (Niesen) in there to pitch.  He came in and did a great job and going three and a third for us with eight strike outs.  So, did a great job filling it up with multiple pitches, hitting locations and played some pretty good defense behind it.  So, definitely a good night all around,” he said.

          Bowen and Brain Lapp both had two hits for the Generals.

          Wooster, who plays Mansfield Senior in “OCC” games on Tuesday and Wednesday, trails both Mt. Vernon and New Philadelphia by a game.

          Frankly, Young says they are only concerned about their performance every day.  “I said the last week or so, we kind of told her boys not to really focus so much on any long term results, but just kind of stay within ourselves and trust the process and just play the next pitch.  That's kind of been the mentality.  We're trying to build for a postseason run and at this point whatever happens in league happens.  We don't really control our own destiny anymore,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “The only thing we can control is how we go out and perform and execute every single pitch of every single game.  So, that's been our focus.  I like the way we're trending.  We're starting to really do some things offensively.  We're starting to execute at a much higher level than we were early.  We've used 11 different arms, so all 11 guys come in and it's starting to work.  We're starting to get a few things rolling.  So, excited to see us continue to build and just try and stay sharper and locked in every single day.”

Published 4/30/24

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Wooster Fights Back

          Wooster, the defending champion in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, stays in the race this spring with an (11-8) win at home on Wednesday evening over New Philadelphia.

          The Generals now trail the Quakers and Mt. Vernon by a game in the standings.  New Philly and Mt. Vernon play in two weeks.  Wooster ends the “OCC” campaign with a game against Ashland, who shares third place with them, plus Mansfield Senior and Mansfield Madison, the bottom two teams in the standings.

          After an (11-1) loss to New Philadelphia on Tuesday, coach Steve Young says they had some serious discussions.  “It's been an interesting week or so for us.  Obviously, things didn’t go as planned last week with Mt. Vernon and then turn around (Tuesday) night.  Honestly, that was the second time in my tenure that we've been run ruled.  So, we truly challenged our guys (Tuesday) night and again (Wednesday) to come out and compete and fight and whatever happens, happens,” said Young.

          He says the Generals (7-3,5-3), #5 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, came out Wednesday with a different attitude.  “The way that we played (Tuesday) night was unacceptable.  Everyone knew it and our guys came out (Wednesday) from the very first pitch and we're ready to put it all on the line.  This is the result we got.  So, we're happy to get back in the win column, but really just more proud of how the guys responded from all of the adversity,” he said.

          Young says the win over the Quakers was truly a team win with kids stepping up.  “We had five guys with two hits.  We actually were down our starting shortstop (Wednesday) and have some guys and some new positions.  Had a freshman making his first start at shortstop and we had another guy playing second base that hasn't had a whole lot of plays yet this year,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “Those guys, I tip my cap to them.  They just stayed ready.  They come every day, they work knowing they’re not going to get the playing time everybody would want, but they have just stayed ready, they've been selfless, they put the team first.  (Wednesday) when the when the number was called, they were able to kind of produce for us and it was it was awesome to see.  That's the kind of stuff you like to see is kids like that kind of reap the benefits of their hard work.”

Published 4/25/24

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Wooster No Hits Ashland

          Wooster pitchers Brady Bowen and A.J. Likowski tossed a combined no hitter on Thursday as the Generals blanked Ashland (3-0) in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game.

          It was the Generals season opener as they have been dealing with some weather issues.

          Coach Steve Young says they elected to throw their two best pitchers on Thursday.  “We waited a long time to get out there and play, so that was that was one way to kind of make a statement.  Our guys were pretty fired up all week to play.  We tried to prep our own field and tried to arrange alternate games with anybody we could.  Our guys came out and Brady Bowen and A.J. Likowski did a heck of a job.  It was a situation where normally they obviously wouldn't both throw on the same day, those are our two league starters.  With us only having one league game this week and the weather and all the changes, we wanted to make sure we got them both in there and got them some reps.  So, they did a great job.  I mean there's lots to improve upon offensively and even pitching wise we weren’t as clean as we like to be.  It sounds crazy, but we gave up too many free passes, had too many hit batters.  So, something to definitely to build off of and work off of and it's a lot of fun to get that first one, especially in that fashion,” said Young.

          Young says both guys were able to make big pitches when down in the count.  “I’ll tell you what Brady for us is that “Mr. Consistent” for three years.  Again, sounds crazy, but he was very frustrated with himself.  He wasn't locating the fastball like he normally does.  Then A.J. Likowski last year he was a bullpen guy for us.  I think he gave up one hit all year last year in relief.  So, this year he's taking the job with the velocity.  Both guys were able to throw any pitch in any count.  There were a couple of times we were 2-0 or 3-1 or even full counts and we’re throwing off speed pitches or breaking balls.  So, both guys did a really good job mixing it up when they needed to and keeping guys off balance and being able to work out of really self-inflicted situations when they fell behind hitters or gave up free passes.  So, both guys we can rely on throwing multiple pitches in any count,” he said.

          Young says they faced a very good pitcher in Ashland’s Luke Bryant and they were able to get just enough done on offense.  “At this time of the year the bats are always a little bit behind the arms, so for us that's something we have got to fix.  Brady Bowen, not only did he get the win on the mound, but he had three hits.  Four hits, that's all it's all we got offensively was four hits.  With us it's trying to work counts, be patient, fight off tough pitches.  We knew with Luke Bryant, who arguably is the best pitcher in our league, division one commit, we knew it was going to be low scoring,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “We actually talked to our guys about racing to five.  We talked about getting five first to get it done.  We had some really good, some really smart, really aggressive base running that we were able to capitalize on.  A couple pass balls got by, couple clutch hits and we were able to kind of scratch three across.  We thought we could have had a few more, we just didn't execute at the level that eventually we hope to.  It's again something to learn from and it's definitely good to get this one against like I said arguably the best pitcher in the league.”

Published 3/29/24

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Wooster Different, but Still Good

          Wooster is the defending champion in the Ohio Cardinal Conference and they made a run to the division I regional tournament last year.

          This month, coach Steve Young says they have done their best to be prepared for the season.  “We had a pretty good run of some nice weather and now as the season officially gets here it seems like it's taking a turn for the worse.  It's one of those things where we’re just trying to keep our guys focused and get some good work in indoors.  We've been fortunate enough to have the College of Wooster indoor Scot Center to go in there and get some good work in and get out and the turf field as the weather allows.  So, we lost quite a few of our I guess top end players last year, but we got quite a few guys back.  So, we're just trying to sort through who's going to kind of fill those roles and step up and see how things play out for the rest of our preseason here and get ready to roll,” he said.

          Wooster opens the season next Tuesday and Wednesday with their first “OCC” series of the year against Ashland.

          Pitching was a big part of the Generals success last season and Young says they do have some arms back.  “Pitching is huge.  We've said it for years, I mean if you got two or three good, reliable arms you can go to, you have got shot.  So, that's really what allowed us to have the run we had last year with our arms.  We had several guys that we believed in, trusted, and we're fortunate enough to have the majority of those arms back this year with some guys who have shown in the preseason and throughout the off season that maybe they're ready to take a step forward too,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We're excited about some of the arms.  We have obviously lots of prove and it's a lot different in a gym on a mound versus out in the game against a different opponent.  So, we'll see how it unfolds throughout the year.  It’s a work in progress for everybody at this point.  Typically coming out early in the season the arms are ahead of the hitters.  So, we have got to kind of lean on those arms early and wait until our bats get going and see how we can do.”

          When it comes to their offense, Young says they are going to be a lot different than they were a year ago.  “I mean for us, we lost our three and four hitter.  We lost a lot of our power, a lot of our RBI, but what I would say is we replace it with speed, speed, speed more speed.  Our lineup is very, very, very fast for high school program.  We don't have the power we've had in the past, but I think we need to just execute and play to our strengths.  We've been working situational execution all preseason and we do return six of our guys back from last year.  So, just kind of really trying to fill out those other three spots.  We’ve had some young guys who stepped up early and we'll kind of continue to see how that plays out throughout the rest of the preseason and then into the beginning part of the season.  Again, similar to the mound, kind of see how things unfold as we go,” said Young.

Published 3/22/24

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Wooster to Face Athletic Mansfield Senior

          Wooster will be at home for Mansfield Senior in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          They broke a three game losing streak with a (57-50) win over West Holmes in “OCC” action on Tuesday night.

          First year coach Che Richardson says eventually they wore down the Knights.  “We had a shaky start.  We looked like a team that hadn't played in the week.  So, we had a shaky start, but our guys kept fighting and we were able to kind of find a way to win that game in a close one there,” he said.

          Wooster (6-8,5-4) hosts Mansfield Senior (11-3,8-2), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, on Friday night.  The Tygers beat Mt. Vernon (62-43) in their “OCC” game on Tuesday.

          Richardson says they have a lot of guys that can make plays.  “They're a tough team.  They just wear you down, they beat you up and they're super physical and they're just super athletic.  So, we definitely have our hands full (Friday). I know our guys are excited for this challenge, but they just have some guys that can go,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “#0 he's really talented, #12 is really good and then #13 is probably one of the best players in the “OCC”.  So, we definitely have a tough one (Friday) night, but I think our guys are ready to go and ready for the challenge.”

          Mansfield Senior won the first meeting (66-53) on December 22 at Pete Henry Gym in Mansfield.

          Richardson says the Generals have some size, but they must find a way to slow down the Tygers athletes.  “I definitely know like there have been some battles throughout the years and definitely some good battles there.  I think we do have some athletes in our school and that helps and we do have size.  So, I think we match up well against them, but they have some guys that can go.  So, we'll just have to figure out a way to stop those guys and just figure out a way to win the game,” said Richardson.

Published 1/26/24

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Wooster Expects Test Form Ashland

          Wooster will be at home for the Ashland Arrows in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Last week, they lost (63-36) to “OCC” leader Lexington.

          Coach Che Richardson says they couldn’t deal with the Lexington runs.  “I thought we handled their first run and then we took their first punch that they had and we had it down to two.  They did what they're known for, which is making big runs and they made a big run right before the half.  Then we just kind of never recovered coming out in the third quarter.  They just continued to just get better as time went on,” said Richardson.

          Wooster (5-8,4-4) hosts Ashland (5-9,2-6) on Friday night.  The Arrows were hammered (72-49) by second place Mansfield Senior in an “OCC” game last Friday.

          Richardson says they can score the ball.  “They really highly hurt us on the inside and the outside.  They had a lot of threes the first time we played them.  They were actually up 16 on that's the first time, so they're a good basketball team.  We have got kind of our hands full (Friday) night, but it would be a good test for us again to see kind of where we're at and see how we're progressing,” he said.

          Wooster won the first game (64-60) on December 12.

          On Friday night, Richardson says they have to do a good job finding shooters.  “That's kind of what happened the first time we played them.  The first quarter they were super hot and in second quarter they got really hot and that's kind of how they built their lead,” he told Swankonports.com on Thursday night, “Once we sat down on the defended and started to really contest their shots.  We did a better job as far as getting out on shooters, understanding who shooters were and that kind of helped us get back into the game and in the end win the game,” said Richardson.

Published 1/19/24

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Wooster Has to Take Good Shots

          Wooster plays at home against unbeaten Lexington in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          The Generals (5-6,4-3) lost (47-42) in an “OCC” game on Tuesday night.

          Coach Che Richardson says they were physical, which is what they have been preaching, but they couldn’t make shots in the late going.  “I would say we battled, unfortunately lost, but I like the way we defended.  We were physical for once.  We weren't the ones that were just getting beaten up the entire game, we actually did a good job but just being physical with the other team and unfortunately down the line in the fourth quarter we just couldn't make a shot and New Philly made some good plays to win them the game,” said Richardson.

          Lexington (13-0,7-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com coaches poll in the large school division, comes calling on Friday night.

          Richardson says the Minutemen are big and tough.  “I would say there's size.  They do a good job as far as their bigs just being physical and just beat you down the pain.  They're just big down there and they're a good team.  They know how to win and their team of that makes big runs when needed.  The score can go from you being down two to 20 real quick against them.  So, they're definitely a really good team, one of the best in the state,” he said.

          Lexington punished Wooster (78-50) at Lexington on December 8.

          Richardson says this time they can’t let Lexington get out in transition abd get good shots.  “We just have got to execute offensively and not let them get out in transition.  I would say it's probably the best thing for us and just do what we do and just get back on defense and again just limit their runs,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Just not take bad shots.  If you take a bad shot against them they're really good at running out and getting a layup in transition.  So, just limiting the runs and just playing our game, but again I mean we're excited for the challenge.”

Published 1/11/2024

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Wooster Starting to Believe

          Wooster entertains Mansfield Madison on Friday night in play in the Ohio Cardinal Conference.

          They beat Mt. Vernon (58-49) in an “OCC” game last week.

          Coach Che Richardson says they played with more confidence.  “After the rough start that we had in the first quarter, I think our guys settled in and just played the game that we knew we could play.  I think we're starting to get more confident in ourselves and really, truly starting to believe that we can win some games and we can make a run in our conference this year,” said Richardson.

          Wooster has won four of its last six and Richardson says the players believe they can have success.  “That’s been a stressor for us this year.  There's been times where I think we have some self doubt.  We've struggled, but we've definitely overcame a lot of that that self doubt and now we're truly starting to see us just believe in ourselves and believe in the things that we're preaching as coaches and just believe in ourselves as players,” he said.

          Wooster (4-5,3-2) plays at home against Madison (1-8,1-4) on Friday night.  Ashland beat Madison (44-33) in an “OCC” game last Friday.

          Richardson calls the Rams dangerous.  “I think they're pretty young this year, but they have some guys that can shoot.  I think Lewis is really solid player in the conference and then they have some bigs.  They'll run some motion and some different things like that.  With a team like that obviously their record isn't the greatest it's still fearful because it’s a conference game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “Teams like that they just play hard.  The thing that has kind of hurt us this year is any team that plays us, they make shots.  So, we still have to play our game no matter what their record is.  We still have to compete and I know Madison's going to do that against us (Friday), they're going to give us their all.”

Published 1/05/24

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Wooster With Shot of Confidence

          Fresh off their first win, Wooster hosts West Holmes in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          They beat Ashland (64-60) in “OCC” play on Tuesday night.

          Coach Che Richardson says it was great to see the kids come up with that win.  “Our guys fight and that's been the biggest thing that I've noticed in our in our past four games is we're fighters.  We got down early against Ashland and just the message that halftime was we just need more effort, like we need more rebounds, we need to finish our plays and close out on shooters.  Ashland was hot, they hit 10 threes (Tuesday) night, so they made a lot of shots, but our guys fought back and just be rallied and ended up getting a win,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says with monkey off their backs they can really get dialed in and focused.  “That's been the biggest thing for me is like I just want us to feel like what it feels like to get a win.  We've been teaching a lot this past month about just things that we want to teach as far as defense and our offense and I think that's a big part as far as now we can move on and get that pressure off of us.  We have got that win, now alright let's just prepare and continue to do what we do.  They were excited, I was excited for them, but those guys were ecstatic about the win,” he said.

          Wooster (1-3,1-1) plays at home against West Holmes (1-3,0-2) on Friday night.  The Knights lost (46-36) to New Philadelphia on Tuesday.

          Richardson says the Knights have a couple of players and they won’t be intimidated playing at Wooster.  “They have got some guys.  They have two really good scorers there.  They play hard.  They run some chin action.  They're going to do just a lot of different things,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “The biggest thing is last year West Holmes beat Wooster by about 20 points at Wooster last year.  So, our guys understand the importance of preparation of that game and just be ready to go because especially in conference play anytime, any night, anybody, could get a win, so we just have got to be ready to go.”

Published 12/14/23

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Wooster Looking for Consistency

          Wooster plays its first Ohio Cardinal Conference game on the road at defending conference champion Lexington on Friday.

          The Generals (0-2) lost (64-49) to Dover in a non-league game on Tuesday night.

          Coach Che Richardson says a poor first half cost them.  “I think we came out sluggish in the first half.  It was a lot of guys first time playing at home, so they have those first half jitters, but once we settled in I think we ended winning the second half by seven.  So, like we've said as a coaching staff that if we could just play how we played the first half against Wadsworth and then the second half against Dover, we’ll be fine,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says right now they aren’t playing defense on every possession and they have too many turnovers.  “We've done a lot of repetition in practice and things and the biggest thing is this consistency on defense and just taking care of the basketball right now is our two biggest concerns.  We're a team that's been inexperienced and we're just learning right now and we're just trying to put pieces together,” he said.

          Lexington (2-0) beat Clear Fork (78-52) and Clyde (87-52) in non-conference games last week.

          Richardson says the Minutemen are big and they have solid guard play too.  “They have a lot of talent.  They have talent and size and they're just good.  They're really good ball club.  The one thing is like they have guys 6’8”, 6’6” and then you have got guys 6’6”,6’4” and they also have a really good point guard,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “We just have to come ready to play. They’re not going to take it easy on us and I don’t expect them to, but we just got to come ready to play.  Again, just play how we play in the first half against Wadsworth and the second half against Dover and I think it would be a good game for us.”

Published 12/8/23

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Wooster Must Play Good Defense

          Wooster plays at Wadsworth to open the boys’ basketball season on Friday night.

          It will be Che Richardson’s first game as the Generals head coach.  He comes to Wayne County from the Canton McKinley program.

          Richardson says there can be butterflies on that first game, but he things the playerss have done a good job so far keeping their emotions in check.  “I would say our players have done a good job controlling those emotions as far as week one game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “We’ve done a good job focusing on ourselves and taking these last couple days to focus on Wadsworth and the things that we're going to see on Friday.”

          Wadsworth is led by one of the leading scorers in the state in Maxx Bosley.  Richarson says he can light it up.  “I think they have some talent back.  Thankfully I've had a chance to coach against them at McKinley for the past two years.  They have Bosley, which he is probably one of the best scores in Ohio.  I know he had games last year we scored 45 points.  He's a strong kid, so he's definitely going to be a challenge for us this Friday just trying to contain him,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says their goal is to make the Grizzlies work for their points, not give them a lot of easy looks.  “Our main thing is playing team defense and playing together and getting stops from everybody and just trying to push the ball in transition and score in transition on this Friday.  Definitely, just trying to get stops, at least three stops in a row multiple times in the game will help us,” he said.

Published 11/30/23

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Wooster Trying to be a Team

          Wooster is emphasizing the concepts on teamwork as they prepare for the high school boys’ basketball season, which begins next week.

          Che Richardson, in his first year with the Generals, says they are trying to put in a workable system and he likes the direction that they are headed.  “I’d say it’s a lot of potential.  We’re just trying to buy into our system and the things that we want to do this season.  The things that we think will be successful.  We're just trying to figure it out right now and put it all together.  So, I would say right now if I had to give us a grade, I would say we're probably sitting at C +, B-, so I'm liking what I've seen so far,” said Richardson.

