Ontario jumps on Norwalk early

NORWALK — From the start, the Truckers were up against it. On a night that took more than three quarters to get any offense going, host Norwalk fell behind 16-0 after one quarter and was unable to claw its way back in a 37-6 loss to visiting Ontario Friday night at Contractors Stadium. The Warriors (1-1) scored 17 of their 37 points off of special teams plays. "The biggest thing we can work on is dealing with pressure," Norwalk head coach Keith Mora said. "They sent a lot at us early on and they had some really good players. They found ways to crash down on our tight-ends and wings, and that makes it tough." Ontario opened the game with a slow drive, with strong carries for small gains by running back Kooper Kilgore. Eventually, he broke into the end zone on a 4-yard touchdown for an early 7-0 lead. It didn't take long for Ontario to try to add to its lead. The Warriors got all the way down to the Norwalk 1 -yard line, but the Truckers made a goal-line stand to create the turnover on downs to try to secure some momentum. The Truckers actually stopped the Warriors five times, as an inadvertent whistle by an official allowed Ontario to replay first down. Norwalk was unable to make any progress, however. After a false start took the football back one half-yard, some miscommunication led to a Norwalk ball carrier being tackled in the end zone for a safety and a 9-0 deficit at the 9:45 mark of the second quarter. Then it went from bad to worse. Ontario returned the free kick 69 yards, as it was Guy Trader on the return for six points to help extend the lead to 16-0. After forcing a three-and-out, Ontario had another chance to score right before the half. With a long field ahead the Warriors went to work. Trey Remy found Cardae Brown all alone in the end zone for the 31-yard TD pass on the final play of the first half to put the lead out to 22-0. The Warriors then struck again on special teams early in the third quarter. After forcing Norwalk's offense to another three-and-out, Remy found a gap on the punt return and went 52 yards for the TD and a 30-0 lead. After the Truckers picked up their initial first down in the game at the 1:45 mark of the third, they fumbled the ball away to the Warriors on the very next play. Ontario then scored rapid fire once again. The ensuing play, a 25-yard TD catch by Eli Baumgard, extended the lead to 37-0 on a screen pass from Remy. Norwalk got on the scoreboard with a strong drive to close out the game. Brady Singer connected with Carter Harp on a 42-yard pass to get things going. Colby Ferguson then scored on a 2-yard run with 4:25 left in the game. The 2-point try was unsuccessful. Mora was disappointed with the result. He knows his team has their work cut out for them when it hosts Galion (2-0) next week in a matchup of former Northern Ohio League opponents. "Most of these kids are playing on both sides of the ball, it's not like they're coming off the field and getting a break or getting adjustments," he said. "We're worn out … we have 30 kids, and a few of them are injured. "Those will be things we will see on film. Our kids took some positive steps forward this week, but they just ran into a really strong Ontario team up front." Ontario 7 15 15 0 — 37Norwalk 0 0 0 6 — 6ScoringONT — Kooper Kilgore 4 run (Kilgore kick)ONT — Safety (runner tackles in end zone)ONT — Guy Trader 68 yard kickoff return Touch(Kilgore kick)ONT — Cardae Brown 31 pass from Trey Remy(pass failed)ONT — Trey Remy 52 punt return touchdown (McWhorter run)ONT — Eli Baumgard 25 pass from Trey Remy (Kilgore kick)NOR — Colby Ferguson 2 run (run failed)