VAN WERT-The Van Wert Cougars continued their title defense on Friday night as they hosted the Wauseon Indians. Senior Nate Jackson found the end zone four times on their way to a 53-20 victory.
The Cougar offense came out on fire as they took the opening kickoff and went down in less than two minutes as Jackson reached paydirt with 10:12 remaining in the first quarter and the first of five PATs from Damon McCracken gave them a 7-0 lead.
Van Wert’s defense forced a turnover at the Wauseon 25 thanks to a fumble recovery by Ty Jackson. Aiden Pratt led the offense in the short field as Jackson finished it off with another three yard run and the Cougars were up 14-0 with 5:08 remaining in the first quarter.
The Indians offense were about to move the ball into the red zone near the end of the quarter as they faced a fourth down. Jonas Tester ran a direct raced for a 17 yard touchdown run and the extra point got them within 14-7.
The hosts went to the air in the second quarter as Aiden Pratt found his main target Maddix Crutchfield twice, one from eight yards out for a 21-7 lead and the other one was a 34 yard pass as Crutchfield broke a tackle and his sprint found himself into the end zone for a 28-7 lead.
Wauseon did draw close near the end of the first half as Logan Carroll found the end zone but the extra point hit off the left upright to keep it at 28-13. It appeared the Indians found their momentum but an interception by Trey Laudick near halftime kept the score at 28-13.
The Cougars defense came out rolling in the third quarter as they forced a three and out thanks to a pair of sacks by Van Wert. Jackson picked up right where he left off in the first half as he broke a couple of tackles before he raced 32 yards into the end zone that gave the hosts a 34-13 lead. Jackson finished with 25 carries and 144 yards in his biggest game of the season.
Wauseon did have an answer from Tester on a three yard run to get within 34-20 with 4:39 remaining in the third quarter. After Pratt struggled to find his brother Connor Pratt in the first half, they found a connection on a deep ball from 22 yards out as the Cougars were up 40-20 at the end of the quarter.
Jackson put the final touches on a Cougar victory with a 13 yard run with 7:04 remaining and McCracken converted the extra point to give them a 47-20 advantage. The reserves were able to get some playing time in the final minutes but it was a 50 yard race from Brylen Parker as he gave them a 53-20 lead.
Pratt finished the game 21 out of 29 for the game for 219 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Garett Gunter led the receivers with six receptions for 71 yards while Pratt finished with five grabs for 73 yards. The Cougar defense allowed 348 yards in the contest.
The Cougars improve to 11-1 on the season and winners of six in a row. They will advance to play Clyde (10-2) next week at a site to be determined. The game will be broadcasted on Zsportslive.
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