          Richardson says each player has to know his role and embrace it for the Generals to be successful.  “Right now, we're just trying to build the togetherness piece.  How to place everybody together and see that puzzle and how we play together to benefit the entire program and the entire varsity team this year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “Right now, it's togetherness, just the little things, like picking up your teammate off the floor and just being cohesive and a together unit.”

          Their first game is December 1 against Wadsworth in non-conference play.  They open play in the Ohio Cardinal Conference at Lexington on December 8.

          Chemistry can be a tricky thing to build, but Richardson says that is going to be a very important key for them this season.  “That's been a big piece of just trying to build this chemistry and just trying to get guys to buy into it.  It's more than just the two hours that you're on the floor.  It's all about what you're doing after you leave practice and being able to sit in the locker room together and little things like that that I think build the team camaraderie,” he said.

Published 11/22/23

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Conversion a Must for Wooster

          Wooster plays at Ashland in an Ohio Cardinal Conference football game on Friday night.

          “OCC” leader Mansfield Senior beat the Generals (35-7) last week.

          Coach Austin Holter says their offense didn’t deliver when it had to and again they made some critical mistakes.  “I'm going to tell you, I thought we came out of the gate and played really hard.  Our kids played with a lot of passion.  They played disciplined.  They executed extremely well on both sides of the football and even in special teams there for about three quarters and played a very good Mansfield Senior team very tough.  Unfortunately, some things didn't go our way and we didn't execute well late in the third and into the fourth quarter.  We had some turnovers offensively.  We had a couple special teams miscues that ended up kind of skewing the results of that game.  I thought our defense to date probably played some of their best football.  They were playing very aggressive, very sound, they were sure tacklers doing a great job of doing their 1/11^th.  Offensively, we were 1 of 12 on the day on third down.  We had three turnovers and in the special teams area we had a couple of miscues that that you can't have in a game against a very talented team.  So, at the end of the day, we don't get the job done,” he said.

          Wooster (2-6,1-5) plays at Ashland (4-4,2-3) in “OCC” action on Friday night.  The Arrows lost (20-6) to West Holmes last week.

          Holter says Ashland’s defense is outstanding.  “Coach (Scott) Valentine's doing a great job, him and his staff are doing a fantastic job with that football team.  The first thing is looking at is their defense.  Their defense is incredibly sound.  They do a great job.  They run a three man front and get into a variety of different fronts off of that.  Their kids know their assignments. They play fast, they're physical and they're great tacklers.  They tackle well in space, their defensive secondary does a great job keeping place in front of them.  They really don't allow that big play, explosive nature.   As you can see from last week's game against West Holmes, who's been a predominant offense in our league, they held him to 20 points and really kept that big play in front of them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “Credit to coach and what they're doing there.  For us offensively, we've got to continue to develop up front.  We're playing some younger guys right now, so they have got to continue to understand their assignments and execute.  We have got to stay ahead of the chains, we've got to convert on third down, we have to eliminate the turnovers and when we get in the red zone, we have got to finish with points, we got to put points on the board.”

          On defense, Holter says they have to do their best to contain Ashland quarterback Nathan Bernhard and the Arrow pass offense.  “When you look at when you look at the Ashland offense, coach Valentine brings a five wide approach to the game.  They've got an incredible quarterback.  The young man's a sophomore with big size, he's got D-one arm talent, the kid can throw it anywhere on the field, he's got good playmakers around him as well.  So, defensively this week, we're going to have to execute very well on the back end in our coverage.  We're going to have to do a great job of rallying to the football and keeping everything in front of us.  The running back runs hard, their quarterback can run it as well.  So, we're going to have to be sure tacklers and continue to improve on that side of the ball, which I think we've seen through the course this year.  So, we're excited to get over there and compete with this team.  It's a good football team, but our kids are bringing great energy to practice this week and we're looking forward to the game on Friday,” said Holter.

Published 10/12/23

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Wooster Needs That Consistency

          Wooster will entertain Mansfield Senior in a game in the Ohio Cardinal Conference on Friday night.

          Mansfield leads the “OCC” standings.  On the other hand for Wooster, it’s been a frustrating season.

          They lost last week (35-28) to Mt. Vernon in “OCC” play and coach Austin Holter says they were their own worst enemy.  “It's football game where we had six turnovers as a team, some of those in special teams, two special teams wise and four offensively.  So, anytime you go into a game and you have six turnovers it’s very difficult to win those games.  It was a game where we were in it until the very end.  We were driving to tie or potentially take the lead if you score and go for two and low and behold we have our six turn over the day.  So, very disappointed in our inabilities to play consistent there and find a way to win, but we're back to work this week and trying to develop more of that consistency,” said Holter.

          Wooster (2-5,1-4) plays host to Mansfeld Senior (5-2,4-0) on Friday night.  The Tygers held off Ashland (14-6) last week in “OCC” action.

          Holter says they are athletic, they make big plays and they are an aggressive football team.  “I’ll tell you coach (Chioke) Bradley you know scheduled them a very tough non conference schedule.  They played St. V and then they played Massillon to prepare themselves for “OCC” play.  They have done a great job at “OCC” play.  Ashland played them tough last week, credit to Ashland with how they played. Mansfield is big and fast and they have got some great athletes at the wide receiver position that if they catch it in space they certainly could take it the distance,” he told Swankonports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “They're big up front, they're physical, they play tough, the quarterback is very athletic and can make plays with his legs as well as his arm, so he is certainly guy we've got to key.  Then defensively they're very sound in what they do, they're very confident what they do, they get off the football and they play well with their hands up front at the defensive line position.”

          All of the that aside, Holter says for them to be in this game that have got to be consistent.  “For us we've got to find that consistency in all three phases.  We've have got to be able to put that together for four quarters to give our best and to compete with this team.  It's good football team, but we're excited, it's our homecoming, looking forward to competing with those guys and giving it our best on Friday,” he said.

Published 10/05/23

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Wooster Has to Finish

          Wooster will be at home on Friday night for an Ohio Cardinal Conference game against the Mt. Vernon Yellow Jackets.

          Last week, the Generals (2-4,1-3) lost (43-40) at West Holmes.

          Coach Austin Holter says they were right there, but couldn’t get it done in the end.  “I'm sure as a spectator that's everything you wanted in a football game back and forth, two teams compete extremely hard.  I'm very, very proud of our kids effort in that game, there's no question.  That's a good football team over there at West Holmes.  We certainly gave everything we had.  We had opportunities to put the game away.  Our defense came up with a big turnover late when we were up, but unable offensively to transition that that drive into points.  They scored late to take the lead and we get the ball back with a minute and half.  Had some time to make to make some plays there and didn't get it done,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “We certainly had our opportunities and came up short, but nonetheless proud of our kids effort.  We're continuing to get better, we're a resilient football club, continuing to fight, continue to find ways to improve.  At this point, I think we found some more consistency there on Friday night, now we just have got to find a way to finish.”

          Mt. Vernon (1-5,0-3) fell (35-10) to New Philadelphia in an “OCC” game last week.

          They haven’t won a league game, but Holter was they have an outstanding athlete in Jonny Askew.  “They probably got one of the most dynamic offensive players in our conference in the backfield.  They do a great job of moving him around anywhere from the backfield to the slot receiver position and he's a huge impact for them on special teams too.  So, for us we've got to be disciplined understanding where he aligns.  We've got to tackle, rally to the football and tackle it.  We have got to stop the run, something we haven't done great this year.  Something we are really focused on this week in practice from a defensive perspective we've got to stop the run and this young man to terrific ball carrier.  So, that's going to be a big deal for us on the defensive side of the football,” said Holter.

          When they have the ball, Holter says they have to be more successful at punching the ball in the end zone.  “Offensively, for us we've got to focus on playing discipline driven, assignment driven football up front.  They show a variety of fronts.  They there are base three man front, but will at times get into four man fronts, five man fronts, and even six man fronts at times.  So, we've got to be disciplined and executing our assignments and take care of our 1/11^th and finding a way to finish drives.  That's a big thing for us this week offensively is we're moving the ball, we're having success doing that, I think our quarterback play is continuing to get better, now let's finish the thing,” he said.

Published 9/28/23

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Wooster Has to Have Fun

          Wooster is on the road at West Holmes in action in the Ohio Cardinal Conference on Friday night.

          The Generals dropped one (42-27) to Lexington last week in “OCC” play.

          Coach Austin Holter says they are still dealing with consistency issues.  “Certainly, a hard fought contest and a credit to Lexington and their ability to get it done.  Proud of our kids and they continued to fight and show some real flashes.  I think that’s something we've done all year.  I think we've shown flashes in all five weeks of what we're capable of.  We just haven't found that consistency.  We haven't been able to put four quarters of our best football together with that consistency and that's what we're fighting for right now.  So, we're back to work this week and have really been proud of our kids and their ability to respond to that tough loss and here at home and getting ready for West Holmes.  We had a great week of practice and we're going to keep fighting to find that consistency and what we do.  I certainly think we've got a special ball club just got to find a way to get that done,” he said.

          Wooster (2-3,1-2) plays at West Holmes (3-2,1-1) on Friday night.  The Knights beat Mansfield Madison (56-35) last week.

          Holter says this is an explosive West Holmes.  “I tell you they're an explosive offense.  They’ve got a kid at quarterback, who is as confident as anyone we've seen this year, throws it extremely well, runs it with great authority as well.  So, they are very diverse with the fact that their quarterback is a dual threat kid.  They certainly like to throw it a little bit more than they do run it, but that's not to say they can't run the football.  They have got a couple backs back there that run hard, including the quarterback.  You certainly have got to try to limit their big plays, they're explosive plays with some of the wide receivers they have.  I've been really proud of our group this week and our secondary locking into our to our coverage checks and calls.  Our defensive coordinator, I feel like he's got a great plan in place for our kids.  They've been executing it with confidence here this week in practice.  We're excited to get down there and compete with the Knights on Friday night,” said Holter.

          On defense, Holter says the Knights are good in the box and he adds that they need to be able to play with confidence and have fun.  “I'm going to tell you I think they're very stout in the box.  I think their defensive line is as good as we played.  They got a weakside defensive end Elijah Dixon, who's a very talented young man.  He gets off the football, he uses his hands extremely well plays with great confidence and not to undermine the other kids they got inside.  They’ve got some kids that get off the football,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “For us you know, we've got to be able to match that.  We've got to be able to change up our play count and be able to kind of keep them off balance on that end.  Every week we always try to establish the run and we certainly want to do that.  I feel very confident our kids have done a great job in practice this week of understanding their assignments and continuing to improve in those areas.  Then at quarterback, we have just got to let lose.  We have got to let it rip and have some fun out there.   I think sometimes we’re a little bit tense trying to you know get through our progressions as opposed to just going out there and playing ball.  I'm very confident in our quarterback play.  I think he's a terrific athlete, A.J. is.  Just want him to go out there and play with confidence and have some fun and get out there with the team and get after it.  That’s been the focus in practice this week.  I have been really proud of what he's done in practice and having a good time.  I think he's understanding what we're doing and then really getting after it.”

Published 9/22/23

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Wooster Must Throw the Football

          Wooster plays at home against the Lexington Minutemen in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          The Generals (2-2,1-1) held off Madison (27-14) in an “OCC” game last week.

          Coach Austin Holter says were able to run the football and be physical on defense.  “I was really proud of our ball club to be able to come home and respond after two tough losses.  To play our first home game here in front of our fans and come away with a victory we're certainly happy about.  I thought we saw some really good things on both sides of the football.  We saw some great physicality on the defensive end, saw the ability to cause some turnovers over there.  Then offensively we ran the ball with great success.  We ran for over 300 yards, but some areas to improve.  We had opportunities through the course of that game to really close things, but credit to Madison they kept fighting and sticking around.  So, definitely some things for us to clean up on our end, but very happy to get the win and excited to stay at home again here this Friday against Lexington,” said Holer.

          Julian Franklin ran for 176 yards and three scores last week.

          Lexington (2-2,1-0) rallied in the second half to down Mt. Vernon (31-17) in conference play last Friday.

          Holter says Lexington is both physical and explosive on offense.  “I’m going to tell you what, this is a football team that is playing really well right now.  They're big and physical up front, they've got a quarterback who is the dual threat kid, who runs the ball very well, he is an extremely tough runner, they're running back runs tough as well.  Then you sprinkle in on top of that a couple dynamic wideouts they have on the edge.  They have got one young man with great speed and another one I think they've got listed at 6’4”, 6’5” and he's also a very good basketball player, so he can high point in high point the football.  So, I do think they present quite a challenge on offense.  They've been playing really good football,” he told Swankonsports.com Wednesday afternoon, “Defensively, we've got to match the physicality, we certainly have got to stop the run and to try to make them one-dimensional and then when they do put the football up to some of those great athletes we have go to make plays on it, we have got to be physical in our ability to do so and then .”

          When they have the ball, Holter says the Generals must be able to throw the football.  “Defensively, I think they do a great job.  They have a great scheme putting them in a situation to always try to have an additional hat to the football.  So, as well as we ran the football last week, I've been excited about our progress up front, we have got to continue to develop the pass game to try to make us a little bit less one-dimensional with the run game.  So, the pass game has got to compliment us this week.  Lexington does a great job in the box, so we have got to expand in that area.  This early in the week I've been excited about the practices we've had and I think our kids are progressing extremely well,” he said.

Published 9/14/2023

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Wooster Must Execute Better

          Wooster opens its home schedule this week as they host the Madison Rams in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game at Folis Field on Friday night.

          They lost their conference opener last week (22-13) at New Philadelphia.

          Coach Austin Holter says the Quakers are a solid team and to compound things they did not execute very well.  “It’s a testament coach (Mike) Johnson and what he's doing down there at New Philly.  They have got a great program.  They played an extremely great football game.  We didn't execute in all three phases to be quite frank.  Defensively, we didn't stop the run, special teams we gave them a score and offensively we didn't move the ball on third down.  So, we need to focus on ourselves.  We need to do a better job completing our assignments and doing our 1/11^th and playing better football.  So, we are excited to get back out there.  This is our home opener, so we're looking forward to be able to play in front of our community in another conference game.  So, the kids have been working hard this week.  The focus has very much been on ourselves and trying to do a better job of executing our assignments and taking care of our business,” said Holter.

          Holter says the players just need to concentrate on doing their job and not try and do too much.  “I think anytime you're in a situation where you start thinking about the larger picture it can be overwhelming at times.  Thinking that you have to not only do your assignment, but maybe a little bit more to get things done and that could be an overwhelming feeling for someone.  I think it's very important for these young men to understand hey do my job, control what I can control, that's my attitude and effort on this play right now.  You have to be able to consistently do that down in and down out,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “That's where mental and physical toughness comes from is your ability to respond every play with the ability to give your best effort and control what you control.  That's your you know your 1/11^th on every single play.  So, that's been our focus in practice.  I think our kids have done a great job of that here early in practice and we're looking forward to a second conference game and finally get an opportunity to play here at home and in front of our General’s community.”

          Madison (0-3) was blanked last week by Ontario (38-0) in a non-conference game.  They haven’t scored since week one.

          Holter says they will show a lot of looks.  “I tell you coach Besancon is very multiple on defense.  He’s got them in a couple of different fronts and offensively very much the same as well.  They show a variety of multiple looks.  They've got some playmakers, they've got a couple wide receivers that are explosive and I think their quarterback is a tremendous athlete.  So, for us it’s the same.  We've got to play discipline assignment driven football because they are going to show us a variety of looks on both sides of the football.  So, again we can't get overwhelmed with that.  We have got to stay within ourselves, we have to do our job, we have got to stick to our assignment and focus on us and focus on playing our best football,” he said.

Published 9/07/23

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Wooster Must Contain New Philly

          Wooster opens play in the Ohio Cardinal Conference with a visit to New Philadelphia to take on the Quakers on Friday night.

          It was not a good week last week for the Generals as they were buried by Wadsworth (45-13) in non-conference action.

          Coach Austin Holter says they were beaten a very good football team.  “Yeah, no question, we took one there against a very talented Wadsworth team. Credit to coach (Justin) Todd and his staff and what they're doing up there at Wadsworth, that's a terrific football program, very disciplined and then executed extremely well.  I think for our guys it was a great test in seeing how a great program executes and how disciplined they play, so I think we did learn from it.  I did see some growth from our kids through the course of the game with continuous fight. Really proud of our offense late in that game to be able to put an additional score in as they continued to fight even when things were out of hand.  So, very proud of that.  With a new week comes through life.  We start conference play this week with New Philadelphia.  We’ll travel for our first time as a program down to Quaker Stadium there, so we're excited to play those guys excited.  Get back out there with them (Tuesday) to get back to practice.  Our kids have responded really well and they're motivated and look forward to competing on Friday,” said Holter.

          New Philadelphia is also (1-1) on the season after a (29-14) setback to Steubenville last week.

          Holter says they have shown they are pretty good.  “I'm going to tell you they're a terrific football team.  They've played a challenging schedule.  I think they played a very good Louisville team and found a way offensively to get on the board in a variety of ways and defensively to be stout.  Then they lined up against a very talented Steubenville team.  When you watch them on film, you talk about a disciplined, well coached, football team you see that from Steubenville year in and year out.  Coach (Reno) Saccoccia has been doing a great job down there for a long time.  So, they you know they've certainly faced their obstacles as well,” he said.

          Holter says the Quaker defense has some big guys that can play.  “We have been very impressed with what we've seen from new Philly on film.  I tell you it's a big football team.  Looking at them defensively, they've got a couple big kids inside.  I know their field side defensive end they've got listed at 6’7”, 215.  They're boundary defensive end they list him at 6’5”, 285, so they've got some size up front.  They're physical, they execute their job really well, they're disciplined,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “For us from an offensive perspective, we've got to be assignment driven, very sound and technicians and doing what we need to do from a run game perspective.  From the quarterback position, we've got to continue to improve.  I've been very proud of what we've seen from A.J. in the first two weeks.  I want to see him continue to improve as a quarterback, specifically as a dual threat quarterback and having the confidence to make plays with his legs.”

          When they are facing the New Philadelphia offense, Holter says they must do a solid job of containment.  “On the defensive side, the Quaker offense is very talented.  They've got a quarterback who has started multiple games for them, who is a dual threat kid. Mechanically, he's extremely impressive, he runs the ball very well and they take that 6’7” target and they wide him out and throw it down field.  So, we have to be able to limit their big play, we have to be able to corral around their quarterback, who's a very talented runner and again play assignment driven football doing the 1/11^th to excel,” he said.

Published 8/30/23

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Wooster Must Contain QB

          Wooster takes to the road on Friday night to face the explosive Wadsworth Grizzlies in a non-conference game.

          Last week, the Generals (1-0), down 17 in the fourth quarter, rallied to beat arch rival Orrville (33-31) on a Avi Arora FG at the horn.

