By Rick Charles
Twinsburg wide receiver Nick Nero looks for running room against Massillon in a Division I, Region 2 semifinal. Twinsburg lost a 10-7 heartbreaker at Fawcett Stadium.
CANTON -- Jeremy Geier nailed a 40-yard field goal with 28 seconds left in regulation Saturday to give Massillon Washington a 10-7 win over Twinsburg in a Division I, Region 2 semifinal game at Canton's Fawcett Stadium.
A timeout by Twinsburg coach Mark Solis failed to rattle the senior kicker.
“The timeout gave me more time to make sure everything was set up straight," Geier said, "and I relaxed more than anything and it all worked out.”
In a game that featured 720 yards of combined offense, neither team could consistently execute in the red zone as Massillon turned the ball over on a fumble and two interceptions and Twinsburg tossed two interceptions.
“We didn’t handle the pressure when we got into the red zone and we didn’t handle third down like we should have,” said Solis. “We didn’t do a good job of getting into the right play and I will take responsibility for that. At the end of the day we had to execute and do some better things to be successful.”
Twinsburg opened the scoring on a 38-yard catch and run from Andrew Collier to Dion Johnson, capping a five-play, 57-yard drive with 3:39 left in the first half. The extra point by Jake Russell made the score 7-0. Collier was 13-of-23 for 136 yards with two interceptions and a touchdown.
Massillon took the ensuing kickoff and drove into Twinsburg territory, where Joe Hiller intercepted Robert Partridge in the end zone to thwart the drive with 1:42 left in the half. Twinsburg then had an 83-yard scoring pass from Collier to Brandon Fransisco called back due to offensive holding. The half ended 7-0 with the teams accounting for 408 yards of offense.
Massillon took the second-half kickoff and scored on a six-play, 79-yard drive, capped by a beautiful 40-yarder from Partridge to junior Devin Smith, who outleaped the defender in the end zone. Geier’s extra point tied the game with 8:46 left in the third. Partridge was 13-of-27 for 226 yards and two interceptions.
After Twinsburg turned the ball over on downs, Massillon’s Jake Reiman (131 yards, 27 carries) carried the ball on 12 of the next 13 snaps -- gaining 56 yards on a 66-yard drive that took 7:00 minutes off the clock and went into the fourth. The drive, however, ended on a Partridge interception by London Carter in the end zone.
After trading punts, Massillon started its game-winning drive with 2:25 left with the key play being a Partridge to Justin Olack 41-yard reception. Reiman carried three times to the Twinsburg 23 to set up Geier’s game winning kick.
Solis lamented the lost opportunities as Twinsburg drove into Massillon territory on five of its eight drives.
“At the end of the day, we had a great season," the coach said. "We were back to back (Northeast Ohio Conference River Division) conference champions. I am really proud of my kids. They played their tails off and let it all hang out. That’s all you can ask for.”
1 2 3 4 F
Massillon 0 0 7 3 10
Twinsburg 0 7 0 0 7
2nd T - 2:00 Dion Johnson 38 pass from Andrew Collier (Russell kick)
3rd M - 3:08 Devin Smith 40 pass from Robert Partridge (Geier kick)
4th M - 0:28 Jeremy Geier 40 field goal
Massillon Twinsburg
First Downs 10 7
Rushes-Yards 35-142 38-216
Passing Yards 226 216
Fumbles – Lost 1-1 1-0
Penalties 7-50 6-50
Possession Time 24:04 23:56
Rushing:
Twinsburg
Nero 7–95 yards
Johnson 16-66 yards
Collier 12-56 yards
Hiller 3-13 yards
Massillon
Reiman 27-131 yards
Nalbach 3-14 yards
Partridge 4-10 yards
Passing:
Twinsburg
Collier 13-32, 136 yards, 1 TD, 1 int
Massillon
Partridge 13-27, 226 yards, 1TD, 2 int
Receiving
Twinsburg
Johnson 3-56 yards, 1 TD
Comar 3-30 yards
Nero 3-18 yards
Grant 2-16 yards
Massillon
Olack 4-104 yards
Smith 4-64 yards, 1 TD
Grunder 4-41 yards
Allman 1-17 yards