Bruins squeak past Cats

"Two fourth quarter plays and seven turnovers sealed the fate of the Oak Harbor football team Friday, as the Wildcats lost to Cascade 14-0."

“Blood flowed from a cut above Brett Waller’s right eye.“Two plays,” he said. “We played hard. Except for two plays.”Cascade, ranked number two in the state, turned two fourth-quarter, fourth-down plays into two rushing touchdowns and defeated Oak Harbor at Memorial Stadium on Friday night, 14-0.The Wildcats played hard enough to stuff the vaunted running attack of Cascade for three quarters, but were never able to crank up enough offense of their own in the defeat.What yardage Oak Harbor did generate against the Bruins (the Wildcats had 134 yards total offense for the game) was wasted by seven turnovers — five interceptions thrown by Oak Harbor quarterback Jay Hartman, and two fumbles, one by Hartman and one by Kellen Ward.“We had some chances early,” Wildcat coach Dave Ward said. “Jay didn’t have his best night throwing the ball, but he’s a gamer. He’ll be back.”The night started with great promise for Oak Harbor, when the Wildcat defense established a feisty tone early. On one Cascade offensive series, for example, Bruins halfback Grady Sizemore was stuffed by Wildcat linebackers Mike Dolson and Teo Cheeseboro for a 2-yard loss. On the next play, Wildcat defensive end Waller sacked Cascade quarterback Ryan Bekins for another 2 yard loss. And on third down, Oak Harbor defensive end Tyson Jeans blocked a Bekins pass.The Bruins were forced to punt five times in the first half. Sizemore gained only 24 yards on nine carries by half time. Even Cascade fullback Blake Walker, who ran wild against the Wildcats a year ago, gained just 81 yards on 18 carries for the night.Oak Harbor had a chance to score early in the second quarter when a Cheeseboro 11-yard run carried the Wildcats to the Cascade 22 yard line. But the opportunity was squandered when Sizemore picked off a Hartman pass on a fourth-down play from the Cascade 18. Sizemore had three interceptions on the night.Hartman was 4-for-23 passing for 21 yards.“They were keying on our passing game,” said Oak Harbor wide receiver Jeremy Morgan. “We haven’t played against the bump and run much. We just couldn’t get it going.”Cascade’s offense was also stalled until the fourth quarter. That’s when Sizemore (19 carries, 116 yards) — who took over at quarterback for Bekins in the second half — broke loose on two identical fourth down running plays to give Cascade the win.The first Cascade touchdown came on the first play of the fourth quarter. With Oak Harbor packing the line, Sizemore ran a quarterback keeper off the left tackle and streaked down the sideline for a 47 yard touchdown run.Just a few minutes later, with the Bruins facing a fourth down and three on the Oak Harbor 26, Sizemore ran off left tackle again.Same play, same result. Cascade 14, Oak Harbor 0.Oak Harbor assistant coach Jay Turner told the players not to hang their heads after the loss. “You’ve got nothing to be ashamed of,” he said as the team huddled at midfield. “Keep your heads up. I’m proud of you guys.”Morgan said the Wildcats need to keep up the same intensity for the rest of the season.“We want to keep our defense going and get our offense back to where it was,” he said.The loss drops Oak Harbor to 2-2 on the year. Cascade moves to 4-0.The Wildcats play Shorewood at Shoreline Stadium next Friday.CASCADE 14, OAK HARBOR 0Cascade 0 0 0 14 — 14Oak Harbor 0 0 0 0 — 0Fourth quarterCascade: Sizemore 47 yard run (McNeley kick), 11:52Cascade: Sizemore 26 yard run (McNeley kick), 8:05”