Carson Francis, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
THE PLAINS — It’s not how you fall. It’s how you respond when you get back up.
Playing one of the area’s toughest non-league schedules, Wheelersburg found itself at 0-3 through its first three games this season.
A lot of people started to doubt the Pirates and saw little to no chance for them to make a deep postseason run.
However, Wheelersburg (9-4) has all but silenced those doubters. The Pirates went on to win six of their last seven games of the regular season, claiming the SOC II title and squeezing into the playoffs as a 14 seed in Division V, Region 19.
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
It didn’t stop there, though.
After upsetting undefeated Barnesville in the first round, ‘Burg knocked off Union Local on the road last week to book a spot in Week 13 against West Muskingum.
And when the lights came on at Joe Burrow Stadium on Friday evening, the Pirates continued to impose its will on the opposition. Four rushing touchdowns from three different ball carriers pushed them to a 30-14 win and sent them to a regional final for a second consecutive season.
“It’s a process. You talk to other coaches, and they understand it’s a process. We were questioning some things in terms of the identity of our team. But we’re willing to take those adverse situations and ask what we can make out of this,” Pirates head coach Rob Woodward said. “Our kids are extremely coachable, and that’s what makes this so fun. We always talk about the love of the game, the respect of the game, and how to get our opponents to respect the way we play. I think when you went through the tough games that we had, that has helped mold us as we’ve gotten better and better.”
“Last year’s memories came up in that locker room when we stepped in,” Wheelersburg’s Elijah Brown added. “We lost to Harvest Prep here last year, and we used that energy today. We fought through it and we’re excited to be playing in the regional final next week.”
West Muskingum (9-3) pounded the rock to start and milked the first quarter’s clock. Using over seven minutes of game time, the Tornadoes went on a 13-play drive that was capped by a Carter Winland touchdown from a yard out to make it a 7-0 lead with 4:28 to go.
Just as they have all season, however, the Pirates had an answer.
Wheelersburg moved the ball using their own run game on its first drive, setting itself up at the WM 25-yard line when the first quarter came to a close.
When the second started, the Pirates picked up right where they left off and finished off the drive with six points. Brown crossed the goal line with 10:10 left in the half to put the Pirates on the board. However, a missed extra point kept West Muskingum in front with a 7-6 lead.
PHOTOS: Images from Wheelersburg’s DV, R19 Regional Semifinal win over West Muskingum
After both teams exchanged punts, the Pirates went back for more on offense, and signal caller Braylon Rucker took matters into his own hands. A 40-yard run from Rucker set the Pirates up at the one-yard line, where the junior would find pay dirt to put ‘Burg in the lead. Rucker then connected with Xander Mowery on the two-point try, extending the lead to 14-7 with 3:25 left.
Looking to keep its foot on the gas, Wheelersburg had a golden opportunity to create separation at the end of the first half. With 43 seconds left, ‘Burg blocked a West Muskingum punt at midfield before Ison Emnett returned it all the way to the 4-yard line.
However, the Tornadoes stood their ground on defense and forced the Pirates to settle for a field goal with one second left. The 20-yard attempt was then blocked, keeping Wheelersburg’s lead at 14-7 heading into the break.
Missing a perfect chance like that could have been a momentum shift in the wrong direction.
Wheelersburg didn’t let that happen.
After receiving the second half kickoff, the Pirates marched right back down the field and took advantage of multiple West Muskingum penalties to set up at the three-yard line. From there, Brown found the end zone for a second time with 8:04 left, extending the lead to 21-7.
Although that lead held into the game’s final frame, West Muskingum was down, but not out.
Following a punt return into Wheelersburg territory, the Tornadoes picked up the tempo offensively. Quarterback Jake Anton threw a screen pass to Carter Smith, who danced his way down the sideline for a 26-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to 21-14 with 9:29 remaining.
The Pirates tried to counter and drove right back into West Muskingum territory on the following drive. However, the drive would stall and the Pirates would settle for a 44-yard field goal attempt. That attempt sailed wide left to give the Tornadoes possession with 6:05 remaining.
All of a sudden, West Muskingum seemed to have momentum on its side again, looking to even things up.
Wheelersburg’s defense had an answer, though.
On 3rd and 10, the Pirates got in the backfield to sack WM’s quarterback for a 10-yard loss. Then, when West Muskingum set up to punt it away, the snap floated over the punter’s head and through the back of the end zone for a safety, making it a 23-14 lead with 4:36 left.
That all but sealed the game for the Pirates, but they weren’t satisfied yet. With 1:08 left to play, Ison Emnett put the icing on the cake with a 14-yard touchdown run up the middle, capping off a 30-14 win and sending Wheelersburg to its third regional final in four years.
“Any time you get to Week 14 and you’re playing in the regional final, I’ve learned how tough it is to get there. It’s a physical and daunting trek to get through all of these teams, but it’s a fun one,” Woodward said. “It’s something that our kids have embraced. There’s other people that think they have to be here, but our kids talk about how they get to be here. We get to take an hour and a half bus ride to Athens. We get to be here in late November playing football. It’s important to maintain that mental focus, and our kids are not taking this for granted.”
Wheelersburg will move on to next Friday’s Division V regional final at South Point High School. There, the Pirates await Ironton — a 41-13 winner over Harvest Prep.
The Pirates began their season against Ironton in Week 1, where they suffered a 37-7 defeat at Ed Miller Stadium. But after seeing his team improve each week, Woodward knows it has what it takes to flip the script.
“We still talk about being an 0-0 team each week, but we’re going to be a much more hardened team, much more disciplined and understanding of who we are,” Woodward said. “We’re playing for each other at an even higher level than we were in Week 1. All of those situations that we’ve faced have morphed us into the team we’re playing as today. [Ironton] is a talented team. We will go and work to get our kids ready to go out and play against them in the game we love.”
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