Lake County Sentinel
Hilltoppers outlast rival Beavers 25-14
JOEY SCHNEIDER
STAFF
(PAINESVILLE TOWNSHIP, OH) - The rivalry between the Riverside Beavers and the Chardon Hilltoppers was in full swing Friday night as the Beavers hosted the Hilltoppers in a match up with big time playoff implications at Riverside Stadium. If Riverside had clinched a playoff berth already as has Chardon, but if the Beavers could find a way to upset a very tough 6-2 Chardon team it could mean a top eight seed and a home playoff game in the first round of Division II, Region 5. If Chardon could hold off Riverside, they could be a top four seed in Division III, Region 9.
The energy in the stadium before kickoff was electric as it was nearly a sellout. Both sides of the stadium roaring for their team. Two teams that you could feel the intensity. Two communities really showing up to show support, and two student sections, loud and boisterous all night long.
Chardon dominated the first quarter. They scored on a 43-yard touchdown run only for it to be negated by a personal foul early in the quarter. The Beavers then stopped the Hilltoppers’s on downs. Riverside would only get to run three plays before having to punt again. Those were the only offensive plays the Beavers would run in the first quarter. At the end of the first quarter the score remained at zeros, but Chardon had run 19 plays to Riverside's three.
Finally in the second quarter Riverside broke the seal on the scoreboard as their sensational junior running back Kyndall McCaleb ran right up the middle at their own nine-yard line and took it 91-yards for the first touchdown of the game.
Chardon answered back on the very next drive as their workhorse senior running back/defensive back Caleb Hewitt took the ball around the right end and ran 43-yards to tie up the game. Chardon would add to their lead with 3:06 left in the half as senior running back Vinny Colombi would finish off a drive from five yards out with a rumbling touchdown up the middle. The two-point conversion was attempt was good and Chardon took a 15-7 lead in the locker rooms at halftime.
Riverside received the ball to start the second half. On the first play of the third quarter, the Beavers were looking for a long pass to the right side, but Chardon's Caleb Hewitt knew it was coming and came down with a big interception. The Hilltoppers took their time with the drive and Hewitt would again be the one to cap it off with an eight-yard touchdown run. Chardon led 22-7 halfway through the quarter.
The defenses for both teams again, would step up not allowing either team to score until Chardon widened their lead on a 22-yard field by senior kicker Sam Sacerich with six minutes left in the game.
Riverside had no quit in them though as they were able to put together a fast drive that saw senior wide receiver Donovan Caldwell take a hand off 27-yards for a touchdown with 4:04 left. Chardon would get the ball and never give it back. As on a fourth a six with just under two minutes left Caleb Hewitt would take it on an end around and get the first down ending the game, with Chardon holding on for the win 25-14.
After the game Chardon head coach Mitch Hewitt was asked about the intensity during the game and if was something he talked to his team about. "It's a rivalry game. Everyone talks about it. We're ten minutes apart, it's what high school football special. The last time we were on this field their fans stormed it because they ended our win streak, so it's the beauty of rooting for your sixteen-year-old neighbor in a cross town rivalry game."
Caleb Hewitt was asked about his contributions to the game, especially being given the ball when the Hilltoppers needed a first down or a big play. "I've been a three-year starter here, and it's the offensive line and the guys blocking around me. I trust them every single time. I've been in this program since I was tiny, and I believe in everyone around me. I believe in the coaching staff, I believe in my guys blocking, and I just put my trust in my legs."
Caleb Hewitt would finish the game with 24 carries for 167 yards and two touchdowns.
Riverside's junior running back Kyndall McCaleb who just had an official visit with the University of Pittsburgh had seven carries for 100 yards and one touchdown.
We will have to wait to see what official seeds both teams will end up with and who they will play until Saturday night.
POSTED 10/26/2024 00:45
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Photo by Joey Schneider
