Comets defeat Withrow Tigers 55-0 at home opener
Bryan Hudnell | Staff Writer
Coming off a victory in their season opener at Springboro, the Mason Comets carried their momentum into their home opener and crushed the Withrow Tigers 55-0 at Dwire Field Friday night.
After a 30 minute lightning delay before kickoff, the Comets wasted no time putting points on the board as senior running back Matt Sora scored on a six yard touchdown run. Senior quarterback Will Adams also scored on a 15-yard read option run but the extra point was no good when Adams mishandled the snap. Sora then closed the quarter out with another touchdown run, giving the Comets a 20-0 lead.
To start the second quarter, senior defensive back Terrell Mizell intercepted Withrow quarterback Dajon Walker’s pass and returned it 16 yards for a touchdown, giving the Comets a commanding 27-0 lead. The Comets defense forced six total turnovers and only allowed one first down in the first half. Head coach Brian Castner was pleased how his defense performed.
“Right now, defense is doing their job,” Castner said. “They’re doing a good job of making sure they’re doing what they’re supposed to do from position to position. They continue to listen to Coach Faulk and all of the coaches and if we follow that, we’ll continue to play good defense. We’re also tackling well. Great defenses tackle well and I thought we did a great job tonight.”
With the four possession lead in place, senior quarterback Jake Harris checked into the ballgame and connected to senior wide receiver Austin Croy for his first touchdown catch on the young season and extended the lead to 34-0. The Comets went into the halftime break with an impressive 48-0 lead.
With the starters resting in the second half, rotational players like junior running back Logan Dalton and senior running back Conner Garry, received extended playing time and continued to make plays. Dalton found the endzone a three times and gave the Tigers major headaches on defense. Castner was impressed with the two ball carrier’s performances.
“I thought they did well,” Castner said. “It’s always nice to have those guys back up a guy like Matt Sora. We feel like between Dalton and Garry, those two guys, we feel pretty good about what we have.”
The Comets have their sights on the Sycamore Aviators in the rematch of the Battle of the Skies as they look to avenge their two losses from last season. Castner said his team needs to follow the game plan and believe in each other to take down the Aviators.
“We got to follow the plan and we got to believe in the plan across the board,” Castner said. “All 70 of us have to believe that what we put in front of them on Monday, how we execute it all week long and come Friday when we travel over there, we put it into action and be efficient and stick together the entire way.”
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Photos by Staff Photographer Tanner Pearson.