Clyde tops Norwalk in finale

CLYDE — Next man up. That has been the philosophy Clyde has had to use this whole season with injuries that number greater than just the use of two hands. Friday, it clicked for the Fliers. After yet another injury — this time to tailback Chancy Miracle — Clyde still racked up almost 200 yards rushing in the first half and didn't relent in the second half, pounding Norwalk, 45-14, in Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division action. The win is a bright spot for the Fliers (5-5, 1-3 SBC Lake) who snapped a four-game losing streak. It allows Clyde to take some momentum into next week's playoff game. The Fliers will open Division III, Region 10 play on the road with the official destination to come this weekend. Clyde didn't wait long to get on the board. The Fliers forced a three-and-out and used a short field to attack. Clyde went 47 yards in six plays with Miracle's 7-yard rush getting the Fliers in the end zone. The extra point by Tyler Soper put Clyde up 7-0 just over three minutes in. Norwalk (3-7, 0-4) responded in a big way to keep pace. Freshman Brayden Viock connected with Nate Kessling over the top for a 78-yard catch and run. The point after by Tommy Vanderpool knotted the game at 7. "You look at the final score and obviously it got away from us," Norwalk coach Keith Mora said. "Early on, we were in every part of that game. We spent a lot of time the last three weeks trying to hone in on teaching Brayden how to read some coverages better and be able to develop more of a passing game." But Clyde took over from there. The Fliers used almost six minutes of clock before turning the ball over on downs. With its defense back out there, Clyde got a big play as Jayvin Sheffield intercepted a Viock pass. The Fliers needed just four plays to cash in. Adam Young rumbled 12 yards, Drake Guhn hit Kam Shortridge for 15 yards, and Clark Norman covered the final 13 yards for the TD. The Truckers again went three-and-out. Young had gains of 11 and 27 yards to quickly get Clyde into striking distance. Norman added a 13-yard rumble and then scored from five yards out. "We had success in that 3-5 look," Mora said. "You could look and ask why we're running a 3-front. We had eight guys in the box. It doesn't matter how you sort them. "We struggled to stop the run," he added. "We tried to stunt and move guys around." Norwalk moved the ball well on its next drive, getting into Clyde territory, but ultimately turning it over on downs. Shortridge raced 26 yards on the first play for Clyde. A few plays later, Young exploded through the line for what became a 17-yard touchdown run. The two point conversion pass from Guhn to Garret Hartshorn gave Clyde a 28-7 lead at halftime. "I thought our defense played really well," Clyde coach Ryan Carter said. "We gave up a couple over the top looks, but Norwalk has some good athletes. Give their kids credit too. They kept playing in a tough year for them. I think coach Mora is doing a nice job." All told, the Fliers tallied 186 yards rushing on 26 attempts in the first half. That allowed Clyde to go to the air to start the second half. On a fake handoff, Jonathan Lantz found Ben Wott in stride for a 67-yard touchdown bullet. Soper made it 35-7 just 23 seconds into the half. Sheffield added a two-yard TD run for Clyde with eight minutes to go in the third quarter. That started a running clock for the rest of the game. Soper connected on a 36-yard field goal for the Fliers late in the third quarter. Lantz completed 5-of-7 passes for 107 yards. Clyde totaled 42 carries for 237 yards. Viock was 10-of-27 passing for 158 yards. Norwalk won just one total game the last two years combined, but tripled that total this season — the first under Mora. Norwalk 7 0 0 7 — 14Clyde 7 21 17 0 — 45 ScoringCLY — Chancy Miracle 7 run (Tyler Soper kick)NOR — Nate Kessler 78 pass from Brayden Viock (Tommy Vanderpool kick)CLY — Clark Norman 13 run (Soper kick)CLY — Norman 5 run (kick failed)CLY — Adam Young 17 run (Garett Hartshorn pass from Drake Guhn)CLY — Ben Wott 67 pass from Jonathan Lantz (Soper kick)CLY — Jayvin Sheffield 2 run (Soper kick)CLY — Soper 36 field goalNOR — Mason Canalos 1 run (Vanderpool kick)