Eastern flies into playoffs, to share of SOC I title with win over Green

Austin Hannah, Contributor

BEAVER — It’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish, and Friday night was proof positive for the Eastern Eagles. 

The Eagles used a big second half, getting stops and capitalizing on offensive opportunities to run away late to a 41-26 victory over Green.

The victory is the team’s fourth in their last five tries, following an 0-5 start to the season. It also gives the Eagles a share of the SOC I title alongside Northwest as coach Scott Tomlison’s group officially clinched a playoff berth. 

“We’ve got a great group of coaches and we’ve coached these guys hard,” Tomlison said. “We told them it’s not about how you start, but it’s about how you finish. [With the OHSAA] adding playoff teams in, even though we were struggling halfway through the season, all of our goals were still there. We could still win the conference, we could still go to the playoffs. So every week, we kept that in the kids’ heads.”

Eastern (4-6, 4-1 SOC I) had no issues finding the end zone to start.

After forcing a punt, the Eagles took to the air as Dylan Morton found Teagan Werner for a 25-yard touchdown pass to give their teammates a 7-0 lead.

That connection struck again in the second quarter, this time on a 14-yard touchdown pass, extending the lead to 13-0. 

Green (6-4, 1-4 SOC I) did not fret, though.

The Bobcats regrouped, gave the ball to Nathaniel Brannigan, and he did the rest.

Brannigan took a handoff, found an open crease and darted 78 yards to the house for a touchdown, trimming the lead to 13-6. 

The Bobcats’ defense then came up with a stop, forcing a punt and the offense went right back to work.

With a solid ground game and an offensive line that opened lanes to run through, Landen Lodwig got the call and sprinted 41 yards for a score, putting the Bobcats ahead 14-13 after a successful two-point try.  

But the Eagles were ready to respond.

On the ensuing drive, Morton found Jace White for a 23-yard touchdown pass to put the Eagles back in front at 20-14 with under a minute left in the second quarter.

And just when it seemed the offensive fireworks of the first half were over, Green had other plans.

Brannigan collected his second touchdown of the night, this time from 24 yards out with just nine seconds remaining, to tie the game 20-20 at halftime.

Though the Bobcats entered the third with momentum, the Eagles were about to kick things into a higher gear and one the Bobcats just simply couldn’t keep up with. 

After a failed onside kick that set Eatsern up with good field position, Landyn Reinsmith joined the scoring party, rushing 16 yards for a touchdown and making it 27-20.

Green’s ensuing drive resulted in a punt and it took just two plays for Eastern to once again find the end zone. Morton found his favorite target, Werner, on a swing pass and he scampered 66 yards to the house for the duo’s third touchdown of the night and a 34-20 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

“Overall, our defense really stepped it up in the second half,” Morton said. “In the first half, we just wasn’t all the way there. We came out fired up in the second half. We were ready to play and we took care of business and the offense kept rolling.”

The Eagles’ defense then forced yet another punt before their friends delivered the knockout blow.

Starting from its own 23-yard line, Eastern drove 77 yards to glory. Brewer Tomlinson capped the drive with a four-yard rushing touchdown, making it a 41-20 tally.

Brannigan later ended the night’s scoring with his third touchdown but the hole was already dug too deep as the Eagles celebrated a conference championship.

Both teams will play in week 11 on Saturday. 

Unofficially, Eastern is a No. 11 seed and will travel to Cincinnati Country Day. Green received a No. 8 seed and will host a familiar foe in Portsmouth Notre Dame.

“This is a great group of kids,” Tomlison said. “We’ve got good leadership on this team. They’ve kept fighting and kept believing and they’ve never given up on us. We’re starting to click. We’re hitting on all cylinders right now.”

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