Published: October 03, 2008 11:34 pm            

H.S. FOOTBALL: Akron blanks Wilson, 19-0.

Tigers sophomore Josh Cory scores 3 TDs.

WILSON — Akron sophomore tailback Josh Cory rushed for 181 yards and three touchdowns Friday, sparking the visiting Akron Tigers past Wilson, 19-0, in a hard-fought Section VI Class C North football contest at Walter Hutchison Stadium.

“I thought our kids played hard today. They’ve played hard all year,” said Lakemen head coach Nick Benedetti, after watching his team drop to 1-3 in C North and 1-4 overall.

“They’ve given me 100 percent every week and every play and that’s all you can ask for.”

Head coach Chris Ginestre’s visiting Tigers (3-2 overall, 3-1 C North) locked up a divisional playoff spot with two touchdowns in the second quarter and one in the fourth.

Cory did most of the damage on both sides of the ball, grinding out TD runs of three, 35 and 23 yards, while the Tigers defense held Wilson to under 50 yards rushing on the chilly day. Cory also had a fumble recovery.

“That was the best defensive game we’ve played all year,” Ginestre said.

“Offensively, we wanted to pound the ball and our offensive line really dominated the line of scrimmage. But hats off to coach Benedetti and his team. He did a great job getting his team ready. They gave us a heck of a battle.”

The Tigers dominated the first half, calling three times as many plays on “O” than the hosts, working the clock and finishing with a possession time advantage of 17:14 to 6:46.

Cory broke a scoreless tie with a three-yard TD run on the second play of the second quarter. Dominic Torrelli added the PAT and it was 7-0 Akron. After Wilson failed to move the ball, the Tigers march right back down and scored again. Cory sprinted up the middle, cut left and was gone on a 35-yard scamper. The PAT failed but it was 13-0 Tigers at the half.

The Lakemen made some defensive adjustments in the second half that stymied an Akron rushing attack that had looked so formidable in the first half. Akron senior fullback J.C Tretter added 33 yards on eight carries, while senior back John Anakja chipped in with 22 yards on four runs.

Neither quarterback threw the ball effectively. Junior Jon Rink of the Tigers was 3-of-11 for 32 yards, while Wilson junior John Vincent finished 3-of-22 for 5 yards.

Freshman Patrick Walch and sophomore Cody Reimers had interceptions for Wilson and Nate Meier had another good game running back punts and kickoffs. Also for the Lakemen, junior lineman Steve Rieger had a fumble recovery.

Juniors Ryan Lemieux and Peter Sowinski recorded interceptions for the Tigers.

        

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