By George Starks |
BRADFORD- At the end of its loss to Twin Valley South Twin weeks ago, Bradford coach Nick Bandstra told his kids that Arcanum was a winnable game.
In that game, Bradford went down 14-0 early and could never recover.
Friday against Arcanum, it was deja very all over again but this time the final results were not the same.
Down 14-0 in the opening quarter, Bradford scored 34 unanswered points from the 29 second mark of the first quarter to the 1:02 mark of the third quarter to hold a 34-14 lead.
Arcanum would make a late game push, scoring twice in the final eight minutes but the Roaders he’d on in the end for a 34-28 Western Ohio Athletic Conference victory.
The victory seals a place in the postseason season for Bradford and a winning season with a 5-4 record.
“This feel great,” said Bandstra. “This is the first winning season we’ve had here in a very long time. We weren’t supposed to be here when the season started but here we are and now we play the waiting game to see where we go.”
On offense, Bradford was led by junior quarterback Owen Canan .
If Canan wasn’t keeping the Arcanum defense off kilter with his running, he was doing it with his passing ability.
“Owen is a great weapon,” said Bandstra. “He can do so much and he can make things happen. I’m so proud of these kids and I’m very happy for them. Now we should be in the second season and we are ready to take that next step.”
While the offense shined, it was the defense that stood tall when it need to.
After the Trojans ran rough shot over Bradford early, it didn’t stay that way.
“I made some changes on defense and it kept them (Arcanum) off balance and we were able to shut them down.” Bandstra pointed out. “These kids just went out there and took it to them. The bottom line is we had to just score and advance. That’s what we did. I really couldn’t be more proud.”
The pairings will come out Tuesday or Wednesday and everyone will know their fates.
Ansonia finished the season undefeated with a 46-6 win over Mississinawa Valley as the Blackhawks finish 0-10.
Tri-village rolled to a 20-7 victory over National Trail while Versailles posted a 21-14 win over Minster.
Greenville went 0-10 after dropping a 26-21 decision to West Carrolton.
CNO photos by George Starks. Featured photo: Canan leads by example for the Roaders
