Southwood Finishes TRC Sweep At Valley
AKRON — Playing for a chance to take a piece of the Three Rivers Conference title as well as a reprisal for last season’s 21-20 championship loss, Tippecanoe Valley gave Southwood its best shot at home in Akron Friday night.
But the ball didn’t quite bounce the Vikings’ way — sometimes literally — and the Knights’ defense was just a little bit better in a 21-7 Southwood decision. The visitors thus capped off a perfect, 9-0 regular season and 8-0 TRC run for a repeat conference title.
“We played well. We got their best shot,” said Southwood head coach Dave Snyder. “They were pretty physical. We never really did run the ball real well tonight and we didn’t pass real consistent, but we played some pretty good defense.”
The two teams finished pretty evenly in the stat lines — Valley tallied 255 total offensive yards to Southwood’s 288, including 128 passing yards to the Knight’s 177; 12 first downs to the visitors’ 11 and racked up 24:21 in time of possession compared to Southwood’s 23:39. Both teams struggled with a serious case of fumbleitis — Southwood finished with four fumbles and Valley dropped the ball three times, but the Knights recovered all but one of their fumbles, while the Vikings coughed up two. Valley quarterback Tanner Trippiedi also threw four interceptions in the loss, two of them coming late with the Vikings forced to throw to make up ground trailing by two touchdowns.
“They have a very, very good defense. It’s no joke,” said Valley coach Steve Moriarty. “All three levels of their defense — their secondary, their linebackers and their defensive line are all very quick, and they’re very aggressive. They’re a good team, they’ll go a long way, and I hope definitely for the best for them. Any time the TRC teams go out in the sectional, compete against the rest of the teams in the state, we’re always a fan of each other. And with their defense, they’ll do very well.”
After trading field position over the first quarter, Southwood struck first at the 11:10 mark of the second period on a 70-yard catch-and-carry by Dawson Filip on a deep Alex Farr pass.
The Knights remained in the lead until the final frame, when Trippiedi returned the favor with a 24-yard TD completion to Jalen Potter in the corner of the end zone to knot the score at 7-7 with 11:11 to play. It was Southwood’s special teams that struck next when sophomore lineman Dillion Filip blocked a Trippiedi punt deep in Valley territory, then dove on the loose ball in the end zone for a quick score with 6:29 remaining, giving his team a tenuous, 14-7 advantage.
“The punt block from Dill Fil, so fitting because I’ll tell you what, that kid, nobody plays harder than he does, and for him to make a play being on the line it’s got to be something like that,” said Snyder.
It didn’t take long for things to go from bad to worse for the Vikings, who lost a fumble on first and 10 at their own 21 on their very next possession, then watched while Tristin Hayslett broke free for a 28-yard touchdown run up the Southwood sideline to push the Knights out to a 21-7 lead with Jackson Simons’ third successful point-after kick at the 5:59 stop of the clock. The home team went backwards with a pair of personal foul penalties on its next offensive series, and, facing second and 24, Trippiedi’s pass to Jalen Potter was picked off by Carson Rich. Valley’s defense held Southwood to three and out on the ensuing possession, but Trippiedi tossed another interception — this time facing third and 15 with just 2:08 to play — to Mason Yentes for the backbreaker. The Knights collected a first down, then ran down the clock for the undisputed TRC title.
“Our defense didn’t seem to be the issue, and it’s hard to get something going against a very good defense. And then once you’re down and you’re in a position where they know you’re passing, then you’re in a bad situation,” explained Moriarty.
“I told them after the game, our effort was there, it’s just bad breaks sometimes. One deep ball, the big plays that they get, the blocked punt, the touchdown bomb over the corner. Good coverage. We were going for the pick. It kind of reminds me of the CMA game — trying to go for the pick, just missed it, and they bottled it and scored. I think some of those opportunities, they capitalized on, and we didn’t.”
“We didn’t want to share this thing,” Snyder said. “Maconaquah is saying stuff about ‘Well, I wish we had another shot at them.’ Well, guess what? Come next August you do, but you don’t get one here. And if we lose this thing, not only do they get a part of it, but we bring Maconaquah back in it. I was like ‘Dudes, let’s just take this thing home ourselves.’”
Hayslitt finished with a game-high 63 rushing yards for Southwood, while Simons ran for 32 yards for the Knights. Gabe Lloyd caught two passes worth 46 yards behind Dawson Filip’s 70-yard TD reception, and Simons reeled in three catches for 42 yards as Farr finished 12-20-1 for 177 yards and a score.
Trippiedi went 8-20-2 through the air with 128 yards and a touchdown completion. He also rushed for 40 yards on 10 carries, while Dakota Gaff ran for 33 yards on eight rushes, and Jaydin Conley finished with 30 yards in 11 rushes.
Southwood closed the regular season at 9-0 and will play at Churubusco next week. Valley finishes the regular season at 6-3 and 6-2 in the TRC behind Southwood and 7-1 Maconaquah. The Vikings will open 3A Sectional 26 play at South Bend Washington next Friday.
“We just can’t let this set in and hurt us for the rest of the season. I think we have a very good opportunity and a good draw in the sectional to make a little bit of a run, and I think the kids want it,” Moriarty said. “They’re just as disappointed as us coaches. You could see it in their faces. They gave everything that they had. And I think that shows the coaches that them being so upset and them working so hard, that’s good. That’s where we want to get to, where it’s not comfortable; we don’t like losing. And we’re a good football team. This is a good group of players, and we’ll be ready come South Bend Washington.”