          Coach Austin Holter says his kids showed a lot of determination in that game.  “I mean what better way to kick off the 2023 season than with a crosstown rival game and the opportunity to win it at the buzzer there with a last second field goal.  Just happy for our kids, happy for our community.  I thought you saw from our players a lot of grit on Friday night.  They head into the fourth quarter down 17 points facing a lot of different cramping at times, we had some injuries, some key injuries at times and faced with a ton of adversity in that game.  I thought with our young team I thought you saw a lot of grit, a lot of fight, a lot of them coming together, which you know as a football coach that's all you can ask for.  So, very proud of our team's effort, very proud of our community there and being able to represent them the right way and come home with the “W”.  Now we're on to Wadsworth and you know preparing for a great week two match up there with the Grizzlies,” said Holter.

          Now, from an execution standpoint, Holter says they must do a better job of taking care of their individual assignments.  “I think what you saw on Friday night, as I mentioned before, is a lot of grit, a lot of guys making some great individual plays.  What we've got to do is we've got to become a better sound football team on both sides of the football taking care of our 1/11^th.  I think at times guys with the emotions of the game we're trying to do too much or worried about if their buddy was going to be able to do something, which caused them to kind of have an error in their responsibility,” he told Swankopnspots.com on Wednesday afternoon, “Just again honing into who we are and understanding I've got to take care of my 1/11^th.  I think we'll be able to be more successful that way.  On offense up front it's a matter of pass protection and understanding and IDing what my responsibility is in that.  On defense, understanding my gap responsibility in the run game.”

          Wadsworth (1-0) smoked Barberton (49-18) in their opener.

          Holter says they must be gap sensitive in this game or it’s going to bite them.  “We're going to play a Wadsworth football team on Friday night that has another tremendous quarterback.  This young man's a dual threat kid.  He rushed for over 200 yards in their first game against Barberton.  So, we have got to play gap sound defense, we've got to be able to identify the quarterback and again take care of our 1/11^th.  I think we've done a great job with that the first couple of days of practice this week and excited to get to get those guys out here Wednesday to perform as well,” he said.

          Holter says they can’t let Wadsworth get on the perimeter.  “I think a lot of times you see these dual threat guys.  They can throw it on the run extremely well.  A lot of them are very versatile athletes, so you do try to control them in the pocket, you try to bring them a variety of different pressures.  I thought our coaches on Friday night did a great job with that specifically in the second half of the Orville game, which allowed us defensively to have some success at times there.  So, it would be very much the same for us defensively to be able to bring some kind of organized chaos as we would like to call it.  Try to get in his pocket and at the same time try to contain him in the pocket not allowing him to make those kind of bonus plays outside.  So, something we've been focused on this week, something we're certainly focused on moving forward keying that quarterback and making sure we can kind of contain him,” said Holter.

Published 8/24/23

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Young Wooster Faces Athletic Orrville

          Wooster faces longtime rival Orrville on the road in their opener to the season on Friday night.

          These two teams started playing football before almost anyone in Wayne County had a car and indoor plumbing was considered a luxury.

          Wooster coach Austin Holter says he has been pleased with the improvement his young players have shown.  “I've been very pleased with this team's progression.  For us we've lost quite a few kids in the box for us on both sides of the football with our defensive line, linebackers as well as our offensive line running game.  So, we've seen a lot of progress out of those two young groups that are hungry to get on the field.  A lot of young individuals who haven't seen varsity time yet, so they've been scrapping every day in practice and in our first two scrimmages to prove themselves.  I'm going to tell you, they've been motivated, they've been working hard, they're coachable.  We've had a great time, great experience in camp and with it being a rivalry week in week one it's been a great first day of practice excited to get back out there,” he said.

          Playing your first game always gets the juices flowing and Holter says with Orrville it’s going to be really emotional.  “There's certainly some high emotions that go into it.  I mean this is the 112th time these two teams have played, so there's a lot of community pride at stake and our kids understand that, but at the same time you have to focus on yourselves.  It is week one and you're still finding your identity and trying to find your groove.  So, for our kids we certainly talk about the rivalry and emphasize that no question, but at the end of the day they still have to understand you control what you can control and that's your play, that's your experience in the game, in the moment.  Don't let the emotions of the rivalry take precedence over the idea that you've have got to do your job to the best of your ability play in and play out.  So, we focused on that in practice, we try to focus on doing our job, our 1/11^th and really I've been really proud of this group and their ability to do that so far,” said Holter.

          Orrville finished in a five way share of the football title in the Principal’s Athletic Conference last season.

          Holter says they have a lot of talent back.  “I'm going to tell you what this is a football team that played really, really well late.  They played extremely well the second half of their season so much so to earn a share of the title in their conference.  They went into the playoffs and earned a playoff birth.  It's a team with a lot of confidence with a lot of kids back.  Their quarterback is a phenomenal football player, this young man's a dual threat kid.  He's got as a strong of an arm as he does running the ball, so he can get it down field and he's got some playmakers on the edge that he can do that with.  At the same time, he can run it.  He's a tough physical runner at the quarterback position,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “The key to our success on Friday night's our ability to contain that young man and limit his big play ability.  Then up front they've got a lot of experience back.  These kids are playing really hard, really physical in the film we've seen.  They're playing with a lot of confidence.  So, for us it's going to be our ability to match our younger groups with that with that veteran talent on their side and playing physical matching that physicality.  So, it's going to be a great test on Friday night and then on top of that sprinkle in the rivalry of it.  So, we're fired up to go over there and give them our best and you know represent our community the right way.”

Published 8/16/23

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Wooster Getting Better

          Wooster, always a factor it seems in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, will have that kind of personnel again this season.

          Coach Austin Holter says he likes the development he has seen from the kids this summer.  “I'm going to tell you what I've been really excited about this team's progress throughout the summer.  It's been a committed group, who have really done a great job of committing to each other and developing a great team culture, which is where it starts.  So, I'm very pleased with that, very pleased with their effort throughout the summer.  We're going into day three of practice here in the fall and what I've seen the first two days I am very excited about these kids. they are giving great effort, great energy, certainly rallying around each other.  So, we're looking forward to continue to develop during camp on that.  We've got our first scrimmage this upcoming Saturday, heading up north to Westlake to do a three-way scrimmage there with Westlake and Lorain, so excited to meet up with some different competition that were made of,” said Holter.

          Holter says it is getting to the point this summer where kids want to hit some players wearing other jerseys.  “I mean obviously especially in this sport you relish your competition and opportunity to compete against other individuals.  We were able to do some of that this summer.  We had three different seven on seven opportunities here for our kids, which gave them a chance to compete with other kids in a seven on seven setting.  Now with the pads on our kids are certainly eager to compete and again like I said we're excited to get up north in the Cleveland area here on Saturday and compete with Westlake and Lorain,” he said.

          Holter says they lost a lot of quality players to graduation, but they have other kids that are ready to go.  “First of all, we lost just a terrific senior class.  I mean those guys did a great job a year ago.  I thought our running game was very strong with Seth Chamberlain and Michael Howman-Williams.  The guys up front did a great job with them.  So, when you when you lose two guys like that who are very powerful runners on the offensive side of the ball you certainly have an emphasis on trying to develop that run game, “ he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “I have been very, very pleased and impressed with our young athletes and their ability to grow our run game and what they've done, so we're excited about that.  We've lost some big kids up front as well, some kids who had a lot of experience for us playing in the trenches.  So, we're going to be playing some younger talent there this year, but the kids are working hard.  For us it's going to be developing and in every opportunity we get every practice, every scrimmage is another step forward for those kids.”

Published 8/03/23

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Wooster Upsets St. Ignatius

          Wooster has become the first Generals baseball team to qualify for the regional tournament in a quarter of a century as they beat Cleveland St. Ignatius, the top seed in their district, (3-2) in a division I district final on Thursday.

          Coach Steve Young says they went out and did what they had to do.  “This is first regional semifinal qualifying team since 1998.  We talked about it for the last 36, 48 hours that we knew you were capable of doing this and we had all the confidence we could pull this off,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win on Thursday night, “We had them well scouted and our guys, we had a plan, we talked about it, we practiced it in practice and our guys came out executed the plan.  So, for our guys to kind of just show up and kind of play a nameless, faceless, opponent that was kind of the mentality we took.  All the credit to the guys, they did everything we asked them to do and they were outstanding.  So, heck of a win.  Obviously, kind of like a program defining, program altering, type win and couldn't be more proud of our guys.”

          Young says the Generals execution was very sound on Thursday in all aspects of the game.  “We played a really, really clean game, which we knew we had to do.  You play a team like St. Ignatius you know you can't give them free bases, you can't give them extra outs.  So, for us to go errorless.  The one run they did get was on a hit batter that we had two strikes on him, so that's something we have got to kind of improve on.  I mean just for us to play clean, execute every little detail that we talked about doing coming into the game offensively, defensively, pitching, catching him, everything was kind of spot on.  Again, I couldn't be prouder, they did everything we asked them to do.  We're kind of rolling right now, so we're kind of on to the next opponent next Thursday and we'll see what happens.”

          They will play Medina, a (1-0) winner over Brunswick in next week’s regional semi.

          On Thursday, Young says they forced the issue when they had the bats.  “I was talking to the Ignatius coaches after the game a little bit in the parking lot and they were like wow you guys had this lead off runner on like six out of seven innings.  So, we did a really, really good job working counts, having great at bats, competitive at bats, fighting off tough pitches, putting the ball in play, working walks and then we had guys on early we were able to kind of move runners with a little small ball, a couple stolen bases when we needed them.  Overall, just a very, very good job, good execution, small ball got a couple across.  Coming into it, we kind of felt like it'd be a race to four, nobody actually got to four, but we were able to kind of get to three and kind of hold serve and I mean again just total team effort,” said Young.

Published 5/26/23

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Wooster Holds Off Brecksville

          Wooster, the Ohio Cardinal Conference champion, scored five runs in the fifth inning and held on, getting the last out with bases loaded, to hold on and beat Brecksville (6-4) in a division I district semifinal in Cleveland on Tuesday evening.

          They will play Cleveland St. Ignatius in a district final on Thursday.

          Wooster led (1-0) going to the bottom of the fifth when two run singles by Blake Bowen and Sam Nilsen highlighted a five run inning.

          Coach Steve Young says that was huge for them after leaving some runners on in the fourth.  “To be honest we got one in the fourth and had first and second and nobody out and tried to get a bunt down.  Trying to play a little bit small ball at that point in the game and get a couple runs across the board kind of break the seal a little bit.  So, for us to kind of come back in the fifth.  I think we were at top of our order, some good speed there, got some guys on, try to play a little bit small ball, put some pressure on the defense and try and force them to make some plays.  Fortunately for us, we were able to execute and get the job done and force them into at least one throwing error and then kind of get the big hit or two we needed.  So, yeah it was good to kind of stick with it grinding out some at bats and we're able to scratch some across there,” said Young.

          Wooster went with young star pitcher Brady Bowen on Tuesday and he pitched well, but he tied a little and they went to the pen.  Young says A.J. Likowski bailed them out of a bases loaded situation.  “It's one of those things where the kid doesn't have his best stuff.  Brady’s pitch count was getting up there.  He was throwing for the second time in six days, so we're kind of monitoring his pitch count and it was a little bit higher we like it to be, but he got the first out in seventh inning,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win on Tuesday night, “Went to one of our go to guys, one of our most reliable guys, and he just wasn't sharp (Tuesday) night and sometimes you have it and sometimes you don't.  So, we've talked all season about how it takes all 19, 20 of us on our roster.  Went to A.J. Litowski and he was able to come out and in a bright spot and get the last out.  So, we have all the faith in the world in Steiner and we'll go back to him again on Thursday.  It was a total team effort, guys stood ready, guys stayed locked in, and we kind of pulled out there at the end.”

          St. Ignatius beat Medina Highland (4-0) on Tuesday and Wildcats have a big reputation in baseball as well as other sports of course.

          Young knows what they are up against.  “We are very well aware of what's ahead of us.  We scrimmage them every year at their place intentionally, knowing that's one of the district sites.  We are trying to become and attain what they've already done.  So, for us it's more about staying within ourselves, playing our game and just kind of not backing down, just kind of stand toe to toe and go play our best and we'll hang out and see what happens.  So, we know we have to be clean, got to be fundamental and sound.  We’ve got to pop some big hits at some big moments, but this is a team all year that's kind of answered the bell, so I expect nothing less and our guys will be ready and we'll be excited and welcome the opportunity,” said Young.

Published 5/24/23

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Wooster Wins and Advances

          Ohio Cardinal Conference champion Wooster beat Parma Normandy (4-1) on Thursday to advance to their first district tournament since 2014.

          They will play Brecksville a district semifinal.

          Coach Steve Young says they faced a very good pitcher and even though they only got four hits, they got some clutch hits.  “We kind of knew what we were up against going into the game.  Normandy has a kid that’s going to get drafted on the mound, he’s committed to Kent State.  So, he was sitting in the low 90s most of the night had really, really good command of all four pitches he throws.  So, for us the plan of attack was to grind out our at bats,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win over Normandy on Thursday night, “Keep working, keep plugging along, put the ball in play, kind of forced their defense to make some plays and at the end of the night we were able to get a lot of base runners and get a couple of runs across with a couple timely hits.  So, it was a good night overall.  We didn't play our best, not like we have in the last couple of weeks, but we'll take it and move on.  Another steppingstone to try and get to the ultimate goal, so we'll take it and keep working.”

          The Generals (20-4), #2 in the final Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, got an outstanding pitching performance from Brady Bowen, who went six innings, giving up three hits and striking out eight.  Elisha Steiner came in and got the save.

          Young says Bowen was able to get out of some jams.  “I mean Brady Bowen has been a little competitor for us all season, the last two seasons really, for him to go six innings.  I believe it was second and third inning had the bases loaded, no fault of his, we got a couple of mistakes in the field.  So, for him just the kind of gather himself play the next pitch and not let it fluster him or get to him.  He would kind of lock in and focus and make a nice pitch the whole night.  So, he's scatters three hits across six innings, eight k’s.  Then Steiner comes in and he's our veteran.  We kind of joke with him all time that he's 25 years old, he's been here forever, playing all four years for us.  So, he came in the seventh got to save.  Just a really, really good night for us overall and as a team that we were right around 70% strikes, which is kind of what we want to be,” said Young.

          Young says next week against Brecksville they are going to face another outstanding arm.  “We were kind of just joking as a coaching staff (Thursday) night.  We saw the guy (Thursday) night that was a draft pick and he's going to Kent State next year and then next week we anticipate seeing a division one commit to Purdue.  So, for us the approach is the same, kind of grinding out at bats, make them work, get ourselves in hitter’s counts and capitalize on mistakes when they're made.  So, nothing really changes for us.  Obviously, we need to continue playing some cleaner baseball than we did (Thursday) night, but the approach offensively is always the same.  Stick with it, grind it out and capitalize on mistakes when they're made,” he said.

Published 5/19/23

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Wooster Earns Share

          With a (5-2) win at Ashland on Tuesday, the Wooster Generals have earned a share of the Ohio Cardinal Conference title.

          They lead Mt. Vernon by a game.  The Jackets kept themselves alive with a (9-0) win over Lexington on Tuesday.

          Coach Steve Young says Tuesday was kind of a foundation for Wednesday.  “I mean it was good.  We let a couple slip through our hands in terms of the league so to kind of come out (Tuesday) make sure we secured at least a share and set ourselves up (Wednesday) to have an opportunity to try and get our third consecutive outright title is pretty big.  So, our kids know what (Tuesday) meant they know what (Wednesday) means and we will be locked and ready to go,” he said.

          Young talks about playing a clean game and he says they were pretty much able to do that on Tuesday.  “I thought we did a lot of things very, very well.  (Tuesday) was definitely a step in the right direction for us in terms of just continuing to try and build as we head towards postseason.  Defensively we were clean, we had a couple really good base running decisions and executions as well.  So, for us it was a step in the right direction and played very, very good defense behind Elijah Steiner, who threw an absolute gem.  So, he made it easy on our defense and those guys made the plays when the opportunities were there,” said Young.

          Brady Bowen had two more hits to ignite the offense.  Steiner had two RBI for the Generals.

          Wooster (16-4,11-2), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at home against Ashland on Wednesday.

          Young says the goal certainly is to go out Wednesday at home and get that title outright.  “We've tried to stay with the same theme all year tomorrow's more important than you know today was because it's next game.  So, for us that's kind of been our focus all year just to play the game right in front of you whether it's a league game or non league game. I mean, obviously, league games are a little bit more important to us and we have set ourselves up here nicely,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win Tuesday night, “So, to go out to have an opportunity to finish something that we started really last June in our title defense.  So, we put ourselves in a good spot and the opportunity is there and now it's on us to try and go finish the job.  It’s the most important game because this next game but also there's a little extra meaning behind it.”

Published 5/10/23

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Wooster Continues to Roll

          Wooster beat Madison (11-5) on Thursday evening to maintain a two game lead on Mt. Vernon in the Ohio Cardinal Conference standings.

          A win at Madison on Friday will give the Generals no less than a share of the conference title.  Mt. Vernon beat New Philadelphia (5-2) in “OCC” play on Thursday.

          Coach Steve Young says you are never sure what you are going to get when you have been on a long break, but their defense was sound.  “I mean we'll take it.  Anytime you can have a quality league opponent and you get a pretty good win against their number one pitcher, we'll take it.  It's been an interesting couple weeks with the weather, so it's good to get back out there and play some games.  Much to my, I guess, pleasure I would say, we were played pretty clean, we didn't have any errors.  So, good to see, especially coming back out of the gyms like that,” he said.

          When you are back in the gym, Young says they had to get creative in their practice to keep kids engaged.  “I think that's kudos to our kids.  We got creative with a few different things inside.  We got a lot of swings.  Just kind of really tried to make sure that one, we broke up the monotony of being inside, have a little fun, play little bit of wiffle ball and obviously get our work in and stay sharp.  You are talking about high school high school aged kids trying to keep them sharp inside in the gym when they've been outside for a month and half straight it's a little bit challenging at times, but I think our guys did good job of having fun, staying focused, getting our work in and it translated (Thursday) night, so now the challenge is go do it again (Friday),” said Young.

          Wooster (14-2,10-1), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, can earn at least a co-title in the “OCC” with a win at Madison on Friday.

          Young says they understand the task.  “With some of this stuff I have got to keep reminding myself that we're dealing with 15,16 year old kids because we are fairly young.  Our guys that made the trip last year, they know that Madison’s a team is going to fight, scratch, and claw,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win over the Rams on Thursday, “They're going to play clean, they're going to do things the right way.  So, for us, we talked about it after the game making sure we come out (Friday) focused and ready to go, take nothing for granted because that's a team building for the tournament as well.  I mean they're trying to build momentum and get things going and playing well, so we have got to kind of match that and go clean and do our business.”

Published 5/05/23

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Wooster Smokes New Philadelphia

          Wooster maintained first place in the Ohio Cardinal Conference with a (12-5) win at home over the New Philadelphia Quakers on Tuesday evening. 

