Check out the photos at the bottom of this story.
By Levi Klingler
After a flash of lightning led officials to eventually postpone Friday night's game at War Memorial Stadium to Saturday night, the Ada Bulldogs pulled off another conference win over the Columbus Grove Bulldogs in a two-night spectacular, 55-21. Ada's record now stands at 3-0 (2-0 NWC) with Grove's loss putting them at 2-1 (1-1 NWC).
Following a slew of turnovers at the onset of the game, junior defensive end Hunter Waller of Ada was first to score on a 41-yard interception with 5:22 to go in the first quarter. Waller would make the PAT following his defensive score, putting Ada ahead 7-0.
During Grove's offensive possession following Ada's first touchdown, senior linebacker Jacob Ansley forced a fumble that would be recovered by defensive end Austin Dumbaugh. On the next play, Ansley brought down a pass from quarterback Mason Acheson and carried the ball 46 yards to Grove's 1 yard line. Senior running back Kellen Decker ran for the yard needed and scored on the subsequent play. After Waller's successful extra point, Ada led 14-0 with 2:45 left in the first.
Ada stopped Grove three-and-out on their next possession, forcing them to punt. The punt would not be returned, however, as it bounced off of return man Decker's cleat and into the hands of a Grove head-hunter. Ada's unwavering defense came back on the field with a vengeance, with defensive lineman Saed Al-Olimat forcing another fumble two plays later that would be recovered by sophomore linebacker Luke Long.
Back on offense, Acheson would be the next to score on a 24-yard scramble down the middle of the field on the tenth play of the drive. Waller added the extra point, putting the hosts ahead 21-0 with 9:00 to go in the half.
After shutting down Grove on offense in three short plays, Ada would score again on a pass from Acheson to senior receiver Micah Roberson over the middle for a 59-yard touchdown. Waller's extra point made it 28-0, Ada, with 6:42 remaining in the second quarter.
Grove then took to the air, choosing to pass the ball out of the spread instead of continuing with the familiar running attack against Ada's defense. They would find success, as two complete passes and one run later put them in the end zone. Finally, after nine (nearly ten) consecutive quarters had passed since the commencement of the season, an opposing team had scored on Ada. Grove's extra point unit took the field, ready to attempt a PAT.
And then the lightning came.
After more than an hour of debate, the officials saw that the lightning and the bad weather that it had brought with it would not be letting up anytime soon, and chose to postpone the game until the following evening at 7:30 pm. Grove's extra point would have to wait until the next day, along with the remaining five minutes of the first half.
The next evening, Grove started off round two by making their PAT, making the score 28-7. Following two turnovers, Ada receiver Matt Wilcox made a fantastic one-handed catch in the end zone diving for a pass thrown by Acheson, putting up another six for the hosts. Waller's PAT was good, which put Ada ahead 35-7. Long of Ada intercepted a pass in the red zone to end the half.
Grove started out the second half with the ball on offense, and after a 14-play drive full of alternating pass and run plays, they would score again on a quarterback keeper. The PAT was good, making it 35-14 with 8:02 left in the third.
Ada responded immediately on the second play of their next drive on a screen pass to Decker that went 64 yards down the sideline for a touchdown. Waller's PAT made it 42-14, Ada.
Four turnovers later, Grove would score again with 10:05 to go in the fourth quarter, putting the score at 42-21. Ada scored six plays later off a run by Decker from the 1-yard line, making it 49-21 after Waller's extra point with 8:01 left to play.
Another three-and-out stop by the hosts forced Grove to punt. The final score of the night came off a 23-yard pass from Acheson to Roberson, who dove and snatched the ball inches before it hit the ground with a catch that was nothing short of incredible. Waller's last extra point attempt was not successful, however, leaving the score at 55-21 with 6:40 to go in the game.
Senior defensive back Brenden Szippl of Ada recovered a fumble on Grove's last offensive possession with 4:15 left in the quarter. From there, Ada ran the clock out.
Acheson completed 12 of 20 passes for 297 yards and threw for 4 touchdowns, also scoring on a run. Decker racked up 132 yards on 20 carries, scoring twice on the ground and once off a catch. Roberson caught 4 passes for 104 yards, scoring twice.
Ada faces the Upper Scioto Valley Rams next Friday, Sept. 14, in a non-conference game hosted at Upper Scioto Valley High School. The Rams are 0-3.
Photos by Todd Klingler
