Lehman Catholic’s Evan O’Leary is tackled by Miami East’s Lincoln Littlejohn during a Three Rivers Conference game on Thursday at Sidney Memorial Stadium.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
SIDNEY — The Lehman Catholic Cavaliers knocked off Miami East 45-35 in a Three Rivers Conference shootout on Thursday at Sidney Memorial Stadium for their fourth consecutive victory.
“Our defense played almost lights out in the first half,” Lehman head coach Dwayne Rowley said. “Two big plays in the first half really hurt us, but they rallied together at halftime, cleaned up a few things and really leaned on them.”
Miami East took an early lead as it cut through the Cavaliers’ (4-1, 2-0) defense in the game’s first drive, culminating in a touchdown on a quarterback run for the Vikings.
Lehman was able to make quick work of the Miami East (3-2, 0-2) defense, notching a 65-yard touchdown reception from Turner Lachey to Evan O’Leary to tie the game up 7-7 with nine minutes to play in the first quarter.
The Cavaliers kept momentum on their side after scoring. They recovered a Vikings fumble on the kickoff and took back possession in Miami East territory.
Lehman was able to capitalize on a wild play. Lachey scrambled to his right, threw across the field, and the pass was tipped right into the hands of CJ Olding who waltzed in for an easy touchdown.
After a second successful PAT, the Cavaliers led 14-7 at the halfway point in the first quarter.
Lehman was able to stifle the Vikings offense and get the ball back after two sacks before Lachey connected with O’Leary for a 62-yard touchdown.
Another PAT gave the Cavaliers a 21-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Miami East got back on the board early in the second with a long touchdown pass and subsequent PAT to cut the lead to 21-14.
Lehman wasted little time getting its lead back to two possessions on Olding’s second touchdown of the game with 6:35 left in the half.
The Cavaliers stayed strong on defense as well as on offense as they held the Vikings to minimal yardage, got the ball back, and got Da’Ron Pride his first touchdown of the game on a short run to extend the lead to 35-14 late in the first half.
With just 12 seconds left in the half, Miami East scored a 96-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 14 points.
At halftime, Lehman held a 35-21 lead.
To start the second half, the Cavaliers received the kickoff but fumbled in a play reminiscent of the Vikings’ fumble in the first quarter. This gave Miami East the ball in Lehman territory to start the half.
“The key for us this year was handling adversity and overcoming it,” Rowley said. “We were dealt some adversity all throughout this game, but we handled it and overcame it. This win says a lot about how far the kids have actually come from day one.”
The Cavaliers’ defense prevented the Vikings from moving the chains.
It looked as if Lehman was going to have to punt on its first drive of the second half, but on another wild play where Lachey muffed the snap in an attempted punt, he turned up-field and put the Cavaliers in the redzone.
Lehman was able to capitalize on the fortunate fourth down play, scoring on a short touchdown run from Lachey with 8:20 on the clock in the third quarter to extend the lead to 42-21.
Miami East responded with 5:30 left in the third on a short touchdown run within the Cavaliers’ five-yard line to make it a 42-28 game after the PAT.
Lehman gave up another touchdown late in the third on a short pass, making it a one-possession game to start the fourth quarter.
Lachey took a sack in the redzone to force a fourth down with five minutes to go in the game, but kicker Daniel Carlisle nailed a career-long, 30-yard field goal to take a 10-point lead on the play.
The Cavaliers’ defense came up with a big turnover on downs with 3:47 to play in the game, starting the Lehman drive in Vikings territory.
The two teams traded interceptions in the last two minutes of the game, but the Cavaliers got the last laugh, running out the clock and securing their fourth straight victory 45-35.
“Anyone can beat any given team,” Rowley said. “Looking at Bethel, we know they can be dangerous with some of their players. We just have to play the game of football.”
Next week, Lehman will take on TRC rival Bethel at Sidney Memorial Stadium at 7 p.m.
Reach assistant editor and sports writer Ryan Harless at 937-538-4651 or follow @RyanHarless_ on Twitter.