          The Generals (9-2,6-1), #2 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, have a one game lead on Ashland, who beat West Holmes (10-5) on Tuesday night.  New Philadelphia and Mt. Vernon, a (10-0) winner over Mansfield Madison, are two back.

          Coach Steve Young says they got 10 runs in the third inning and a solid long relief appearance from A.J. Likowski.  “We kind of got some things going there in third inning and actually had ten runs in the third.  So, it's kind of a combination of us hitting some balls hard and obviously they didn't play as clean as they would have liked to have, but we'll take it.  We were lucky enough and fortunate enough to capitalize when opportunities that presented themselves.  On the mound, we got a shout out from A.J. Likowski, who did a heck of a job.  He wasn't really supposed to throw (Tuesday) night, but the starter just didn't have it, so we made the quick switch.  A.J. was able to give us three and a third of one hit baseball with no walks and six K’s.  So, we were able to get a couple more arms in there and get them some work and keep guys sharp.  So, it was a good team effort and now the hard part is going down there to their place (Wednesday) and doing it again,” said Young.

          Young says it was great to get 10 runs in an inning, but they also want to be more consistent with their offense.  “You could definitely see that it kind of takes life out of the other team a little bit.  So, the one thing we weren't happy with ourselves about was the fact that we only scored in two other innings.  We talked to our guys after the game a little bit about how they won more innings than us (Tuesday), especially the last three innings.  So, we need to do a better job of making sure we finish things off when we have a chance to kind of put a team away, do so, because as things move along a good scrappy team like New Philadelphia and other teams in our league will make you pay for that.  So, we want to focus on moving forward and making sure that if we are fortunate enough to have the chance, we have got to do better job of putting teams away and putting up at least at least one run every single inning and keep adding.  So, we have got to get that fixed a little bit,” he said.

          The “OCC” is one of the leagues that plays back to games against the same opponent baring weather problems.  Young says he likes that concept, but it is difficult.  “That is one thing I kind of like about the “OCC” as compared to other leagues I've been involved in, even the Suburban League when I used to coach up there.  You don't play the same team two days in a row, so in theory you could line your pitching up to have you know if you're playing some of the top teams you can see their number one twice.  So, when the “OCC” requires teams to have a bit more depth and allow other kids to execute and do their jobs,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win over New Philadelphia, “For us (Wednesday) we have Brady Bowen going for us and I'm sure they're going to throw a quality arm and it's up to us.  It's hard to beat a team twice let alone two days in a row.  So, that's the challenge for us, especially going to their place.  It's a new trip for us, so luckily we're fortunate to get them there last year and kind of see it even though we got rained out.  Anytime you're going to a place for the first time against a quality opponent you hope to have your “A” game and hopefully you have a trustworthy arm in the mound, which we will (Wednesday).”

Published 4/19/23

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Wooster Rallies to Beat Mt. Vernon

          After surrendering a (5-0) lead, Wooster scored a run in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game and beat Mt. Vernon (7-6) with a run in the bottom of the eighth in Ohio Cardinal Conference action on Tuesday night.

          The Generals share first in the conference with New Philadelphia going to play on Wednesday.  The Quakers beat West Holmes (7-6), Ashland edged Lexington (7-6) and Madison smoked Mansfield Senior (13-1) on Tuesday.  Ashland and Mt. Vernon are a game back.

          Coach Steve Young says it was a good win, but they have to be ready on Wednesday.  “Mt. Vernon, they have got a lot of good players and they're well coached.  So, we knew even when we got to the early lead that we were going to have to kind of grind it out because those kids are going to fight, scratch and claw their way through all seven innings.  So, for the most part we did a good job of getting the key hits when we needed them and our pitchers did a really good job of scattering some hits across all eight innings.  So, again (Tuesday) only means not much if we can’t take care of business (Wednesday).  So, we've kind of already turned our attention (Wednesday) and we know that we're going to be walking into a hornet’s nest (Wednesday) they're going to be fired up ready to go, so we have got to kind of match that,” said Young.

          Young says they really had to grind out a win against a tough competitive team.  “We told our kids between every single inning, we have got to keep playing, got to keep playing even when we were up 5-0 we knew with their lineup and how well coached they are they were going to kind of claw back a little bit.  We even told our guys that we didn't feel five was enough and we wanted to keep adding more,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win on Tuesday night, “Mt. Vernon did a good job of kind of holding us there and then getting three in the sixth and three in the seventh to actually take the lead going to the bottom of the seventh.  So again, quality program and they've been consistently at the top end of the “OCC” and also down in their district as well.  So, we know what we're up against and we're just happy to kind of grind that one out and get it and move on to (Wednesday).”

          Mt. Vernon coach Nate Hunt compliments the Generals, but says they’ll be back.  “It was a tough loss to a good Wooster team.  They made the plays when it counted.  However, our guys never lost their fight and battled back harder than I’ve ever seed them battle before.  That’s what this team is, a bunch of guys fighting and grinding for more.  They know how important this series is for the conference and I know they are going to be ready for another battle at our place,” said Hunt.

          The Ohio Cardinal Conference plays back to back days, so these two teams will meet again on Wednesday at Mt. Vernon.

          Young says they know it will be tough task.  “We were in a fairly similar situation last year.  We were able to get the first one at our place and then go down there.  For some of our guys last year, having six freshmen on varsity, it was kind of eye opening experience.  So, hopefully this year we're a little bit better prepared for that and know what to expect.  There fans are going to show up, fired up, ready to go.  Again, anytime you have to try and beat a very quality opponent two days in a row it's never easy.  So, we've already talked to our guys about it and know what to expect (Wednesday).  We've been there and we have got to try and get another one hopefully.  We'll see, but we know they're going to have their number one on the mound and we are as well, so it's going to be another tight, highly contested game,” said Young.

Published 4/12/23

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Wooster Responds With Win

          Brady Bowen threw a five hit shutout and Wooster downed Lexington (3-0) in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Thursday evening at Wooster.

          It keeps them in share of first with Mt. Vernon and New Philadelphia.

          After loosing (5-0) to Lexington on Tuesday, coach Steve Young says this was a big win for them.  “Tuesday was definitely rough one.  It's been I think a couple seasons since we've been shutout, but you have got to tip your cap.  Their guy threw great game, had command of three pitches and made us look kind of foolish using the bat.  We had (Wednesday) to kind of get some swings in before the rain came and then again talked (Thursday) just about approach and making sure we're putting the ball in play a little bit.  Then our own guy kind of answered the bell a little bit on the mound going seven innings and giving up no runs with seven strikeouts and no walks.  Obviously, the offense still wasn’t inflicted the way we think it's going to or where we hope it will, but it's still early and we're going to keep grinding away at it and see if we can continue to improve,” said Young.

          Young says Bowen was dominating and he was efficient.  “He’s just reliable, especially for a young kid.  He's able to throw three pitches for strikes.  He was able to throw even a couple 2-0, 3-0 breaking balls for strikes.  He worked ahead of hitters and he was right around 75% strikes.  We ask our guys to be 65% strikes and he answered the bell on that as well,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win Thursday night, “For him to be able to come out and knew it was a big spot for us after the way Tuesday went, essentially a must win for us, especially with our upcoming league schedule.  So, he did a great job, had command of all three pitches and really just filled it up and allowed hitters to track the ball in play.  So, a  heck of a night for Brady Bowen there.”

          Offensively, Young says, it was a lot like Tuesday, but they got three in in the fifth inning.  “It truthfully felt like Tuesday and even (Thursday) we were barreling balls and it was just right at people.  Again, credit to Lexington they made a lot of nice plays.  Both surfaces on both nights were rather soft, which I don't really think played to our advantage too much.  Their pitching did a really good job.  Their pitching kind of kept us off balance, threw a lot of strikes and their defense played really, really clean behind them.  So, we just want to make sure that we continue to keep catching barrels, keep putting the ball in play hard and eventually those start to fall.  We kind of reminded our guys of that.  Just keep hitting it hard and it’s going to fall.  AJ Litowski was kind of able to get started there in the fifth inning and we were lucky to get up three and hold on to the end,” said Young.

Published 4/07/23

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Wooster Blasts West Holmes; Stays in Front

          Wooster needed only five innings to thump West Holmes (13-2) in Ohio Cardinal Conference action on Thursday evening.

          The Generals share the league lead with New Philadelphia.

          Coach Steve Young says they had a good combination of hitting and pitching.  “That'll usually get the job done for you.  We did a good job (Thursday) night of just throwing strikes and filling it up and kind of trusting our defense.  That's something we emphasize with our guys inside like all offseason, all spring, early part of the season here.  When we throw it in there and let him hit it and play some good defense behind them.  Then the key for us is just offensively executing make sure we get the ball in play.  Kind of you know zooming in our approaches and making sure we're executing with the at bat and what the game dictates at that point in time.  So, we did a decent job of that.  By no means are we a finished product, but it's a good start and we'll learn from a win,” he said.

          Young talks old time baseball about putting the ball in play and forcing the other team to make plays.  “Especially early in the season.  Let’s be honest a lot of teams around NE Ohio have not been outside much.  You can go back to (Wednesday) night.  We played one inning and 60 MPH winds and the pitchers are throwing straight into that at our field.  The game was led off with a pop up on the infield and the wind was blowing it so much two infielders were falling down.  I mean that's just it's kind of the nature of the beast in northeast Ohio baseball early spring,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night after the win, “We get the best work we can inside, everyone's in the same boat, there's no complaints to be made.  Again, just trying to put the ball in play, make the defense make a play and try and apply that constant pressure is a big part of our offense.  We talk about it every single day.  Again, we're still nowhere near a finished product where we need to be, but it's a lot more fun to learn from a win than it is a loss.  So, we'll take it and learn from it and hopefully grow a little bit get a little better every day.”

          There are a lost of good teams in the “OCC” this year and Young says they have to be consistent.  “We were talking as a coaching staff you know early this week, we think in this league that there there's a chance this year that your league champ might have three or four losses.  There's just so many good arms and so many good players.  It's going to be a battle every single week and because we know that we try to prepare our guys for that and literally just have a next pitch mentality.  Every single pitch just play the next pitch, move on, whether you won or lost that that pitch.  Move on to the next pitch and just try and win more pitches not only physically but mentally.  Making sure that we're staying sharp because this league, especially adding New Philly is going to be a very good contributor to the league.  We have got to make sure that we're getting better and better every single week because this league is going to be very tough and we have got our work cut out for us,” said Young.

Published 3/31/23

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Wooster Ready to Defend

          Wooster, the defending champion in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, has the resources to defend the title this spring with a lot of returning talent.

          They begin that task with two games next Tuesday and Wednesday against the West Holmes Knights.

          Coach Steve Young says they just want to get out on the field and test themselves.  “Well, as you know every season kind of presents new challenges and this year it's kind of been the weather.  I think we had better weather in January and February.  We've been on the field two times, one for a scrimmage and one practice and then (Tuesday) we're going to get out and scrimmage Wadsworth.  So, we are supposed to play St. Ignatius (Wednesday), so we're hoping to kind of get those two in and maybe get some more days on the field before the rain comes on Thursday.  Our guys have done a great job staying locked in, working hard inside and getting as much mental work in as we possibly can. So, a tough schedule coming up.  We're playing a lot of powers from a couple different divisions, so trying to stay sharp and prepare guys best we can inside and give it a go this year,” he said.

          Young says they certainly have a lot of building blocks left from the last year from with which to build.  “We do return the majority of our guys.  Last year, we actually started five freshmen, so those guys obviously are all a year older and a year bigger and stronger and more experienced.  We also return Blake Bowen, who was first team all-state last year.  His younger brother, also was a freshman last year is now a sophomore.  So, we we've got some good pieces.  We've got to make sure that we stay healthy because we do lack a little bit of depth at positions, but we do have quite a bit of depth in pitching.  So, that's kind of a change from years past, we have we have quite a bit of pitching, but we we've got to make sure that we stay healthy and stay sharp position player wise,” said Young.

          The depth on the mound is going to be one of the keys for the Generals this year, according to Young.  “I'll be honest with you that is what we are very, very big on.  We literally track and chart every single pitch offensively and defensively.  We have it down to decimal points of our pitchers strike percentages, first pitch strike percentages through all their bullpens.  So, everything that we do, we track and chart when we review with their guys and we tweak things here and there and we're working on specific things with different guys, so at this point in the year typically the pitchers are ahead of the hitters,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “It's important for us to make sure we throw lots of strikes, be able to throw multiple pitches in any count and make sure that we're attacking hitters because let's be honest in baseball if you have success 30% of the time you are the Hall of Fame.  So, we want to make sure our pitchers are really attacking being aggressive and able to kind of work both sides of the plate, up and down, and with multiple pitches.”

Published 3/22/22

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Wooster Expects Different Madison

          Wooster hosts Madison in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Both need a win badly if they are to stay in the conference race.  Wooster trails by three and Madison by four.

          On Tuesday night, Wooster closed hard and lost by only three (69-66) to unbeaten Lexington in conference play.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says there are some positive takeaways for them.  “I thought for the most part we played pretty well.  We did have some mental lapses, gave up a couple offensive rebounds off of free throws, had a couple late turnovers, some things like that that you really can't do against a very good basketball team like Lexington.  Now, a huge positive we were 7-16 from three and I think we had 20 offensive rebounds against them, so our activity was good.  We shot the ball well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “We just had a couple of those breakdowns that an inexperienced, younger team might have in a big game and they just have got to understand we can't have that against good basketball teams.”

          Wooster (5-6,3-3) entertains Madison (6-5,3-4) on Friday night.  The Rams have won four of their last five, including a (59-52) win at West Holmes in an “OCC” game on Tuesday night.

          Madison is paced by the play of Jaden Jeffries (22.6 ppg) and Seven Allen (19.3 ppg) and Snowbarger says they have limit the opportunities those two have to score.  “You definitely have got to control their two.  We've got to limit their touches.  Last game they went off a little bit and we can't have that and we just have got to control everybody else.  Madison is a very good basketball team.  The league this year is very deep and very good and any given night I think anybody can beat anybody.  That's proven over the last couple of weeks when you look at some of the scores.  Madison is coming over.  We got them the last time at their place at the buzzer.  So, we are going to get their best,” said Snowbarger,

          Wooster won (54-53) on December 2 at Madison when Wooster’s Caleb Scott scored with less than a second to play.

          However, Snowbarger knows this well be a different Madison team.  “We'll touch on that and we'll look at a little bit of the film, but again what Madison was at the beginning of December is not what they are at the beginning of January and similar to us.  Teams have changed and that's been a long time ago, but you can still pick up some tendencies, but definitely we'll take a look, but we understand it's not the same Madison team will be playing,” he said.

Published 1/05/23

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Wooster Must be Fundamental

          Wooster, a game back in the standings in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, plays at New Philadelphia, a new conference member, on Friday in league action.

          The Generals (5-4,3-1) had a four game winning streak snapped Wednesday night by Solon (91-60) in a non-conference game.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they allowed to many spurts by Solon.  “Solon is a very good basketball team.  We knew going in it was going to be a tough challenge for us.  They press the entire game.  They do run and jump.  I'm impressed with different things that.  You have to control it.  Honestly, we were down I think six or seven was about 30 seconds to go in the first half and we went into half down 15.  They went on an 8-0 run the last 30 seconds.  Teams like that you have got to limit those,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Then instead of down seven at the half, you're down 15 at half.  Then they come out and they get a little run after the beginning and stretch it out.  So, it was a tough game for us, but the kids learn from it how to handle some of the pressure.  Again, Solon is a great basketball team.  Like I told the kids (Thursday) in practice for about 28 minutes we played right with them, but against teams like that you can't give them those little runs.”

          Wooster travels to New Philadelphia (2-3,2-2) on Friday night.  The Quakers lost last Tuesday to Mansfield Senior (40-29) in an “OCC” game.

          Snowbarger says they are a physical team that they are going to have to keep off the boards.  “Going into the season I thought New Philly was definitely one of the better teams in the conference and I still believe that.  They are a strong, physical team.  They had a lot returning from last year.  We have got to make sure we limit a lot of their second chance buckets.  They like to play in the half court and we got to fight through a lot of screens.  We played Dover earlier in the season that's similar to that.  So, we've got to do a lot of things defensively and not break down and give them those easy layups that they're looking for,” said Snowbarger.

          New Philadelphia will be patient with the ball and Snowbarger says they have to be fundamental and they must talk on defense.  “You definitely have to be fundamental and we have got to make sure we're communicating defensively.  If we're not communicating defensively that's when you really get hung up on those screens.  So, not only the fundamentals, but the communication and playing that good team defense and they're going to test us,” he said.

Published 12/30/22

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Wooster Shooting Better

          Wooster’s game with Ashland in Ohio Cardinal Conference play scheduled for Friday night has already been cancelled due to threating weather.

          Tuesday night, the Generals (5-3,3-1) extended their winning streak to four in a row with a (74-67) win over arch rival Orrville in non-conference play.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they are starting to shoot the ball batter and they are scoring more points.  “We're definitely getting better.  At the beginning of the year, I thought we played defense pretty well in the half court.  We were moving the ball, we were doing some little things, we just weren't making shots and over the last couple of games I think things started to fall,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “I think last Saturday we beat a undefeated Revere team and scored 71.  (Tuesday) night we beat Orrville, a rivalry game, and I think we scored 74 or something like that.  So, we're starting to score the basketball.  We knew it was going to be like this with a little bit of our youth and inexperience, but the kids are starting to get their groove and the game is starting to slow down a little bit for them.”

          Snowbarger says once somebody starts making shots, then everybody gets the idea.  “It gets contagious, once one makes starts making shots then you see a couple other kids making shots and a couple others.  That's kind of where we've been.  Our leader Blake Bowen, he's been great for us, and he made a couple shots last Saturday and then you know other people started seeing their ball fall too.  So, it's one of those things it gets contagious, but at the end we've got to continue to play defense because that's what's going to travel,” said Snowbarger.

          When you are hot like this you don’t want to be cancelling games and Snowbarger hopes they are not going to get too rusty.   “You definitely do want to play.  You want to keep that hot streak.  So, we are off Friday, but then we pick right back up next week.  We have two games next week.  We host a very good Solon team and then go down to New Philly.  So, next week is going to be tough for us and hopefully we're ready and the rust doesn't get too much,” he said.

Published 12/22/22

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Wooster Expects Different Mansfield Senior

          Wooster entertains Mansfield Senior in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          The Generals fell (47-42) to Dover in a non-conference game played on Tuesday night.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger feels it was a good learning experience for them.  “Dover is a great place.  It is a good place to play for our coaches, not necessarily for players.  Dover is very well coached and you are going to have to fight through a lot of screens, which means you are going to have to guard a lot of sets.  So, as a coach in a non-conference game I love to see it because the kids have to learn to communicate the little things off the ball.  That is what we got,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Overall, I think going to Dover we had a one-point lead with 1:30 to go and let it slip away at the end.  Overall, I think our team got better and it was great competition and a great non-league game for us.”

