Wilmington dominates up front to defeat Newman in 2A second-round game

STERLING – The Class 2A second-round playoff game between ground-and-pound offenses from Wilmington and Newman was going to be won in the trenches – and the Wildcats dominated them.

Wilmington (11-0) ran for 431 yards in the first half to build a big lead, cruising into the quarterfinals with a 42-7 victory over the Comets (7-4) Saturday at Newman.

“Our guys up front, we were really impressed with what we saw,” Wilmington coach Jeff Reents said. “We geared our guys up and they controlled the line of scrimmage, which for us is huge. We were able to move the ball around a little bit, let different guys run it, but I thought both offensively and defensive line and linebacker-wise, we were on top of our game.”

The Wildcats set the tone right form the start. After forcing a Newman three-and-out on the opening series, Colin James broke Wilmington’s second play for 67 yards to the Newman 7-yard line, then ran in for a 40-yard touchdown two plays later.

After the Comets gained two first downs on their next series, Wilmington forced a punt. On the sixth play of the ensuing drive, Jacob Friddle broke through for a 47-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter for a 14-0 Wildcats lead.

After another Newman punt, Wilmington was facing third-and-inches from its own 26-yard line. Ryder Meents looked to have the first down on a quarterback sneak, but popped out of the back side of the pile for a 74-yard touchdown run with 8:23 left before halftime.

“Hats off to Wilmington, they just dominated the line of scrimmage and took it to us,” Newman coach Brandon Kreczmer said. “We knew they were good and we tried to match their physicality, and we just couldn’t. I think any team will have a hard time beating Wilmington.

“It would look like we’d have them bottled up, and then they’d just find a little seam and come out the other side. It’s a little bit on us not doing what we were supposed to do, but they just execute that offense like it’s their job, a well-oiled machine, and obviously they didn’t miss a beat.”

Newman went three-and-out on its fourth series, and Wilmington opened its possession with a 31-yard run by Friddle and capped it with a 42-yard scoring sprint from James for a 28-0 lead with 3:55 left before the break.

After the Comets failed to convert a first down on a fake punt near midfield, Wilmington got a 27-yard touchdown run from James – who then intercepted a third-down pass on Newman’s next series before capping the Wildcats’ final series of the first half with a 53-yard touchdown run for a 42-0 lead with 37.7 seconds left.

“It’s all the O-line. The holes were huge; you could drive a semi truck through the holes that I was running through,” James said. “Really anyone can do what I did, it’s all our O-line up front – just a bunch of dogs. We were moving them up front, and once we’d get past the backers, it was a race to the end zone.”

James finished the first half with 206 yards and four touchdowns on eight carries, with his final three touches of the half going for scores. Friddle finished with 127 yards on nine carries, and Meents had 82 yards in three rushes; none of the Wilmington starters played in the second half.

The Wildcats did not attempt a pass in the game, finishing with 475 yards and six touchdowns on 36 carries, an average of 13.2 yards per play; in the first half, it was 18 yards per snap. They had eight runs of more than 20 yards.

“We were fortunate to get up early and relax a little bit,” Reents said. “In a second-round game, especially on the road against a great program – Newman is second to none – it always helps to play with the lead. I know they were down some guys due to injury, but for us to come up here and get this big win is huge from our program.”

“It’s nice to be able to get some of the other players in, because it’s a tough schedule all the way through the playoffs,” James said. “Bishop Mac next week, that’s going to be a big game, so it’s nice to get our other players in and get some playing time for them. It was just an all-around great week for us.”

Newman, meanwhile, managed just 79 yards of total offense in the game, with Ethan Van Landuit rushing for 36 of the Comets’ 62 yards on the ground.

He did have the highlight of the game for Newman, as his scoop-and-score fumble recovery with 3:03 remaining allowed the Comets to avoid the shutout. The ball was fumbled on a high pitch, and Van Landuit returned it 32 yards for the score.

“I saw the ball pop up, and then there was a pile that jumped on it. I saw it squirt out, saw my chance, and just scooped it up and busted my butt to the end zone,” Van Landuit said. “It was nice to get that score, it really brought the team up. It was a good way to go out.”

The fact that the Comets were able to host one more home game was something that was in doubt just a month ago. Sitting at 3-3 after a 41-0 loss to Princeton, Newman’s playoff life was in jeopardy.

But the Comets came together as a team and reeled off four straight wins to get to the second round, coming back from at least a touchdown deficit in each of their last three games.

“There was a lot of doubt, but this team really came together as a family, and once that happened, there was no stopping us,” Van Landuit said. “The run we had, I’ll never forget it, and I’ll never forget these guys.

“We came out kind of soft [Saturday], but once they put up some points, we realized this could really be our last game, and us seniors had to leave everything on the field. I wouldn’t have wanted to go out with any other team, I love these guys.”

Kreczmer echoed those sentiments, and whispered words of thanks and encouragement to the seniors as they shared hugs following the postgame huddle.

“Hats off to these kids, because they gave it all they could all season long,” Kreczmer said. “I told them after the game that this isn’t the taste they should have in their mouth after this season. A lot of people doubted us, especially when we were 3-3; no one thought we’d get this far. Just how far they’ve come, and the team and family they became is something they should be proud of, and I’m definitely proud of.”