FOOTBALL | West Holmes plays it cool to beat Rocky River, advance to regional final

LODI — West Holmes coach Zach Gardner turned to an old Adam Sandler movie to describe the way his Knights were able to overcome adversity this week in posting a 51-28 thumping on the Rocky River Pirates.

"Modifying a quote from the movie Billy Madison, if successfully dealing with adversity is cool, consider the West Holmes Knights Miles Davis,'" Gardner said.

Having to throw backup quarterback Mason Wolfe into the fire to make his first varsity start in place of injured Noah Clark in the Division III Region 10 playoff semifinal, all the junior did was complete 16 of 21 passes for 355 yards and four touchdowns, most of that coming in the first half when the Knights opened up a 34-14 lead at the break. He also ran for a 21-yard score to complete his huge game.

"Our kids are the best kids. They are so humble. They're so gracious," Gardner said. "What this was tonight was a program victory. These kids exhibit the core tenants of our program. They are not in it for individual glory, but for the entire group. I couldn't be more proud of them."

Wolfe deferred praise to his offensive line for giving him time to throw, his outstanding receiving corps and his teammates for having faith in him to lead the team.

"Noah helped me out throughout the week," Wolfe said. "We were communicating a lot on the sidelines, and that really helped me out. Our receivers and running backs are very special, some of the best in the state. And the line was amazing."

On the opening drive of the game, Wolfe made it look easy, as he turned and handed off to workhorse running back Sam Williams-Dixon, who carried the first five plays, picking up chunks of yardage from the West Holmes 25 to the Rocky River 44.

Then Wolfe flipped a screen pass to Tucker Kaufman for 42 yards to the Rocky River two, from where Williams-Dixon carried it home. Nick Ginsburg's first of six conversion kicks gave the Knights a 7-0 lead at 9:58 of the opening frame.

The Pirates answered by unleashing their own stud, senior running back Tommy Biebe, who carried four times for 64 yards on the opening drive, capping it off with a 37-yard touchdown run, to even the score at 7-7 at 6:56 of the opening frame after Mack Massad's conversion.

The Knights responded with a six-play, 53-yard drive, the final 23 coming on a Wolfe pass to Bret Shearer, who carried several Pirate defenders the final few yards into the end zone to give West Holmes a 14-7 advantage with 4:23 remaining in the first quarter.

Rocky River battled right back, getting a big 50-yard pass play from quarterback Braedon Spies to Massad, who won a wrestling match with a West Holmes defender to come up with the catch at the Knights' 39.

Runs by Spies and Biebe moved the ball to a first and goal at the West Holmes 10, but Spies was separated from the ball and West Holmes recovered at their own two-yard line as the first period came to an end with the Knights up 14-7.

The Pirates defense stiffened and forced a West Holmes punt, but Gardner called for a fake punt and Ginsburg ran untouched for 10 yards to pick up a first down.

"We trust what we see. We got the look that we wanted, and our kids went out and executed," Gardner said about calling the fake punt out of his own end zone. "It's all on the kids for going out and making the play."

A negative pass play and a sack pushed West Holmes back, and on third-and-23 from their own five, Wolfe hit Williams-Dixon on a short pas and the sensational sophomore did the rest, busting loose down the sideline for a 95-yard score and a 21-7 lead with 9:10 remaining in the first half.

The Pirates were forced to punt, but Wolfe was hit as he tried to avoid the rush and the ball was knocked loose and Rocky River recovered at the West Holmes 18.

Junior defensive back Owen Jeffries rescued the Knights by intercepting a Spies pass at the West Holmes 10.

Five plays later, Wolfe again hooked up with Williams-Dixon who was streaking down the center of the field for a 75-yard scoring strike. The PAT was blocked and West Holmes led 27-7 with 3:44 remaining in the first half.

"We balled out tonight," Williams-Dixon said. "All week long, I was telling myself I've got to play with fire, and keep going and do my best for our team."

Williams-Dixon finished the night with six catches for 178 yards and two scores. He also rushed for 51 yards on 17 totes and a score. He now has 1,346 rushing yards, 883 receiving yards and 33 total touchdowns this season.

Rocky River responded with a six-play, 69 yard drive, with Biebe going the final nine for six to trim the West Holmes lead to 27-14 with 1:29 remaining in the half.

Kaufman returned the ensuing kick to midfield, but the Knights were forced to punt, giving Rocky River the ball with 36 seconds to play in the half.

After a Biebe run netted two yards, Spies tried to catch West Holmes napping, but Williams-Dixon intercepted the long pass and returned it 55 yards, and an unsportsmanlike penalty on the Pirates gave the Knights a first and goal at the Pirates 2 with 6.5 seconds to play in the half.

That was enough time for Wolfe to find Garrett Eastep in the back of the end zone for a two-yard scoring strike and a 34-14 halftime lead.

Rocky River opened the second half marching right down the field, but Spies was picked off again at the West Holmes two when Eastep stepped in front of an aerial intended for Patrick Lange,

Instead of blocking for Williams-Dixon, this time Shearer became the featured back, lugging it six times and catching two passes, as the Knights marched 98 yards to pay dirt in 11 plays, the junior back pounding it into the end zone from a yard out to cap off the drive, giving West Holmes a 41-14 lead.

Shearer finished the night with four catches for 55 yards and a score, and nine rushes for 47 more yards and a touchdown, as West Holmes displayed an impressive offensive arsenal.

"They were a very good team that executed very well," Wake Forest-bound Biebe said after the game. "Their offense was hard to stop. They flowed to the ball well on defense, and they just did everything better than we did. They were tougher than us tonight. We made a lot of mistakes that really put us in a hole."

Biebe's younger brother John, a junior running back, rumbled 18 yards to cap off a 10-play, 79-yard drive to pull Rocky River back to within 20, 41-21 as the third quarter came to an end.

The Knights recovered an onside kick attempt, setting up shop at midfield. A couple of runs by Shearer, and a pass to Eastep had West Holmes knocking on the door again. This time Wolfe scrambled in from 21 yards out to give the Knights a 48-21 lead with 7:21 to play.

After a Rocky River punt, GInsburg capped the scoring for West Holmes with a 25-yard field goal.

Tommy Biebe ran for a 57-yard score in the final seconds of the game. He finished with 176 yards on 19 carries and three touchdowns. Spies hit 7 of 14 passes for 82 yards and three interceptions.

Gardner pointed out how West Holmes has thrived on the defense, coming up big and making plays when needed all season long.

"That's been our MO all year — we'll bend on defense, but then we'll make big plays," he said. "In a playoff football game, you have to make big plays, and our defense went out there and forced turnovers.

"And Mason Wolfe executed the game plan to perfection, putting throws right on the money," Gardner added. "He's a special kid. I don't think we'll lose a beat going forward into next year."

For now, West Holmes is focused on next week, when the 13-0 Knights face 7-5 Holy Name for a chance to win their first regional title in program history.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Football: West Holmes beats Rocky River 51-28 to advance