Mistakes controlled the opening drives of both Cardinal and Berkshire in the teams' annual battle for the Kinsman Cup.
Game photos click here.
Mistakes controlled the opening drives of both Cardinal and Berkshire in the teams’ annual battle for the Kinsman Cup.
The worst mistake hit the Huskies, though, as a bad snap went over the head of quarterback Logan Strever on the second play of the drive.
Mistakes multiplied in a hurry the rest of the first half, and the Badgers took advantage of most of them. Berkshire combined a huge second half running the ball by Justin Phillips en route to a 45-28 Chagrin Valley Conference Valley Division victory — and thus, will keep the cup in Burton another year.
Phillips was the hammer, as he now is recovered from an early-season injury which limited him in previous weeks. After an Oliver Miller punt return set up the Badgers at the Cardinal 46, quarterback Miles Miller found Oliver on a nice slant pattern for a touchdown.
As a sign of things to come for both teams, Mason Mendolera of Berkshire made the conversion kick with a low line drive that almost nailed the crossbar, but that’s how the night went for both teams the rest of the way.
Things got worse for Cardinal quickly, as Strever took a big hit just above his knee and was forced to sit out the rest of the night for the Huskies (3-3). Junior Cam Ciminello, who has honed his high school career as the backup quarterback, played one great game, but execution problems dominated.
Miles and Phillips scored touchdowns in the second period, and Mendolera capped the first half with a booming 27-yard field goal to give his team a 24-0 lead.
Considering what this game means to both teams, though, no matter the records, you must know there is no quit in either team. Cardinal proved that by taking the third period opening drive and moving 68 yards on eight plays. Three Badger penalties were a big help in that, but with Strever out, the Huskies went to direct snaps and misdirection plays to move the ball downfield, and it worked well.
With a first down at the one yard line, two straight offside penalties against the Badgers got everybody wired up on how close to the goal line the ball could be placed, but Ciminello pushed it in for the first points of the night.
Then an onside kick attempt went awry with Berkshire covering the ball on the Huskies 48. Miles found Jack Hastings along the left sideline from the 30, though, to answer the first Cardinal score.
Ciminello went in from 19 yards out for the Huskies as both teams tallied touchdowns on their first two possessions of the second half, with Phillips doing the same for Berkshire from four yards out.
Kyle Sinclair got free down the left sideline for the Huskies on the second play of the fourth period, Ciminello hit him in stride, and the play went for 85 yards.
Ciminello rushed for his third score of the night after that, from 15 yards out, and Miles found Abram Sothern from 14 yards out in the fourth period for the final Badger points of the night.
“We’re really not sure yet how bad Logan’s injury is,” Cardinal Head Coach Chris Perrotti said. “I don’t think it’s too serious, but we wanted to protect him as much as we could. Cam (Ciminello) really stepped up and played a great game for us, but we just didn’t execute well at all defensively and we shot ourselves in the foot with mistakes all night long — it’s that simple.”
Ciminello gained 71 yards on 14 carries to go with three scores, and hit on eight of 15 passes for 193 yards. The Huskies did not turn the ball over, but bad snaps or missed blocks kept them behind the eight ball all night.
“I just want to play every play I can,” said Ciminello, a junior. “I’ve been the backup for three years now, so it’s nothing new for me. We just made too many mistakes tonight.”
Miles built a reputation last season with his legs, putting burning speed and superior cutback skills to work running the ball. Teams know what to expect of him this season, so he has honed his passing game.
With Phillips toting the pigskin for 203 yards on 22 carries in this contest, Miles was a marked man all night, most notably by linebacker Neil Lucariello, so running room mostly just wasn’t available. That let Phillips travel up the middle in the second half, and Miles complemented this effort by hitting on eight passes in 25 tries for a trio of scores.
“We were just able to come out in the first half and continue to run the ball more,” Berkshire Head Coach Josh DeWeese said. “That opened up our passing game more after that. Miles has worked really hard throwing the ball, and we’re also healthier defensively right now. That is a big help for us.
“Sothern and Hastings made a ton of big plays tonight as well, so it was just a good, overall effort for us. The Kinsman Cup means a lot to all the kids, so you know the game will be hard fought, and we came out tonight on top”
Now the Badgers get ready for Kirtland.