          Wooster (1-2,1-0) gets Mansfield Senior (0-1,0-0) on Friday night.  The Tygers played their first game of the season on Tuesday night and were blown out (70-39) by Lima Senior.

          Snowbarger expects a Tyger team that is much improved on Friday night.  “We will obviously get a different team.  You have that first game and you can’t judge a team by that first game.  There are a lot of different things going on.  A lot of them are coming off the football field and getting their basketball legs.  The Mansfield Senior team on Tuesday night is going to be a completely different team Friday.  Coach (Marquis) Sykes does a great job and he will have them hungry.  They will come over and we will have to give them our best,” said Snowbarger.

          Snowbarger says Mansfield Senior will likely benefit from the physical play of their football players eventually, but right now that is pretty tough.   “You have to get your basketball legs and that sometimes takes two to three weeks to get your basketball legs.  When you come off the football field, you are a little more physical, but you don’t have the basketball fluidity with that physicalness for a couple of weeks.  They are a great group of athletes and I’m sure they will pick up quick,” he said.

Published 12/08/22

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Wooster Must Control Jeffries

          Wooster comes to Madison on Friday night to do battle with the Rams in the Ohio Cardinal Conference opener for both.

          For the Generals, they lost (56-44) to Massillon Jackson on Tuesday night in a non-league game.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger feels his team showed a lot of good things.  “Overall, I thought we played really well.  Jackson is a little bit of a younger team, but they do have two or three kids back from last year, plus they have a great sophomore class with kids that play all year around and play competitive basketball in the summer.  They were a good basketball team and with us being relatively inexperienced, I thought the kids did a very good job of handling the pressure,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “I think we only had 12 turnovers.  We are a typical young, inexperienced team.  I think we were a little sped up on the offensive end.  Our shots weren’t falling and different things like that.  They were good looks.  Overall, I was very happy with our team and how they played well together and we played hard throughout.  I told them (Wednesday) at practice that if you keep doing that kind of stuff it will pay off.”

          Snowbarger says what they hope happens as the season progresses is the action slows down for their younger players.  “You try and speed them as much as you can practice, but sometimes you can’t simulate that game action.  As the kids get older and get more comfortable with the speed of the game it slows down.  People talk about quarterbacks and different things in sports.  Once they start to slow down and see the game that is really when you make strides,” he said.

          Madison (2-0) beat Clear Fork (58-42) in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          Snowbarger knows to have success they have to control Madison senior Jaden Jeffries.  “Madison is playing very well.  Coach (Armstrong) has them playing really hard.  The (Jaden) Jeffries kid we are going to have to stop him.  I watched their first game and he had some open looks and he knocked them down.  He is strong around the basket too.  We have to limit his looks and then control the supporting cast.  After two games their team starts and ends with Jeffries and we have to limit his looks and make it hard on him, guard everybody else and contain people,” said Snowbarger.

Published 12/01/22

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Wooster Has to Win

          Wooster is in a pretty much in a must win situation when it comes to the division II playoffs as they host Cleveland Villa-Angela St. Joseph in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          Last week, they dominated the stats, but lost the game (26-21) to Ashland in Ohio Cardinal Conference play.

          Coach Austin Holter says that turnovers and mistakes were again their undoing.  “I was really proud of our defense, they played tremendous all night.  They made some plays and played some great football.  That was a dynamic Ashland offense they were able to slow down and bring to a halt.  Offensively, if you look at the statistics, you certainly see some great things at times.  We were able to control the ball and make first downs.  Again, at the end of the day turnovers were the difference and in special teams as well.  We had a miscue on a punt that resulted in a touchdown, a pick six offensively, and then we had a couple of other miscues, a muffed punt, a couple of mistakes on kickoff return,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “We are not able to put together a complete game in all three phases right now and that has kind of been the difference.  For us, that is the focus trying to play a complete game, trying to play well in all three phases.  So, we are back to work this week.”

          Wooster (4-5) pays host to Villa Angela St. Joseph (7-2) on Friday night.  The Vikings beat Mentor Lake Catholic (35-28) last Friday.

          Holter says they are dynamic on offense.  “They are very good at what they do.  They line up in a few different sets offensively.  They certainly rely on their run game.  They are a about a 70 percent run team.  They love utilizing power and outside zone.  They have a couple running backs that are very explosive.  One that is a tough downhill runner that can get the extra yard and another kid that is a good at continuing runs.  They are both very explosive in the open field as well.  So, we are going to have to be very gap sound and how to respond there.  At the same time, the quarterback has a big arm and a couple of receivers on the edge that are very good athletes.  So, as defensive backs we can’t fall asleep with amount of times they run the football.  We have to be disciplined on our coverage and keeping things in front of us,” said Holter.

          On defense, Holter says they will see a lot of man in the defensive backfield and a front seven that fires off the ball.  “Defensively, they are going to line up in a four man front and play some man on you.  They are very good at it.  Their defensive line gets off the football.  So for us, we are going to have to match that intensity up front.  Our offensive line is going to have to do a great job of getting off the football and play with low hats.  Our running backs as well as our quarterbacks have to do a great job of first and second level reads and our wide receivers are going to have to win against man.  We are excited to celebrate our seniors on senior day and bring our best going forward in last regular season game,” said Holter.

          Right now, the Generals are 17^th in division II, region 7 and Holter says it is likely they will have to win to move into the top 16.  “Right now, we are focused on ourselves, we are setting at 17.  Certainly, I think if we win, we will give ourselves an opportunity to compete in a second season.  That is where it is at, we have to play good football and put together a complete game, represent our community and ourselves the best way we can.  Find a way to win a football game and let the rest take care of itself,” he said.

Published 10/19/22

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Wooster Must be Physical

          Wooster will be at Mansfield Senior to battle the Tygers in a game in the Ohio Cardinal Conference on Friday night.

          Right now, the Generals trail first place Wester Holmes by two games, Mansfield Senior is one back.

          Wooster blasted Mt. Vernon (48-0) in an “OCC” game last week.

          Coach Austin Holter says they were in good form in all areas.  “I thought our kids played really well really in all three phases.  We were able to execute well on special teams.  We actually secured a score with a punt block.  Defensively, played extremely well all night and to hold that team to a goose egg, something we are very proud of.  Very proud of or defense for that effort.  Then we got our offense going.  We were able to establish the line of scrimmage and establish our run game, which helped with some of our play action pass.  Very pleased with the effort in all three phases and looking to continue to build on that as we keep going this season,” said Holter.

          Wooster (4-2,3-2) is at Mansfield Senior (5-2,3-1) on Friday night.  The Tygers held off Ashland (27-20) at Community Stadium last week.

          Holter says the Tygers are very balanced on offense and that creates a big problem.  “I am going to tell you it is a well coached football team.  This is a terrific football team we are going to play on Friday night.  They are fast, they are physical, they are disciplined.  They do a great job.  Offensively, they are big and they have done a great job of establishing the run and controlling the line of scrimmage and to complement they have some very explosive wide receivers on the edge,,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “So, it is a really tough team to try and handle when you have some kids on the edge that can go the distance at any point, but at the same time they are big up front and are able to run the football.  We have to play assigned, disciplined football.  We have to be able to match their physicality up front on the defensive side of the ball.  If we are able to do that, we will give ourselves a good chance.”

          Holter says Mansfield Senior has a lot of speed on defense.  “Defensively, it is a fast physical group and they move a lot.  Coach is doing a great job with that unit.  They cause turnovers, they create havoc, they get in the backfield early.  They utilize a lot of different looks up front to do so.  They have a lot of speed up front as well.  So, for us offensively, we have to be extremely sound in our execution, sound in our pass protection and our blocking assignments.  Again, we have to get off the football and match that physicality,” he said.

Published 10/06/22

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Wooster Must be More Disciplined

          Wooster has to clean up its act a little bit as they prepare to travel to Mt. Vernon for an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Last week, they were blasted (48-6) by conference leader West Holmes.

          Coach Austin Holter says three turnovers and a lack of execution is not acceptable.  “That is really good football program and they are doing good things down there in Millersburg.  It’s kind of hats off to that program and their coaches, they were kind of firing on all cylinders.  For us we didn’t play disciplined and we didn’t play at a high level and we turned the ball over offensively.  You mix those things together playing a very talented football team like West Holmes and you saw what happened Friday night.  We are back to work and getting after it.  The kids had great energy on Monday.  The focus for us is on discipline and execution and doing our assignment to the best of our ability,” said Holter.

          Holter has consistently talked about this theme, but this week more than any so far, he says they have to fix Wooster.  “Especially after a Friday night like we had this past Friday it is a great opportunity to reflect on where we are at as a program and what we are doing well and what we are not doing and focusing on that and trying to find ways to improve.  We challenge ourselves as coaches during our game planning meetings this weekend to really do that even as coaches,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “What can we do better to preform?  Get more disciplined execution out of our kids on a daily basis and for that to reflect on Friday night.  That has really been the emphasis this week.  Coaching really hard, practicing really hard, focusing on doing our assignment.  I have been pleased with where we are at so far.”

          Wooster (3-3,2-2) takes to the road to play Mt. Vernon (1-5,0-3) on Friday night.  The Jackets were belted (44-6) by New Philadelphia is an “OCC” game last week.

          Holter says they have some playmakers on offense, but, again, they have to make this a week when the Generals get better.  “They have some explosive playmakers offensively.  They have a hybrid wide receiver-running back that can take the ball from any distance.  We saw that last year when we played them here at our place.  So, we certainly have to know where he is at and where he alines.  Offensively, they run a variety of formations.  A little bit of a wing-T out of the gun and you are going to see some buck sweep and things of that nature and misdirection.  It’s a really good week to have to focus on eye discipline and understanding your assignment and executing that to a high level defensively.  Offensively, we have to focus on our assignment because their defense has shown multiple looks.  They have shown different defensive looks week to week based on their game plan.  It is a week where we have to focus on doing our job to the best of our ability,” said Holter.

Published 9/28/22

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Wooster Plays Explosive West Holmes

          It may not be a must win situation, but it’s close for the Wooster Generals as they host Ohio Cardinal Conference co-leader West Holmes at Folis Field on Friday night.

          They trail the Knights, the defending champs, and Lexington by a game.

          The Generals (3-2,2-1) lost (22-21) to Lexington last Friday when Minuteman quarterback A.J. Young and freshman wide out Brandon Fogle hooked up on a TD pass and two point conversation in the last minute of the game.

          Coach Austin Holter says they made some mistakes, especially in the kicking game, but he wants to credit Lexington.  “What a testament to Lexington and their kids to continue to fight.  It came down to guys making plays in the end.  They made some plays on special teams.  We made some mistakes on special teams that led them to having the ball in key situations there and we weren’t able to close out the game.  For us it is still the same,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday afternoon, “We have to focus on doing our job, not only on offense and defense, but also on special teams, all three phases of the game.  They play such a critical role in your ability to have success and that showed on Friday night for us.  We are back to work this week.  We are very excited about the upcoming opponent in playing a very talented West Holmes team this Friday for our homecoming.  Our kids are motivated and they are ready to get back to work.”

          West Holmes (5-0,2-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, throttled Mansfield Madison (56-0) last week.

          Holter says the Knights offense can score quickly and from anywhere on the field.  “This is a very explosive offense.  They have playmakers all over the field.  Their quarterback is managing in the pocket extremely well.  He does a great job of extending plays when need be.  They have explosive wide receivers on the edge, specifically #10 the Maltrich kid.  He has over 500 yards receiving and 10 touchdowns in just five games.  Certainly, everyone knows about their running back Sam Williams-Dixon, a very impressive athlete, not only can make the plays between the tackles, but when he gets on the edge he takes it from anywhere.  So, offensively, extremely explosive,” said Holter.

          On defense, Holter calls West Holmes physical and disciplined.  “Defensively, they are very sound in their alignment, sound in their execution and they play physical.  They do a great job of playing assignment, disciplined football.  Again, for us offensively we have to focus on our keys and taking care of our responsibility and do our job to the best of our ability,” he said.

          To have success against West Holmes, Holter says you must make them drive the football.  “I think any successful offense when you have some explosive players and they have quite a few explosive plays this year.  They have the ability to score form anywhere on the football field.  So, what you have to understand when you are playing a talented team like this is they are going to make plays throughout the course of the game.  The number one objective is to keep them in front of you and try and limit those explosive plays to the best of our ability.  You have to try and control the line of scrimmage.  You have to try and take some of that away and be able to slow them down as opposed to allowing those large plays,” said Holter.

Published 9/20/22

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Wooster Plays Improved Lex

          Wooster, the early leader in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, will play at Lexington against the Minutemen on Friday night.

          They got off to slow start last week, but went on to handle Madison (35-7) in an “OCC” game.

          Coach Austin Holter says they got it going better in the second half against Madison.  “I was really proud of our defensive unit all night.  I was really proud of our special teams unit.  Offensively, we started sluggish, we started slow.  We hurt ourselves with penalties and missed execution up front.  We are one of those football teams that can’t get behind the sticks and I felt like we did that quite a bit in the first half, but really proud of our unit’s response in the second half as a football team.  I thought we played some really good football in that second half and we certainly showed that with the way we finished that game.  Heading into this week and preparing ourselves for Lexington, a very talented and very good football team.  As we talk about week to week, it is still about us.  It is still about correcting our mistakes.  The focus this week has been about starting fast.  I feel like our kids have done a great job of that in each day we have practiced so far, so very excited about the opportunity to get that done on Friday night,” said Holter.

          Wooster (3-1,2-0) is at Lexington (1-3,1-0), who won for the first time last week in pounding Mt. Vernon (30-7) in conference play.

          Holter says they have an explosive offense.  “I am going to tell you, that was a very impressive win for that football club over Mt. Vernon.  They were certainly firing on all cylinders.  I thought their defense played physical and played assignment discipline and tackled well.  They did a fantastic job.  Mt. Vernon has a couple of great athletes that they held in check.  Offensively, they really got it going.  Their quarterback is as good a dual threat quarterback that we have seen up to this point.  So, we certainly have to keep our eyes on him and contain him in the pocket.  They have a couple of dynamic players,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “They have a freshman running back, who really toted the ball well this last game.  They have an older individual playing running back, who we didn’t even see in this previous game, but has certainly made plays for them all year.  He made a few plays against us last year at wide receiver.  They have some explosive kids there.  They have some young kids developing.  They have a 6’5” wideout there on the edge that is a freshman that is pretty impressive as well.  This is a big talented football team that certainly looks to be hitting their stride and we have to play our best football on Friday night.”

          The Minutemen had struggled defense earlier in the year, but Holter says they are much improved.  “I’ll tell you what as we watch and evaluate them on film, they are big up front.  They get off the football and they use their hands well.  I think their linebackers have been responding impressively the last couple of weeks.  They are playing very physical football.  Secondary wise they have rotated a couple of young guys in relative to some injuries they have had to their veteran players, but I am expecting to see those kids back this week and I think they are certainly locked in.  For our program, we have to focus on us,” he said.

Published 9/16/22

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Wooster Defense Will be Stretched

          Wooster, after a three game homestand, takes to the road Friday night for an Ohio Cardinal Conference game at Mansfield Madison against the Rams.

          They won their “OCC” opener last week in stuffing New Philadelphia (21-0) in allowing only 137 total yards.

          Coach Austin Holter says the defense played fast.  “I am really proud of defensive unit and defensive staff and our defensive coordinator. They did a terrific job putting together a good, sound plan last week.  Our guys executed with confidence and played full speed and doing a great job of getting 11 hats to the football and taking care and causing a few turnovers.  Just really happy with the way that unit played last week and we are looking forward to carrying that on and continuing to grow and get better,” he said.

          Madison (0-3) lost to Ontario (28-14) in a non-conference game.

          Holter says on offense they are going to try and spread the field and make some big plays.  “Coach Valentine is a terrific coach and he is doing a great job with his program and bring over some of the stuff he was doing there at Ashland.  Offensively, they are a five wide unit utilizing some motion in bringing a kid in and out of the backfield.  I really like their quarterback play.  They have a young man back there that can sling the rock and does a great job of working through his progressions and giving his wide receivers an opportunity to catch the football,” he told Swankonsports.com on Labor Day, “Defensively, when a team lines up in empty as much as they do you have to be extremely sound with your communication in your coverage and what you are going to do.  So, we are going to work on that this week with our unit.  Really proud of what we saw form them (Monday) in our first practice.”

          Wooster ran the ball well last week gaining 157 yards with Seth Chamberlin getting 88 yards and a couple of scores.

          Holter says they need to continue to grow.  “Defensively, they are very diverse.  They have a bunch if different coverages that they will give you up front.  Offensively, we have got to continue to work on ourselves and focusing on trusting our scheme and trusting our responsibility of doing our 1/11^th.  I really thought we saw a lot of growth from our offensive unit as well, specifically up from with our “O-line” last week.  So, we want to carry and build on that as well,” said Holter.

          Madison tries to create some one on one situations and Holter says they have to be sound tacklers.  “They have some great kids on the perimeter that catch the football and have great speed.  You have to identity their best Jimmys and Joes and try and find a way to put your best players on them.  At the end of the day, you have to put the ball carrier on the ground.  You have to be able to win those one on one matchups.  We are working extremely hard this week on some of that stuff and emphasizing 11 hats to the ball and finishing the play,” he said.

Published 9/06/22

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Wooster Fixing Itself

          Wooster will host New Philadelphia in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night to kick off the “OCC” season.

          Last week, Wooster (1-1) was bounced (49-21) by Wadsworth in a non-conference game.

          Coach Austin Holter says they could not get out of their own way.  “That is a really talented Wadsworth football team.  The bottom line was we had five turnovers as an offensive unit, as a program, and anytime you have five turnovers and give it to a  dynamic team like Wadsworth it is going to be very difficult to respond and come back from that.  Having said that I was really proud of our effort and the way we responded at times.  We weren’t table to get things going in the first half until that final drive, but credit to our kids to keep fighting and got one on the board before halftime to make it a 28-7 game,” he told Swankonsports.com, “Came out in the second half and got the ball there at the opening kick and were able to drive and make it a 28-14 football game.  Our defense gives us the ball back in that next possession and there are five minutes left in the third, but unfortunately for us we had a couple of consecutive turnovers and they were able to capitalize.  Credit to them and what they are doing.  For our football team we are focusing on eliminating turnovers and give ourselves the opportunity to win the game.”

          This is the only “OCC” game this week.  League play around North Central Ohio does not begin normally until week four.  However, Holter says that does not matter to them.  “We are really focused on ourselves.  There is a lot that our Wooster football program has to clean up internally for offense, defense and special teams.  Every day we come out here we focus on ourselves.  We focus on trying to put the best product out there on Friday night.  So, whether we are playing a conference opponent or a non-conference opponent we are going to do our best every week to get better each and every day.  I have been really proud of our team and how they have rebounded this week.  It has been phenomenal week of practice.  We are very much looking forward to playing New Phily at home (Friday) night,” he said.

