The former district rivals entered the game at Covington Catholic’s Wooten Field with impressive 8-1 records and looking to enter the playoffs on a high note.
They both ran variations of the ground-and-pound spread offenses looking to take time off the clock. The Beechwood Tigers ran it better than the Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds, outgaining them, 323-136 in total offense including a 164-65 advantage on the ground on their way to a 26-9 victory.
“We’re very happy,” said Noel Rash, Beechwood head coach. “The problem is we can’t have all the mental lapses that we have. We let our emotions get to us too early on. What I’m extremely proud of is coming together at halftime, talking about what we need to do and then executing it in the second half. We grew up quite a bit.”
Beechwood has been trying to find some new identities with power running back Mitchell Berger out for the season. Sophomore running back Chase Flaherty led the Tigers rushing for 121 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns averaging 5.3 per carry behind the Beechwood offensive line.
The Tigers mixed in some passes to keep the Thoroughbreds guessing. Sophomore quarterback Clay Hayden completed 11 of 20 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown. Senior wide receiver Liam McCormack led Beechwood with five catches for 91 yards and sophomore wide receiver James Cusick had three catches for 42 yards and a touchdown.
“We’re playing guys that haven’t played a whole lot,” Rash said. “In our system, you don’t get a lot of reps if you’re not out there. You have a sophomore quarterback and a sophomore tailback. They’re working their way through it and you saw how much better they got so I’m very proud of that.”
Beechwood won the turnover battle picking off two passes and recovering a NewCath fumble and the Thoroughbreds recovered two NewCath fumbles. The Tigers converted 50 percent (5 of 10) on third down and 75 percent (3 for 4) on fourth down to 22 percent (2 for 9) on third down and 33 percent (1 for 3) on fourth down for the Thoroughbreds.
The Beechwood defense contained NewCath after the first drive that ended in a senior Ryan Barth 37-yard field goal that put the Thoroughbreds up 3-0 with 3:16 left in the first quarter. Junior quarterback Kolton Smith rushed for just 20 yards on 10 carries and completed 6 for 13 passes for 65 yards and an interception. Junior running back Demetrick Welch Jr. rushed for just 27 yards on nine carries.
“We weren’t ready for the first drive,” said Konner Huljak, Beechwood senior linebacker. “They came out swinging. But our defense locked down and that’s how we get our offense on the field. It was so important that we stopped them up front.”
Senior running back Luke Runyon had some big catches on the first drive for NewCath. He finished with five catches for 63 yards and led the Thoroughbreds with nine tackles.
“We just have to make those plays,” said Stephen Lickert, NewCath head coach. “You can’t turn the ball over and you have to gain every yard. We drove the ball down the field on them and had a couple turnovers. The breaks didn’t go our way. We get a kickoff return for a touchdown to make it 13-9 and it gets called back for holding. We have to play through that and go score, and we didn’t. Hopefully, we’ll learn from that, make a deep run in the playoffs and make those plays when we get into those big games.”
Beechwood took the lead for good with 5:19 left in the first half. On fourth down from the NewCath 1, Hayden snuck it in to give the Tigers a 6-3 lead after Beechwood missed the point-after touchdown kick. Senior defensive back Carson Craycraft set up the score picking off a Smith pass at the 50.
“Someone had to get the offense sparking,” Craycraft said. “It just came my way and I knew I had to make a play on it. It feels good to help out the team as much as possible.”
Beechwood came out and started at its 42 after Smith ran for 16 yards then fumbled the ball. Cusick jumped on it and the Tigers capitalized driving down the field and Flaherty scored from less than two yards out to give the Tigers a 13-3 advantage after senior Matt Kappes made the PAT with 6:58 left in the third quarter.
“In the first half, they were milking the clock so we knew we’d have a lot of time on offense,” said Austin Waddell, Beechwood senior fullback. “We knew we had to move the ball so we came out physical in the second half and dominated up front. It allowed us to let Chase break out for a few big runs and Clay more time in the pocket to throw the ball.”
Runyon gave NewCath some breathing life on the ensuing kickoff. He took the ball from the Thoroughbred 4 and raced to the end zone with 10:58 left in the game. The failed two-point conversion run left the score 19-9 Tigers.
But the Tigers responded with a long and sustained touchdown drive. Hayden found Cusick at the right post with 6:14 left in the game to make the final score.
“It’s about complete focus. You have to battle it out,” Cusick said of the ball in the air. “They’re obviously going to reach and grab on you. You just have to smack it down and keep focusing on the ball then you’ll score.”
Beechwood had the chance to add to its score after senior defensive back Antonio Robinson Jr. intercepted a Smith pass and returned it to the NewCath 13. But NewCath sophomore Kaleb Cole recovered a Tiger fumble at the NewCath 1 on second-and-goal.
Both teams begin playoff action Friday. Beechwood plays host to Trimble County (4-6) in the Class 2A playoffs and NewCath takes on Eminence (0-10) at Dixie Heights at 7 p.m.
Box Score
Beechwood 0 6 7 13 – 26
NewCath 3 0 0 9 – 9
First Quarter
NewCath (3:16) – Ryan Barth 37 field goal.
Second Quarter
Beechwood (5:19) – Clay Hayden 1 run (kick failed).
Third Quarter
Beechwood (6:58) – Chase Flaherty 2 run (Matthew Kappes kick).
Fourth Quarter
Beechwood (11:13) – Flaherty 4 run (kick blocked)
NewCath (10:58) – Flaherty 4 run (run failed)
Beechwood (6:20) – James Cusick 29 pass from Clay Hayden (Kappes kick).