Streaks hold on
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Mike Popovich, Canton Repository
LAKE TWP. - Lake head coach Jeff Durbin gathers his seniors for a picture in front of the
scoreboard after the biggest home win each season.
When you consider what the Blue Streaks have gone through in recent weeks, you
understand why Durbin and the players chose to take a group shot Friday.
Lake held off Hoover, 21-19, in a down-to-the-wire high school football game at Blue Streak
Stadium. The win stopped a three-game-losing streak, all in the Federal League.
How the Blue Streaks lost made the streak more agonizing. McKinley scored with
20.2 seconds left to beat them. Last week, Jackson’s game-winning 69-yard touchdown
run came on a play that began with just 1.1 seconds left.
“We’ve had a tough three weeks,” Durbin said.
“We knew we were a good football team, but we were still 2-3. We needed this one tonight
against a good football team.
“I was proud of the way our kids played. I was proud of the way they
responded. When Hoover made plays, we didn’t shut down ... We kept
coming.”
When the Vikings jumped to an early lead, Lake quarterback T.J. Viscuso
helped lead his team on an 85-yard scoring drive that cut Hoover’s lead
to a point.
When Hoover freshman Erik Howard cut Lake’s lead to a point with a
69-yard TD run midway through the third quarter, Viscuso and his
teammates responded with another 85-yard scoring drive.
And when Hoover’s Kevin Dahl scored from a yard out with 36.7 seconds
left to cut Lake’s lead to 21-19, the Blue Streaks defense prevented
overtime. Pressure on Vikings quarterback Jared Wackerly forced an
incompletion on the 2-point conversion pass.
“We made a play when it counted there,” Durbin said.
Last week’s gut-wrenching loss at Jackson is a distant memory.
The Streaks now have legitimate playoff hopes.
“We knew it was a big week,” Viscuso said. “All week, we talked about
how we had to overcome.
“We knew this was a big win to get us into playoff position. It was a good win.”
Wackerly put the Vikings (4-2, 1-2) in position to tie the game in the final two
minutes. He completed 4-of-5 passes for 53 yards on a drive that started at
the Hoover 23.
A big play by Lake’s defense was all that stood between the Vikings and overtime.
“Their good guys played better than our good guys most of the night,” Hoover head coach Don Hertler said. “Give them credit. They deserved to win.”
Josh McCutcheon rushed for a game-high 123 yards on 23 carries and a TD for the Blue Streaks (3-3, 1-3). Viscuso also played a key role. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound junior scored on a 27-yard run, ran 20 yards to set up McCutcheon’s touchdown and reached the end zone again from a yard out early in the fourth quarter.
Wackerly threw for 152 yards with one interception. Matt Wakulchik caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Wackerly and finished with eight catches for 104 yards.
Game Note: Coach Hertler won't make any excuses for yesterday's loss to Uniontown Lake. However, it's worth mentioning that Hoover was without 8 starters. Seven of which play both ways. Do the math. Hoover almost pulled this game out playing without 15 starters. Congrats to those starters who were on the field for their leadership and those reserve players who stepped up to take on the challenge. One of those players was freshman Erick Howard who played in his first varsity game.
Box Score
Lake 21, North Canton 19
at Lake Blue Streak Stadium
Hoover 0 7 6 6 — 19
Lake 0 6 8 7 — 21
H—Wakulchik 7 pass from Wackerly (Wakulchik kick)
L—Viscuso 27 run (kick failed)
L—McCutcheon 2 run (Rutan pass from Viscuso)
H—Howard 67 run (kick failed)
L—Viscuso 1 run (Allison kick)
H—Dahl 1 run (pass failed)
Game Stats
Rushing: Hoover 28-154, Lake 49-274
Passing: Hoover 15-29-152-1, Lake 6-12-51-0
First downs: Hoover 16, Lake 16
Fumbles-lost: Hoover 1-0, Lake 1-0
Records Hoover 4-2 1-2; Lake 3-3, 1-3
NETWORK
Hoover Vikings Football
Hoover Vikings Football
Uniontown Lake Game Review
Hoover High School junior running back Kevin Dahl plows forward for some tough yards against Lake last week. Photo by Derek Quinn
Hoover High School freshman running back Erick Howard shows glimpses of being something special as it often took two or more Lake defenders to bring him to the ground. Photo by Derek Quinn