          New Philadelphia (1-1) lost (20-0) to Steubenville in a non-league game last week.

          Holter says the Quakers are a physical football team with some athleticism.  “I’ll tell you what coach (Mike) Johnson is doing a great job with that program.  They are big and physical up front on both sides of the football.  They get off the football, they use their hands well, they have great size.  They have a quarterback that is very athletic.  They are playing a young player, he is a sophomore, but he looks like a big kid.  He can run it, he can throw it, he is a duel threat quarterback.  He does a great job defensively.  They are extremely sound and they are physical.  Each and every week, last week we weren’t able to get it done, but this week we have to establish the run.  We have to be able to develop a consistent run game and get our pass game going and have some diversity there.  Defensively, we have to contain their quarterback and we have to shut down the run with them,” said Holter.

Published 9/02/22

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Wooster Faces Athletic Wadsworth

          Wooster will face a stiffer challenge this week as they host the Wadsworth Grizzlies in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          They had their way with rival Orrville last week, beating the Red Riders (40-13) on Friday night.

          Coach Austin Holter says it was a good start.  “Anytime you can start the season beating the crosstown rival and continue to improve as a program you are certainly happy with that.  I am very excited about where we are and the week of practice that we have had so far.  We have a tough test on Friday with coach (Justin) Todd and his group and Wadsworth coming to town and we are very excited about that opportunity,” he said.

          Seth Chamberlin rushed for 170 yards and three scores against Orrville and the Generals allowed less than four yards per offensive play.

          Still, Holter says they must be improved in all areas of the game.  “In all three phases of the game we certainly have to improve.  In special teams we have to be more disciplined in our execution.  Offensively, we have to be sound in our decision making and taking care of the football.  Defensively, we just have to continue to rally and try and get 11 hats to the football.  I thought our defensive unit played great all night, but we have to continue to contest passes and in the secondary be aggressive with our hands.  Just relentless effort in our three phases. That is something we have been focused on this week and really proud of what we have seen in our teams so far,” said Holter.

          Wadsworth hammered Barberton (24-7) last week in their opener.

          Holter says they will be tested by a very athletic team on both sides of the football.  “It is a well coached football team.  Coach Todd does a terrific job up there at Wadsworth.  Offensively, they have a very accurate quarterback and a big offensive line that does a great job in protection.  They have some kids on the edge that can really challenge you deep.  The running back is going to be a terrific athlete that catches the ball well out of the backfield,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “Defensively, they are going to line up with 11 great athletes on that side of the ball.  They don’t necessarily focus on size, they focus on skill.  They are fast off the football, they are relentless in their effort and disciplined in their execution.  I thought that was something that was very impressive watching them on tape.  Their kids know where to align and execute and understand their responsibilities.  For us we have to be extremely sound in all three phases.  We are very much looking forward to the opportunity.”

Published 8/25/22

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Wooster Finding Itself

          Wooster clashes with rival Orrville on the Generals home field in the opening game of the season on Friday night.

          Coach Austin Holter says he is very upbeat about the way his team is headed into the first game of the season.  “I think our coaching staff was very pleased with our program’s development through the preseason.  We had two scrimmages against Massillon Perry and Cloverleaf.  We felt those contests would help us physically and both of those teams showed up ready to play.  Both very physical football teams,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “We were really proud of our kids and how they responded, how that matched that physicality and continued to grow.  It is an extremely motivated group and running into week one here where you are playing the cross town rival, what better way to start.  So, our kids are motivated and they are competing at the highest level right now.”

          Wooster has either won the league title or competed for it in each of the last seven years.  Holter says this is another team that should fall into that category.  “We certainly have high expectations for ourselves, but we understand it is week to week.  We have a great schedule playing against a lot of top notch opponents.  Obviously, walking into a rivalry week you know you are going to get Orrville’s best so for us we try and focus on ourselves.  We try not find ourselves too much in the moment, but just focus on ourselves and getting better every day as individuals and as a team.  We feel like if we can do that collectively on a day in and day out basis, we will have an opportunity to give our best on Friday nights.  I have been really pleased with our week of prep so far.  The kids are very engaged and our excited to go,” said Holter.

          Wooster buried Orrville (30-6) last season in their opening game.

          Holter says the Red Riders have some good parts of their team on both sides of the football.  “Orrville has a very athletic quarterback.  I think he is extremely accurate and he runs well.  I was really impressed by their running back.  I think he runs hard and downhill.  They have a couple of kids up front that I think are very good, so we certainly have to keep and eye on where they are located.  They like to attack and run the football in their direction.  Defensively they fly around and play very physical and play with effort, so we are going to have to very sound in our schematics offensively, be very sound up front in our pass protection, and again focus on ours and try an execute as high as we can within our own scheme,” he said.

Published 8/17/22

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Wooster’s Goal to Improve

          Wooster upset two schools in the division II playoffs last year and this summer they have been motivated to take that momentum forward.

          The Generals finished third in the Ohio Cardinal Conference last year and where (7-6) overall.

          Second year coach Austin Holter says he likes the work ethic he has seen this year so far.  “I have been really proud of this football team and our community and our kids.  They had a lot of fun last season.  We played some really good football going into the playoffs.  That is a testament to that senior class and what they were able to do for us and we are forever grateful for that.  Our kids are motivated and they have stayed motivated the whole off season.  Our numbers in the weight room were tremendous,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “Really proud of the effort this team put in throughout the summer and now carrying into camp.  We are just continuing to build on what we are doing.  It’s still the same it’s daily improvement, continuous improvement individually and collectively as a team.  So, have been really, really proud of what we have seen the first couple of practices.”

          Holter says they are really still trying to figure out what the identity of this team will be this year.  “It doesn’t matter if you are bringing back a multitude of starters or returning letter winners or not, every team is different and you do have to find that identity.  As a coaching staff that is what we are doing on a daily basis.  We are trying to put our kids in competitive situations to find out who they are and what it takes for them to compete at the highest level and what we can do that best for them.  At the end of the day, we are focused on our players not plays, so we are going to try and identify our best football players and get them on the field and put them in situations to be successful based on their skill sets,” he said.

          Wooster opens August 19 by hosting traditional rival Orrville.  They play Massillon Perry and Cloverleaf in their two scrimmages.

          Holter says they hope to get a lot out of that.  “It’s a great opportunity for us to get our athletes out and compete against other individuals.  It’s an opportunity to connect with other coaches and grow our programs together collectively.  We were able to do that successfully with the seven on seven this summer.  We get a great opportunity the next two weeks to scrimmage two very talented football teams in Massillon Perry and Cloverleaf and they will certainly bring different challenges.  It’s a great chance to get out there and figure out what you are like especially when the bullets are flying and you playing against a different opponent,” said Holter.

Published 8/04/22

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Wooster Wins Another “OCC”

          Wooster has laid claim to a second straight outright Ohio Cardinal Conference baseball title after beating West Holmes in (11-1) in Wooster on Wednesday evening.

          It is the time in over 35 years the Generals have win back to back conference titles and coach Steve Young says it feels pretty good.  “It was awesome.  To be completely transparent, we weren’t really sure what we were going to have coming into this year.  Early on in the year you lose your number one pitcher in Elijah Steiner, defending “OCC” pitcher of the year.  We just talked to our kids all year about playing the next pitch, being resilient, fighting through and doing whatever is asked,” he told Swanknsports.com, “These guys did an awesome job of that and the reward came (Wednesday) night.  It is the first time since 84-85 that a Wooster baseball team has gone back to back.  It was definitely a very, very special moment and we certainly enjoyed it.”

          Young says this is a baseball team that has been getting better all season because they dedicated to working on their skills.  “That’s a credit to our guys.  Our guys showed up every single day.  I can’t tell you how many times the day after can I get extra work with guys.  For an example, after we win Wednesday and we celebrate out on the field with parents taking pictures and we had three kids going to extra work and taking ground balls after the game.  That is just kind of the work ethic and the mentality that trickles down through the entire program.  We are very, very excited to see these kids grow as young men.  They know if they want to earn something they are going to have to go out and work for it.  They did a great job this year and it certainly paid off,” said Young.

          Wooster (18-4), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, beat Berlin Hiland (7-6) on Thursday in non-conference play and Young says they want to continue to play good baseball teams going into the tournament.  “We want to stay in a rhythm here.  We are finally getting some good breaks with the weather.  We are trying to find that rhythm that we haven’t been to find really all year because of the weather.  We are playing quality teams.  That was the whole point late in the year to see quality teams.  Berlin Hiland is ranked top 10 in the state, Norwayne is ranked top 10 in the state and Brunswick is a very solid program that we are going to see on Monday.  Just trying to make sure our guys are seeing good pitching and our pitchers are seeing quality hitters and get better every day,” he said.

Published 5/13/22

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Wooster Guarantees Share With Win Over West Holmes

          Wooster will do no less than share of the Ohio Cardinal Conference baseball title this season after edging West Holmes (1-0) on Tuesday evening outside of Millersburg.

          They lead Ashland and Mt. Vernon by a game.  Wooster hosts West Holmes on Wednesday.  The Arrows and Jackets play each other in Mt. Vernon.  Ashland knocked Mt. Vernon from a share of lead in beating them (3-1) on Tuesday.

          Coach Steve Young says they want that title to themselves.  “Every team sets out at the beginning of the year to try and win a championship.  At least to know we have part of a grip on one is a good feeling.  Our boys really didn’t celebrate (Tuesday) night.  Of course, we celebrated the win, but we really didn’t celebrate any championship.  We know we have one more to get and it is going to be a tough one to get.  (Wednesday) we will wake up and hit the reset button and try and get after it,” he said.

          Freshmen Brady Bowden was again outstanding for the Generals (16-4,10-1), #3 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches poll in the large school division, as he went six and third innings, allowing only four hits.  Drew Becker got the save.

          Young says it was a pitcher’s duel.  “(Tuesday) night was everything high school baseball should be.  You had two teams that were fundamentally sound.  It was a pretty clean game, just competing, and grinding out every single pitch.  It was really fun to be part of.  Obviously, it’s a little more fun when you are on the winning end of it.  Tip my cap to our freshman Brady Bowen, who had a good game.  We kind of knew going in that Noah Clark, he was our only league loss last year, so we knew we had a tough one ahead of going down there, he thew a heck of a game, he is a competitor,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “To be quite frank, I am glad we are never going to see him again on the mound because that kid can fill it up.  It was a great team win and glad we got it done.  It was definitely an instant classic.”

          Jack Williams got the big hit.  An RBI single the top of the sixth.

          Young says it was a clutch play.  “We thought we would have a few more.  We had a kid thrown out a home plate.  They made a couple real nice plays defensively.  I think we had three hits with a runner on second base and we were only able to muster up one run there.  We had some guys come through in a clutch spot.  It was one where there was a little bit of small ball and try and see what we can come up with.  We were fortunate enough to get a big hit from Jack Williams, one of our seniors, our of our leaders.  He got the game winning RBI in the sixth inning there,” said Young.

Published 5/11/22

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Wooster Blanks Ashland; Creates Logjam

          Wooster needed to beat Ashland on Wednesday to have a chance to defend its Ohio Cardinal Conference baseball title and they did exactly that in shutting out the Arrows (5-0) in Wooster.

          The Generals, the Arrows and Mt. Vernon, who beat Lexington (4-0) on Wednesday, all have just one “OCC” loss and share first.

          Coach Steve Young says they knew it was a must win.  “We talked about it coming into the week.  We knew what was ahead of us coming into this week.  Obviously, you can only get the one that is in front of you.  We had a baby faced freshman go out there and throw 84 pitches and a complete game and in seven innings give up three hits and help himself out a little bit.  We had some quality at bats offensively.  It was a really, really good team effort.  We played really good defense,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “Pitching wise Brady Bowen, he is 4-0 in the league now.  It was a huge performance (Wednesday) night from him.  It only matters though if we go out and do it (Thursday).  If we don’t do it (Thursday) (Wednesday) means nothing.  We talked to the guys about that after the game.  Just kind of take the one that is ahead of you.  (Thursday) is the next one, so we have to go out and get that one too.”

          Wooster (13-4,8-1), #4 in the Swankonsports.com baseball coaches in poll in the large school division, plays at Ashland (9-4,8-1) on Thursday.

          Brady Bowen also beat Mt. Vernon last month.

          Young says he is just a young kid having fun.  “He is an awesome kid.  I wish everybody could see his personality too.  He is literally just a freshmen kid playing baseball with his buddies.  That is kind of the mentality that he has.  He has fun and competes and does everything that we ask and is extremely coachable.  It has been an absolute pleasure to coach him this year.  We are excited with what he has done so far and hopefully we can keep this thing rolling,” he said.

          Brady’s older brother Blake Bowen had three hits and three RBI for the Generals.  Sam Nielsen had two hits for Wooster.

          Young says with seven hits they were able to have some success against Ashland starter Luke Bryant.  “We kind of anticipated seeing Luke Bryant (Wednesday) night.  He is their number one.  He has been really, really good for them all year.  We anticipated seeing him.  They wanted to get that first one and we knew that coming in.  Our kids were up to the challenge.  We were able to bang out seven hits, get three earned off of him and five runs total.  I’ll tell you what that kid threw the ball well for a sophomore.  Last year, I know he was a little banged up and didn’t get to pitch a whole lot as a freshman.  He was impressive.  We told him as a coaching staff that he is going to be special in a couple of years.  He was throwing three or four pitches consistently for strikes.  He worked both side of the plate up and down.  We were happy with our guys execution in working counts, trying to get in fastball counts and attacking the fastball when we got it.  That has kind of been the approach all year.  We will look to try and continue that,” said Young.

Published 5/05/22

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Wooster Downs Madison

          Wooster scored six runs in the fifth and sixth innings combined and they downed Madison (6-2) in an Ohio Cardinal Conference baseball game in Wooster on Tuesday evening.

          Brady Bowen had 11 strikeouts in going all seven for the Generals (10-3,5-1) on Tuesday.

          Wooster coach Steve Young says it was not their best performance, but they found a way to get it done.  “We have had better days, but it was one of those when you kind of grind through it, but in the end worry about the outcome.  Their kids did a great job, their pitcher did a great job and filled it up with three different pitches.  We have kind of seen their box scores all season and they have been in a lot of tight games.  We told our guys to stick with and grind through and it the end we were able to make some plays and get some clutch, hard hit balls.  We will take it and hopefully learn from it and try and do it again (Wednesday),” he said.

          Madison (1-9,1-6) played pretty well again.  Coach Nick Melton says it was a couple of plays that sunk them.  “Once again, we got a solid outing on the mound for our starting pitcher Gavin Cates.  He was able to throw all of his pitches for strikes and keep us in the ballgame.  We made a couple of mistakes in the field and they absolutely cost us.  We played really well defensively outside of two plays and those two plays ended up being the difference in the game,” he said.

          As balanced as the “OCC” has been, Young says you have to be at the top of your game to be successful.  “That is what we have been emphasizing with our guys.  We need to make sure that every single game is an individual challenge and we try and get each and every one of them.  There are no days off.  There are a lot of good arms in this league and there are a lot of good players.  We want to make sure we give ourselves the best opportunity to come out on top after seven innings, and so far we have done a decent job of that,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “Honestly, we still feel like we haven’t played our best baseball and we are hoping that is coming soon.  We have a pretty young group and we are just competing and grinding out as needed.  I will say our guys compete.  It doesn’t matter if we are up seven or down seven, our guys just compete every single pitch.  That is what we ask them to do.  Fortunately, for us this year it has worked out more times than it hasn’t.”

          Ashland, who beat Mansfield Senior (11-0) on Wednesday, still leads Wooster and Mt. Vernon by a game in the “OCC” standings.

          Young says they understand their task is to keep winning.  “We told our guys we have a zero margin for error, so it was good to get this one.  We have to bounce back (Wednesday) and we are going to see their best pitcher.  Ashland keeps winning and that is great ballclub they have over there and Mt. Vernon keeps winning.  At the end of this season, it is going to be interesting to see who comes out on top because there are a lot of good teams fighting it out right now.  We are just trying to give ourselves the best chance to win in the end and that comes with checking them off one game at a time.  You can’t win two or three, you can only win the one in front of you.  That is what our focus has been and will continue to be,” said Young.

Published 4/27/22

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Wooster Downs Lexington in “OCC” Opener

          Drew Becker struck out 10 over five plus innings and Wooster beat Lexington (6-3) on opening day Tuesday evening in the Ohio Cardinal Conference.

          Blake Bowen had three doubles and three RBI and Drew Rader scored twice and two hits for the Generals.

          Coach Steve Young says it wasn’t their best overall effort, but they did enough good things to win.  “Like most of Ohio we were snowed out on Saturday, so to start your season with a league game and a big one.  We knew Lexington would be much improved from last year.  Obviously, it was very, very cold.  The field wasn’t perfect, but it was playable.  We were able to come out on top and not play our best.  I talked to our boys after the game and told them it is a lot more fun to learn from a win and not from a loss.  We will take it and go back to work (Wednesday) and hopefully make some improvements and see where everything lands,” said Young.

          Tuesday was an improvement weather wise from the first two days of the season, but it was still in the lower 40’s. 

          Young says they did well in battling the adversity.  “We made sure we hit inside so we could stay warm as long as possible then go out to our field and the guys were having to grab some rakes and turn the field over a little bit and smooth it out.  For us the big key is this year we have 15 guys on varsity and eight are either freshmen or sophomores, so some of these guys are taking live bullets for the first time and getting their first varsity experience,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “The cold, the conditions and a good opponent like Lexington it was good for our guys to work through a little adversity and it was good for the coaches to see how they responded to that.  We are talking to them every single day and coach them up and hopefully don’t make the same mistake twice.”

          Now, the two teams will play again on Wednesday, again at Wooster, and Young says they know they are going to see Lexington’s best.  “We are actually going to be playing this game at our field again because Lexington’s isn’t ready.  So, Lexington will be the home team, but it’s going to be at our home field.  We know we are going to get Cole Pauley on the mound and he is an Ohio State commit.  He can run it up there in the low 90’s with some good off speed stuff.  We talked to them after the game (Tuesday) that in this league there are no breaks, you have to bounce right back and make sure we come back focused and ready to go.  Enjoy this one, but when they wake up, hit that reset button,” he said.

Published 3/30/22

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Wooster Looking to Defend “OCC”

          Wooster, the defending champion in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, will be gunning for a second straight title this spring.

          If they get it, it would tie them with Lexington for the most in “OCC” history.

          Coach Steve Young says they have some younger players who are excited to prove themselves.  “This is one of those years when we did lose quite a bit from last year, but we do have at least a few lettermen returning.  Overall, we are definitely very young this year.  We have 14 or 15 guys depending on the day on varsity and seven or eight of those are freshmen and sophomores.  It just kind of depends on the day.  We might have some growing pains, but we do have a nice top half of some experience,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “So, comparing the two years would be hard.  We are excited, we have a lot of young guys that are showing some promise and a good mix of those vets as well.  We are excited to see how it kind of unfolds.  Just grind through the season and see where everything lands.”

