Indians put up numbers in victory

FORT RECOVERY - Playing their first-ever home playoff game, the Fort Recovery Indians gave the home fans at Barrenbrugge Park a lot to cheer about.

The Indians tallied over 600 yards of offense and came close to breaking the school scoring record in defeating Miami Valley Christian Academy 62-34 in the Division VII, Region 26 quarterfinals.

Fort Recovery now plays Lehman next Friday at a site to be announced Sunday. The Indians defeated the Cavaliers 36-0 in their season opener this year.

"It was a fun atmosphere," said Fort Recovery coach Brent Niekamp, whose squad moves to 9-2 on the season. "It was cool to have so many people here and supporting us. The way everyone has rallied around us this year has been fun."

The Indians did not waste time getting on the scoreboard. On the first play from scrimmage, Caleb Martin hit Tanner Koch for a 52-yard scoring pass that took just 13 seconds off the clock.

The same formula followed on the next three possessions for the Indians. Over its first four drives of the game, Fort Recovery ran just nine plays and scored on all four possessions.

Kyle Schroer made it 13-0 Indians with a one-yard burst with eight minutes left in the first quarter. After forcing the Lions (8-2) to punt on the next play, Martin drove the team 70 yards on four plays. Will Homan ended the drive with a seven-yard touchdown run.

After another MVCA three-and-out, Martin found favorite receiver Wes Wenning for a 57-yard score to make it 27-0 at the end of the first quarter.

"We came out with a lot of intensity and jumped on them," Niekamp said.

The Indians defense put the pressure on the Lions early. Quarterback Bransen Vilardo was sacked three times in the first half and was missing the mark early with his receivers.

"Our front four played well. We felt like we had an advantage there," Niekamp said. "I was happy with that early on"

Homan provided all three Indian touchdowns in the second quarter, scoring from 17, 38 and seven yards out. Homan finished 111 yards rushing on just seven carries, all coming in the first half as Fort Recovery led 48-8.

With Niekamp giving the starters the rest of the night off in the second half, the Lions, who have just 21 players on the roster, began to pick up yards and points.

Vilardo scored on the first play from scrimmage in the second half to make it 48-14. In the fourth quarter, James Heaton ran in from five yards out to make it 48-21 and stopped the running clock. Fort Recovery worked the lead back past 30 with Jason Roessner's 10-yard run with seven minutes left in the game, but the Lions scored again on a Brandon Conklin six-yard run. Roessner capped off the Indians scoring with an 85-yard scoring run with 3:47 left. The Lions ended the game with a score as Vilardo hit Conklin for an eight-yard TD as time ran out.

"We had our second and third group in there and it was tough because (MVCA) couldn't sub," Niekamp said. "We knew that. We just wanted our younger guys play against some good competition and get some experience. We were able to hang around, keep it around 30 points and stay in control. Overall, we were happy."

Fort Recovery finished the night with 641 yards of total offense, 363 coming on the run. Roessner added 149 on nine carries and Cole Dues had 62 yards in the second half.

"Those guys ran hard and we were able to give them some room up front," Niekamp said. "They took care of business."

Martin was efficient, throwing for 215 yards on 12-of-15 passing. Wenning had six catches for 114 yards.

Vilardo was 15-of-27 for 350 yards passing and was sacked six times, four times by Adam LeFevre, who extended his school record for sacks in a season to 12 1/2. Conklin had 166 yards on seven catches and Heaton had four snags for 140 yards.

Now the Indians turn their attention to Lehman. Niekamp knows a lot has changed since Week One.

"You have to think (Lehman) has made a lot of progress throughout the year," Niekamp said. "I'm sure they're a different team from when we first played them and I feel we're a different team. We're going to have to take a hard look at them, evaluate them and get ready to go."