          Young says they have a couple of guys at the top of their rotation that should be pretty good in league games.  “Top end pitching is a strength.  We return Drew Becker, who last year pitched a lot of big non-league games, especially St. Ignatius, Wadsworth, Avon, Jackson.  So, he is back, he is a senior this year and he is ready to go on the mound.  We also return Elijah Steiner, who is a junior this year.  Last year, he was “OCC” pitcher of the year as a sophomore.  He has been pretty steady for us.  That is probably our greatest strength I would say.  We have pretty good team chemistry so far.  It’s early and we need to develop that,” said Young.

          Young believes they can be competitive this year in the “OCC” as will most of the other schools.  “We hope to compete for it every year obviously.  We are very aware of the balance of the league this year.  We lost a lot.  I know a lot of teams were playing a lot of young guys last year in the league.  It should be competitive.  It should be a fun league.  Hopefully, we come out on top in the end, but we will have to earn that,” he said.

Published 3/25/22

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Wooster Trying to Get Better

          Wooster finishes the regular season by entertaining the New Philadelphia Quakers in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          New Phily enters the Ohio Cardinal Conference next year.

          Wooster can share the conference title without playing an “OCC” game Friday if Ashland loses to Mansfield Senior.

          They lost (76-67) to Strongsville in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they didn’t make the plays down the stretch.  “Tuesday, I thought the kids played well.  We got down early.  We got down 13-2 or something early in the game.  We battled back and took the lead.  I think we were up two or three points in the fourth quarter, so we made some plays throughout.  Honestly, over the last four or five games we have been great shooting free throws and it kind of went away for us.  I think we missed about seven or eight in a row in the fourth quarter and let Strongsville get the lead and then we had to foul a little bit and it stretched it out at the end,” he told Swamkponsports.com on Thursday night, “Overall, I like the way our kids responded after getting down early.  We just didn’t make some plays down the stretch that we have been accustomed to the last couple of weeks.  We just have to get back at it and go from there.”

          Wooster (10-9) hosts New Philadelphia on Friday night.

          Snowbarger says the Quakers have some talent and can balance the floor.  “New Phily is a very good basketball team.  Actually, they have played most of the teams in the “OCC” this year.  I know they played Lexington earlier.  Played Mansfield Senior and Ashland last week.  They are playing very well.  Their shooters are very good.  They have a couple big guys inside.  So, a well rounded team,” he told Swankosports.com on Thursday night, “Coach Matt (Voll) does a great job with them throwing a couple of different looks at you.  We have to be prepared for about anything.  It’s a great non-conference game for us to end the season.  I like it because it kind of keeps our kids sharp and makes sure we are playing our best basketball.  It’s not a game we an just show up and win because New Philly is a very good basketball team.”

          Snowbarger says this is the kind of team they want to play at this time of the year.  “That is what we talked about this week going into a tough game at Strongsville and tough home game to finish it off against New Philadelphia.  Any weaknesses that we have that we don’t know about already they will be able to exploit it and get us ready for the tournament trail next week,” he said.

Published 2/18/22

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Wooster Winning With Defense

          Wooster is playing pretty good basketball, which is what we thought would happen come February.

          They beat Lexington on Tuesday night and play host to Madison on Friday in Ohio Cardinal Conference action.

          They knocked Lexington out of first place by beating the Minutemen (57-45) on Tuesday night.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they were excellent on defense.  “Tuesday night we played petty well for the most part.  I thought defensively we played pretty well.  We contested a lot of their shots.  The big guy inside we fronted him in the post and put a lot of pressure on their guards to limit his touches.  Once he did get the ball he had to work for his shots.  To hold a team like Lexington to 45 points was a great defensive effort by our kids.  It was a total team effort, so it was good to see,” said Snowbarger.

          Snowbarger says they have improved on defense, plus this year their approach is much more centered on the half court.  “We have gotten a lot better defensively.  We have put good pressure on the ball and more importantly we are staying disciplined on that pressure.  We are not continually reaching and hacking and creating a lot of fouls.  We are playing good position defense and sitting down and making the other team work for their shot.  It’s good to see the kids have bought into that defensive effort,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We have been doing a lot more halfcourt than we have in the past.  Over the past few years, we have picked up in the full court a lot more.  This year we are putting the pressure more in the halfcourt.  That’s good to see to be able to do different things.”

          Wooster (9-8,6-5) has won six of its last seven games and they beat Madison (11-7,4-6) by a final of (68-43) on January 7.

          Snowbarger expects Friday night will be a lot different.  “Madison is team this year that has played extremely well.  We went over there last month and shot the ball extremely well in the first half and kind of got up early, but it is going to be a completely different game (Friday) night.  We are not expecting to do what we did over there.  Up 20 at halftime, it is not going to happen like that.  Madison is a team that has continued to play hard throughout and I and sure we are going to get their best,” he said.

Published 2/11/22

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Rebounding a Key for Wooster

          Wooster takes a break from Ohio Cardinal Conference play this week to play Massillon on the road on Friday night in a non-conference game.

          A non-league win on Tuesday night over Copley (55-52) gives the Generals five wins in their last six games.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they have been getting better ball movement and offensive execution.  “We are playing much better than we were early in the season.  We kind of knew as a coaching staff we would just as we got into better conditioning and got our shot down and everything like that.  The kids are shooting well, but more importantly the offense is starting to flow a lot better,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “We starting to move without the ball and setting those screens and making that extra pass.  When high school teams do that, they are extremely hard to guard and right now out movement off the ball is so much better than it was in December.  So, it’s good to see as a coach.”

          Snowbarger adds that ball movement is opening up some other things too.  “We are definitely getting more open shots.  Not only do you get open shots, but helps open up offensive rebounds and second chance buckets just because you have the defense moving.  With the movement of the ball, it has just been helping the whole entire package of the team.  I’m much happier where we are at right now then we were in December, but we still have to continue to improve as we move into February,” he said.

          Wooster (8-8) plays at Massillon on Friday night in a non-conference game.

          Snowbarger says they have to keep the Tigers off the boards.  “Massillon is an athletic team and we have to make sure we handle the ball.  We can’t give them turnovers and let them get easy transition buckets on their end.  We have to control the game a little bit, control the tempo.  They are big physical strong kids around the basket.  We have to keep them off the boards.  Last year, Massillon beat us up a little bit on second chance buckets and we can’t let them do that.  They are kind of a team that wants to brick and board.  If we allow them to do that, they are extremely tough,” said Snowbarger.

Published 2/03/22

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Wooster Needs to Execute Better

          Wooster plays at home against Mt. Vernon in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Right now, the Jackets share the conference lead with Ashland.  Wooster trails by three with just four conference games to play.

          The Generals chance to defend their conference title was hampered severely by a (63-58) loss to West Holmes on Tuesday night.  The Knights have beaten Wooster twice this year.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they just got behind too much early.  He says they took too many quick shots.  “It was a tough one.  We didn’t shoot real well.  We were playing pretty well up until the West Holmes game.  No excuses, but we just had a three day layoff because of some weather and were unable to practice and stuff like that.  We went in Tuesday and were lethargic to begin with and we got down 13, 14 points in the first quarter.  The kids battled back and we were able to tie with three, four minutes to go in the game, but then just let it slip away at the end,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We had too many of the no pass possessions and one pass possessions to beat a good team like West Holmes.  We didn’t move the ball really well and there was no fluidity in our offense.  It is one of those things where you just have to forget about and move on.”

          Wooster (5-8,3-5) is at home for Mt. Vernon (9-7,5-2) on Friday night.  The Jackets beat Mansfield Senior (62-57) in an “OCC” game on Tuesday night.

          Mt. Vernon beat Wooster (63-61) on December 14.

          This time Snowbarger says they must keep the Jackets out of the lane because when they get in there, they cause trouble.  “We have to make sure we stop their penetration.  Last time down there we would get up 12 and they would start penetrating.  They are a streaky team from the perimeter.  I think they made about five or six threes in a row at one point there in the second half to battle back and they were able to get us down the stretch.  It is a team that we have to stop the dribble penetration because if we let them dribble penetrate that’s what they are looking to do.  We have to do that to be successful,” said Snowbarger.

          A high percentage of the “OCC” games have been coming down to the end this year.

          Snowbarger says they need make plays in the final moments and that includes making free throws.  “We have been in quite a few of those games.  Right now, one of our struggles is the free throw line.  We are 52, 53 percent from the line as a team and in those close games that is not a good recipe for success.  So, we have to continue to work at that kind of stuff and just make the plays down the stretch to win the games.  All of the games seem like they are coming down to the end,” he said.

Published 1/21/22

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Wooster Has to Contain Ware

          Wooster, continuing to play solid basketball, plays host to the Mansfield Senior Tygers is an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Both are on the fringe of contention in the “OCC.”  The Tygers trail first place Lexington by two, Wooster is back by three.

          The Generals beat Shelby (63-55) in a non-conference game on Tuesday.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger though they did a lot of good things.  “Tuesday, we played very well.  Down the stretch we limited their open looks and we were able to hit some shots down towards the end of the game.  It was nice to see us close it out at the free throw line.  We are shooting like 55 percent form the line as a team, so that has been a little bit of a struggle.  Tuesday night, I think we were 7 of 10 in the fourth quarter,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Especially, after the loss Sunday night to Hoban.  We were up 12 or 13 in the third quarter against Hoban and just kind of ran out of gas, but overall a good effort by the kids.”

          Hoban beat Wooster (75-66) in a game played at the College of Wooster.

          Wooster (4-7,2-4) plays host to Mansfield Senior (4-6,2-3) on Friday night.  The Tygers blasted Ashland (78-51) in their last conference game, but lost (68-65) to Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division leader Sandusky on Saturday.

          Mansfield Senior won the first matchup (59-48) on December 3.

          Snowbarger says they remember that night.  “Mansfield Senior is going to play extremely hard.  They are going to get up and pressure us.  We need to make sure we handle the ball and then get into our offense.  More importantly, we have to limit (Maurice) Ware’s open looks.  The last game at their place early in the season I think he had 30, more than half of their points, and we can’t let him go off like that,” said Snowbarger.

          Snowbarger emphasizes it’s a must to contain Ware.  “We have to understand that we can’t let Ware beat us by himself, not that he beat us by himself last game, but it was pretty close.  He hit some big shots.  He took it to the perimeter and made some threes and made some pullups.  He did a little bit of everything.  So, we can’t let him do that (Friday) night,” he said.

          As far as the “OCC” is concerned, Snowbarger says they aren’t even thinking about that.  “No, we might not be out of it, but honestly we aren’t talking about the league right now with the slow start.  We had that little delay with football, we had some kids nursing some injuries and then we have been shut down twice for COVID.  We are just trying to continue to get better every night.  Hopefully, we are peaking come February,” said Snowbarger.

Published 1/14/22

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Wooster Getting Better

          Wooster, coming off its first conference win, pays a visit to Madison to play the streaking Rams in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game on Friday night.

          Tuesday night, the Generals stuffed first place Lexington (49-33) in conference play.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they won the game in the face of some adversity.  “It was a great win for our kids.  We had been close in every single game.  We haven’t been making shots.  In basketball and a lot of athletics it’s contagious.  Shots are not going and unfortunately it is contagious in the wrong way right now for us.  We are shooting just over 20% from three and just over 50% from the free throw line and that is not a recipe for success in these close games that we are playing.  But, again we are right there,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “We kind of put it together (Tuesday) and we were without two starters because of COVID and some sicknesses.  So, the kids battled through it and some different kids stepped up and we got a huge win.”

          Snowbarger says they have to continue to work on their shooting and that’s what they did on Wednesday.  “That is exactly what we did (Wednesday).  We got our shooting machines out and we lined up and shot hundreds of shots each as a team.  It is one of those things, it is all about getting hot at the right time.  We have kids that can make shots, but they have to see the ball going in.  Once you get that confidence in high school kids then again it becomes contagious and everybody starts knocking down shots.  We have to continue to work at it practice,” he said.

          Wooster (2-6,1-4) plays at Madison (6-4,1-3), a winner of its last four, including a (65-56) win over Mansfield Senior last week.

          Snowbarger says Madison wants to make it a full court game.  “Madison is quite a bit different than last year.  They are getting up and they pressure in the full court.  They look to trap.  We have got to make sure we handle their pressure and try and get some easy baskets in transition.  At the other end, we can’t give them anything easy.  They are looking to get the ball to the basket and shoot some threes.  We have to contest their shots and make sure we get them off of their spots and not give them any of those stand still shots.  Overall, Madison is playing very well right now.  They are playing extremely hard.  It’s going to be a tough test over there for us,” said Snowbarger.

Published 1/06/22

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Wooster Getting There

          Wooster returns to action on Saturday night as they host Canton McKinley in a non-conference game at their place.

          Their season started last Friday with a (59-48) loss to Mansfield Senior in Ohio Cardinal Conference action.  Then on Tuesday they lost a non league game (57-50) to Dover.

          Coach Michael Snowbarger says they just have refine things.  “We played two very good teams.  Mansfield Senior the first night obviously very good and it was a one point game with three minutes to go.  They showed how good they were the next night when they beat Lima Senior.  So, overall I thought our team effort was pretty good we just didn’t make enough shots down the stretch.  We were 8 of 18 from the foul line.  If you shoot foul shots like that against a good basketball team early in the season it is going to come back to bite you,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “I thought our effort was there.  Our defensive positioning is getting there.  Again, we started a little late with the three week hiatus because of football.  Some of our legs aren’t there in the fourth quarter.  Then with Dover a different style of basketball than Senior but still very, very good.  They have two All-Ohioans back and we were up four going to the fourth quarter and lost the fourth quarter by about 10.”

          Snowbarger says he believes this team is pretty good and it just a matter of time before they show that.  “Some of that is conditioning and some of that is not playing and not having our basketball legs.  I really like where the kids are as far as their effort and mindset.  Where we are now is not necessarily that we are going to be at the end of December and January,” he said.

          Canton McKinley is one of the blue bloods in Ohio basketball.  Snowbarger says McKinley is always a big challenge.  “McKinley is always a great basketball team.  They have one of the best programs in the State of Ohio year in and year out.  They did lose a lot from last year with Kobi Johnson and Brett Walker.  Johnson is getting some valuable minutes at West Virginia.  They are always good.  It is back to like Mansfield Senior, they are extremely athletic, then we went to a little more of a control team with Dover, now we are going to go back to a more athletic style with Canton McKinley.  We have to keep them off the boards and limit their second chance buckets,” said Snowbarger.

Published 12/09/21

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Wooster Has to Keep Mansfield Senior Out of the Paint

          Wooster travels to Mansfield Senior on Friday night in Ohio Cardinal Conference action.  It is the season opener for both schools.

          The Generals are going into the game with not a lot of practice and only one scrimmage to their credit.

          However, coach Michael Snowbarger says he likes a lot of what he sees, especially on defense.  “It has definitely been an abbreviated preseason this year.  We got in one scrimmage even though it was a very good scrimmage against Brecksville, Mentor and Buchtel and played pretty well for the most part.  As with most times early in the season our shooting is probably a little behind, our offense is behind our defense.  The kids are putting in the extra time after practice, before practice and stuff like that to get it caught up.  There is no doubt that we will get there, it is just when will we get there and how soon we will get there,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Defensively, I really like how we are playing.  Just in the early season I like the unselfishness of this team.  Nobody cares about stats, nobody cares about points, they are just playing for each other, which in high school sports, that’s a good thing to be around.”

          With such a limited preseason, Snowbarger says there are a lot of question marks, but he likes the fact that he has a senior point guard in Drew Dossi.  “I don’t know what to expect.  You kind of hope, but then you start questioning yourself and questioning things.  All an all, we have a returning point guard in Drew Dossi, who has played a ton of minutes for us over the past few years.  He is going to be a four year letterman.  When you have something like that there is a comfort zone there that is nice to have as a coach when you have that four year point guard back.  That is going to help us a ton through these early games,” he said.

          As far as Mansfield Senior is concerned, Snowbarger says they know what they have to do, but getting that done can be another story.  “We have to control them on the offensive boards.  Obviously, Ware is a great athlete and great player.  He has a very good mid-range game.  We have to limit his looks and then control the rest of the team and keep them out of the paint.  Over the years when we have been able to keep Mansfield Senior out of the paint and make them work for their shots we have been pretty successful.  When they are able to get to the paint and get those second and third chances is when Mansfield Senior gets really good,” said Snowbarger.

Published 12/02/21

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Wooster Has to Contain Quarterback

          Wooster meets Uniontown Green in a regional semifinal in division II on Friday night.

          The Generals (7-5) produced their second straight playoff upset last week when they traveled to Dublin Scioto and beat the Irish (20-10) in a quarterfinal.

          Coach Austin Holter says it was a total team effort.  “I was really, really proud of our effort.  We came out of the gate fast.  We had the ball to start the game and the offense did a great job of moving it down the field and put it in the paint to give us a 7-0 lead.  Really proud of our defensive effort all night.  That was a very talented Dublin Scioto offense that they were able to hold to just 10 points.  Again, we are continuing to play good football.  We are playing our best football when it matters.  Really thought we executed very well in all three phases offense, defense, and really most importantly special teams with two big field goals to really put the game away.  We are excited to get another opportunity,” he said.

          Green (9-3) beat the second seed in the region in North Canton Hoover (14-10) last week, avenging a (17-7) regular season loss.  Their other losses are to division one powers Canton McKinley (34-14) and Massillon Jackson (21-20).

          Holter is impressed with the Bulldogs and their quarterback Trevor Van Horn.  “I’ll tell you what this is really, really talented football team.  A well coached team.  They have a senior quarterback that can do about anything.  The young man has thrown for over 2,700 yards.  He has also rushed for over 600 yards and accounted for 35 touchdowns.  He is just a tremendous football player.  They are going to spread you out and throw it around the park.  They will motion an “I” back into the backfield from time to time and run some run game.  Defensively, we are going to have to show them a variety of looks,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “We are going to have to great pressure with our front four and get in his face early and try and cause him to get the ball out early.  We are just going to have to play fundamentally, sound football and tackle him when he gets out of the pocket and tries to extend plays with his legs.  He is a big kid.  He runs the ball extremely hard and he is a hard nosed football player.”

          Holter says they are going to have to do a good job protecting their quarterback Drew Becker.  “Defensively, they are very sound.  They are very physical up front.  They have a very good defensive line.  Their secondary is very sound in their coverage techniques.  We have to execute our pass protection, we have to execute our run game.  Our playmakers on the outside are going to have to win some one on one matchups against their athletes.  At the end of the day our quarterback is going to have to make great decisions and take care of the football and put it in the paint when we get in the red zone,” said Holter.

          Against a team like Green, Holter says they have to be really good tacklers.  “This is a very talented football team and they have some great athletes on the perimeter that can take it the distance from anywhere on the field do a great job of spreading it out.  As a football team, we are going to have to tackle well.  It has been a point of emphasis for our defense all week.  So, we are certainly prepared and ready for the challenge,” he said.

Published 11/12/21

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Wooster Must Get it in

          Wooster, an upset winner in week one of the playoffs, will travel to Dublin Scioto for a division II regional quarterfinal on Friday night.

          After building a (23-7) lead, the Generals hung on to edge Olentangy Berlin (23-20) in their playoff opener.

          Coach Austin Holter says the whole team played well, especially the special teams in the win last week.  “I thought out offense executed really well aside from the one late turnover from our quarterback I thought we took care of the football really well.  Special teams wise we did a great job executing.  Most importantly we were three for three on field goals.  Drew Rader had a great night for us and those points really mattered.  The defensively, we stopped the run.  We got a big red zone turnover.  Our kids played really hard on defensive side.  I really thought we put together our best four quarters of football of the season and when it really matted, so very proud of them,” he said.

          Wooster (6-5) plays at Dublin Scioto (8-3) on Friday night.  Scioto beat Licking Heights (24-7) last week to advance.  They have won six of their last seven, their only loss during that stretch coming to unbeaten Big Walnut.  Olentangy Berlin, the team that Wooster beat last week, beat Scioto (17-7) earlier in the regular season.

          Holter says the Irish are really explosive.  “This is a really good football team.  Offensively, they are extremely explosive.  They have had quite a few big plays this season.  They have a couple of wide receivers with over 800 yards a pieces receiving and 12 plus touchdowns a piece as well.  A senior quarterback that can throw pretty much anywhere on the field.  So, defensively we are going to have to be very sound in our execution of our coverages.  We are going to have to show them a variety of looks.  They do have a senior quarterback that has played quite few downs for them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “Defensively, they are a 4-3, quarters based defense.  They like to bring some pressure at times, so offensively we are going to have to be very sound in our pass protection and identify additional pressure and blitzers.  Plus, taking care of the football.  At the end of the day offensively for us it is a focus on eliminating turnovers.  Anytime we get inside the 20 we have to put in the paint and result in points.  If we are able to do that and take care of the football and score inside the red zone and limit their big plays.”

          Although field goals were good enough last week, Holter believes Friday night they are going to have to put it in the end zone.  “The ultimate goal is to put six on the board.  It is something we continue to strive to do.  We are continuing to put in the work this week.  Our offensive coordinator, coach Espinosa, is doing a great job putting together a package that we feel confident in.  We are really hammering that home in practice on red zone scoring.  If you get down there you have to come away with six, especially when you get into the playoffs and you are playing as talented a team as you are in Dublin Scioto,” he said.

Published 11/04/21

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Wooster Meets Olentangy Berlin

          For the second year in a row, Wooster plays Olentangy Berlin in a first round playoff game in division II.  This time at Berlin on Friday night.

          Berlin upset Wooster (48-40) last season and now the Generals are looking to return the favor.

          Wooster (5-5) reached the top 16 by beating Ashland (17-7) in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game last week.

          Coach Austin Holter says they did a lot of good things, especially the defense.  “Super proud of that group and the coaches and our whole defensive unit.  They played great football all day.  I was really proud of our entire team and their resiliency.  Offensively, we couldn’t get it done in the red zone few times there.  We had some mistakes on special teams, but our defense bailed us out a few times.  Again, proud of our effort, proud of our resiliency and really excited to get the win here and start a new season here in the playoffs,” said Holter.

          Olentangy Berlin (8-2) hammered Thomas Worthington (42-7) last week.  The Bears have won five their last six, the only loss during that stretch coming to unbeaten Marysville.

          Holter says like to run the ball and they feature two quarterbacks, who both see a lot of time.  “This a well coached football.  They are really good on both sides of the football.  They are big up front on offense.  They like to run the ball and they are very good at doing so.  They play two different quarterbacks.  One of which is a young player, he is a sophomore, who can make some plays with his legs as well as his arm.  Defensively, we are going to have to utilize a variety of strategies to try and take away each of those quarterbacks and what they do well.  They continue to play physical football over there,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “Defensively for them, they like a three man front and drop eight into coverage and that kind of plays into the hand of what you have seen from our program this year.  We are still going to have to fight to establish the run and have to play very sound at the quarterback position and eliminating turnovers and moving the changes.”

          Holter says having played them last year, they know little more of what to expect in this game.  “There is no question we are going to have to play our best football.  I think this week in practice our guys have been extremely motivated.  This is an opponent we saw a year ago in the first round of the playoffs.  We lost that contest (48-40), but our kids do have some familiarity with them.  I think some confidence comes with that, they are excited, they are working hard, they are playing hard.  They understand we have to match their physicality and we have to play our best football,” said Holter.

Published 10/28/21

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Wooster Plays Athletic Ashland

          Wooster concludes the Ohio Cardinal Conference portion of their schedule at Ashland against the Arrows on Friday night.

          A win by the Generals could get them a division II playoff berth.

          They were throttled last week by Massillon (31-0) in a non-conference game.

          Coach Austin Holter says they played hard, but didn’t execute well enough.  “We started that game about a bad as you could start a football game.  You pile that on top of the fact that was were playing a very talented Massillon team and that happens.  They got out to an early lead.  We had a punt return for a touchdown on our first series there.  We had a kid actually make a heck of a play tracking it down.  He actually popped the ball out into the end zone.  It should have been a touchback, but none the less they executed very well on special teams.  Early, we had a couple of red zone turnovers.  I was really proud of our effort.  I thought our kids fought hard for four quarters.  Looking at the yardage, our defense played very well when they got us opportunities on the field.  Offensively, we just didn’t capitalize when we were in the red zone.  Obviously, you have to be very sound on special teams when you play a talented roster like Massillon,” said Holter.

          Wooster (4-5,2-2) visits Ashland (3-6,3-2) on Friday night.  Ashland fell to “OCC” leader West Holmes (28-7) last week.

          Holter says the Ashland offense and quarterback Landon McFrederick are very hard to contain.  “I thought Ashland took in a very challenging early schedule, which led them to lose a few games early, but they have been playing some really good football as of late.  This is a very athletic football team.  Their quarterback is a tremendous athlete.  He played some wide receiver for them a year ago.  Also played some quarterback as well.  Against us specifically he had about 80 yards receiving a year ago.  He has transitioned into a quarterback role for them last year as well and ended going 11 of 12 for 130 yards on us,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday morning, “This kid is a very special athlete.  He is someone we have to focus on defensively and try and contain in the pocket, contain the use of his legs and making plays with legs as well as his arm.  They have some explosive wide receivers that have great numbers this year.  They have done a great job of getting them the ball in space and they are a very fast team.  So, we have to do a great job defensively of being sound and rallying to the quarterback and tackling the ball carriers.”

          Holter says the Ashland’s defense is very good at taking away things that you want to do.  “For us offensively we have to be sound in our pass protection.  We have to try and develop the run game early.  They run a three man front and use a variety of different coverages to try and take away some of your best playmakers.  Their coaches do a terrific job in putting their players in a position to takeaway the team they are playing’s best schematics.  So, offensively we have to identify and adjust to that early.  Establish the run early to help us develop some of that downfield pass game as we get going into this contest,” said Holter.

          The Wooster coach says they definitely have something to play for.  “Obviously, this is a rivalry game.  We are going over to Ashland and last year we thought we let one slip by.  Our kids are very motivated by the fact that they get to play Ashland, a rival, on week 10.  It is our last regular season game for our seniors.  There is a lot of motivation there and pile on top of that the potential to make the playoffs.  Our kids are hungry, they love to play football.  They are continuing to get better every week and they want to continue to play.  It is a very motivated group right now.  They have been practicing their tails off,” he said.

Published 10/22/21

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Wooster Plays Tradition Rich Massillon

          Wooster plays at Massillon against one of the most historic high school football programs in the state on Friday night in non-conference play.

          It was not a good second half of the Generals last week.  Trailing by only four at the break they were shutout in the second half and lost (44-16) to Mansfield Senior in Ohio Cardinal Conference action.

          Coach Austin Holter says they didn’t execute the way you need to do to beat good teams.  “Last week, I was really proud of our guy’s effort.  Late in the first quarter and into the second quarter we fought back and played so well.  We came out flat in the second half.  At the end of the day, we had some turnovers offensively, couldn’t convert on a big fourth down, and defensively gave up some big plays.  Playing a physical, fast team like Mansfield, you have to come out and play your best football and we didn’t do so and it resulted in us taking the loss here at home on senior day.  So, certainly a disappointing day for our seniors, for our program, and definitely didn’t play our best football.  We are back to work this week trying to continue to get better and trying to make sure we put a better product out there this Friday,” said Holter.

          Wooster (4-4) at Massillon (6-2) on Friday night.  The Tigers traveled to the Buffalo are to beat Canisius (23-13) last Friday. 

          Holter says they know what they are up against in playing a school like Massillon.  “This is one of the top teams in our region.  I believe they have won four consecutive regional championships.  This is a very good, very competitive, division II, football program.  So, a great opportunity for our football program to kind of bench mark where we are at and where we inspire to go.  We are playing against a very physical and tuff football team.  They run the ball extremely successfully,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “Defensively, I think their defensive line is very talented.  They get off the football, they use their hands well.  They have great athletes in space that can cover one on one.  They are going to be a tough task for us.  For us it is going to be a matter of focusing on ourselves and getting better and putting together our best brand of football.”

          Holter says one of the keys for them is mental.  He says they have to treat this like it is any other game.  “You watch the film sometimes and you just notice teams make unwarranted mistakes whether that is a botched snap, you watch one of the games we had on film and they snapped the ball through the end zone for a safety.  Odd things like that happen.  I think some of that comes from the Massillon name.  We keep talking to our kids, listen their players are the same age that we are and they do the exact same stuff during the day that we do.  We have to come out and play football.  We have to execute our game plan that our coaches are putting together and they are doing a great job of doing so.  It is another game that we have to come out and inspire to play and focus on playing our best football,” said Holter.

Published 10/13/21

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Wooster Plays Big Play Mansfield Senior

          Wooster, the defending Ohio Cardinal Conference champion, plays host to Mansfield Senior in big game in the “OCC” on Friday night.

          They both trail West Holmes by a game in the conference standings and the loser is pretty much eliminated from the conference race.

          Wooster whipped Mt. Vernon (39-7) in a conference game last week.

          Coach Austin Holter says it was their best performance of the season.  “I thought it was our most complete game to date.  It certainly showed up in all three phases.  I am really proud of our staff and our team in all three of those phases.  In specifically trying to take away one of their big playmakers.  Jonny Askew is a dynamic athlete from Mt. Vernon.  I thought our defense did a phenomenal job of limiting his touches as did our special teams unit and really eliminating touches for that individual on special teams.  So, they did some great stuff there.  Offensively, I thought we really got it going.  We are continuing to develop our run game, which is huge here as we get into the stretch of the season.  Just proud of all three phases and the direction that we are headed,” said Holter.

          Wooster (4-2,2-1) is at home for Mansfield Senior (5-2,2-1), #5 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, on Friday night.  Senior High rallied with a late touchdown to beat Ashland (28-24) last week.

          Brock Hill threw the game winning pass to Elias Owens.  Holter says Hill is a difference maker.  “This is a physical football team.  They have some terrific athletes.  I think their quarterback is playing really good football right now.  He is a duel threat player.  He can make plays with his legs as well as his arm.  On defense this week, they do some things formationally that we have to be sound in our alinement.  We have to contain their quarterback,” he told Swankonports.com on Wednesday, “We have to show him a variety of looks and keep him off balance.  He is a veteran football player with some experience and he is playing some pretty good football right now.  As a defensive unit, we are going to have to fly to the football, we are going to have to tackle well and we are going to have to be disciplined in our assignments.”

          Holter says Mansfield Senior will bring some pressure and force them to make good decisions.  “Defensively, this is a fast and physical unit.  They are going to show you a variety of looks and pressures.  They play with confidence.  As an offensive unit, we have to continue to grow, continue to develop in being sound up front in our pass protection, being sound in our schemes run game wise and at the quarterback position we have to execute and eliminate turnovers.  If we do that, we will put ourselves in a good situation to compete,” he said.

          Mansfield Senior’s defense has put the ball in the end zone a number of times this season and Holter says that they must eliminate turnovers.  “You watch them on film and they have quite a few plays where they are turning these plays into points immediately with their defense.  A credit to their players and their staff and what they are doing schematically.  On top of that they just have some explosive players and playmakers over there.  It has been a point of emphasis for our offense this week we have to continue to eliminate the turnovers.  I thought we have continued to grow in that area the last couple of weeks.  So, have been very proud of our quarterback play there,” said Holter.

Published 10/07/21

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Wooster Needs to Continue to Grow

          Wooster is now in a must win situation after losing last week to West Holmes and Friday night they host Mt. Vernon in an Ohio Cardinal Conference game.

          They lost (41-37) to West Holmes last week when the Knights scored with less than :30 on the clock.  The loss dropped the Generals a game behind West Holmes and Ashland.

          Coach Austin Holter says West Holmes made the plays when it counted the most.  “It was a highly contested football game for four quarters and there at the end they were able to make a few more plays than we did.  Certainly, a tough loss for us and our program, but it gives the opportunity to kind of rally our troops and see what we are made of here and respond to a very emotional and tough loss for us.  Now, coming back home this week and playing Mt. Vernon for our homecoming, so we have a lot to play for and a lot of energy and the kids have been preparing well,” said Holter.

          Wooster (3-3,1-1) is at home for Mt. Vernon (1-5,0-2) on Friday night.  The Yellow Jackets lost last week (53-21) to Watkins Memorial in a non-conference game.

          Holter says they can’t look behind, they must look ahead.  “We have talked to our guys about that.  There were some things on Friday that I thought we did really well.  It may not show up on the scoreboard and it certainly didn’t show up in the win column, but we are a program that is continuing to get better.  So, we are going to continue to build on that.  We have to mentally put hat game behind us and focus on the task at hand and that’s the Yellow Jackets.  They are going to present a challenge to us on Friday night and we are going to be ready,” he said.

          Holter says Mt. Vernon has a tremendous player in Jonny Askew that they must contain.  “They have an extremely dynamic young man that plays just about everywhere for them.  He plays at wide receiver, he plays at running back, he is their kick returner, punt returner.  I have seen him take it to the house a couple of times on kick returns for them.  He is a young man we have to keep our eye on.  We have to rally to him from a defensive perspective and tackle him,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “From an offensive perspective we have to find ways to grow and build our run game.  We showed some really nice signs last week of that.  Our staff is working extremely hard at it.”

Published 9/30/21

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Wooster Defense Will be Challenged

          Wooster will be at West Holmes Friday night in a game that is going to have an impact on the Ohio Cardinal Conference race.

          Neither team has lost an “OCC” game this year.  The winner takes an upper hand in the conference standings.

          Last week, the Generals (3-2,1-0) scored 24 points in the second quarter and hammered Lexington (38-14) in a conference game.

          Coach Austin Holter says they showed last week what this team is capable of.  “I was really happy with the way our kids played there in the second quarter.  I think we showed flashes of what this team’s potential is.  Defense had a couple of nice stops, the offense was able to move the ball and we took care of things on special teams.  So, for us we are very excited about that.  Having said that we know and recognize that we have to put together four quarters.  Playing this week against a very talented West Holmes team that is what we are going to have to do.  So, we have been preparing this week to do so and I think so far, we have had our best week of prep,” said Holter.

          West Holmes (5-0,2-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, whipped Madison (40-7) last week.  The average 38 points a game and give up 14.

          Holter says they do a lot of things on offense they must contain to keep them form lighting up the scoreboard.  “West Holmes is a very dynamic football team really on both sides.  Their defense is playing about as well as anybody right now.  Offensively, they are very explosive in both phases there.  They have a quarterback that can throw all over the place.  He has some very talented wideouts outside.  They mix in a couple of running backs that are extremely talented,” he told Swankonsports.com Wednesday morning, “For us, again, it comes down to playing fundamentally sound football, tackling the ballcarriers, being disciplined, and taking care of our 1/11^th on defense.  Our defensive coordinator has been doing an outstanding job with that group this week.  We will come into that game Friday night ready to roll.”

          Knights quarterback Noah Clark leads the “OCC” in passing yards and TD’s.  Holter says he is going to be hard to slow down, he’s that good.  “Noah is a terrific football player, just a terrific athlete, he can make plays and extend plays with his legs.  He is very accurate as a quarterback.  We are certainly going to have to contain that young man and try and show him a variety of looks.  Really just play fundamentally sound and focus on containing that individual and taking care of the football,” he said.

Published 9/23/21

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Wooster Has to Win up Front

          Wooster plays its first Ohio Cardinal Conference game on the field on Friday night as they host the Lexington Minutemen at their place.

          They were supposed to play Madison in an “OCC” game last week, but the Rams were in quarantine.

          Wooster (2-2) lost a non-conference last week (42-10) to Akron St. Vincent/St. Mary.

          Coach Austin Holter says they turned it over too much and couldn’t stop the Irish from running the ball.  “It was a tough fought game.  St. V. is a very powerful football team.  They ran the ball successfully.  Had a couple of dynamic athletes on the outside that mad some big plays.  For us, it was about stopping the run.  Offensively, I thought we put together some nice drives, but did have a couple of turnovers there in the red zone.  So, really that score is not indictive of the way our kids fought,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday morning, “Having said that, football is a four quarter game and you have to protect the football and eliminate turnovers offensively and you have to stop the run defensively and we didn’t do either one of those things very successfully on Friday and it resulted in a loss.  That is a focus for us going into this week as we prepare for a conference play and a very tough Lexington football team.”

          St. Vincent/St. Mary ran for 384 yards last week and the Generals had four turnovers.

          Lexington (2-2,1-0) drilled Mt. Vernon (40-14) last week in their conference opener.

          Holter says Lexington is physical, features the run, and gets good play from quarterback Cole Pauley.  “They have some good football players.  Really impressed with their quarterback and his ability to manage the game.  I think he throws the ball exceptionally well. They have a couple of kids outside that catch it very well.  I think they are physical up front.  I like their running back, he runs hard and is fast.  He is willing to continue to pound the rock.  Again, for us defensively, it is about stopping the run and that is certainly going to be our focus.  Offensively, we are going to have to continue to work on honing our system and at the end of the day, we are going to have to really enhance our ability to score in the red zone.  If we can do that, I think we can put ourselves in a good situation,” said Holter.

          Holter says they have to be the more physical team if they are going to win on Friday night.  “Football is a physical game and you have to win in the trenches and our kids continue to hear that.  We have got to match physicality and we have got to win in the trenches.  So, that has been a big emphasis for us in practice and will continue to be so.  Just being physical, playing hard in every down whether it is in practice or a game.  We are practicing hard and with very physical intentions.  Our kids will continue to grow in that area,” he said.