Rushing, defense lift FR over the Raiders

FORT RECOVERY — The Indians plan to be a running team.

They broke one big play in their opener. And they were able to grind out a victory.

Fort Recovery High School’s football team went almost exclusively to the ground Friday night, picking up 252 rushing yards and getting a strong defensive effort as it ended a two-game skid against the Wayne Trace Raiders with a 20-6 victory.

Reece Wendel had the breakthrough play of the game for the Indians, ripping off a 71-yard run with less than a minute off the clock in the second quarter. Wendel then passed to Gavin Evers for a 2-point conversion, giving the home team all the points it would need.

On Fort Recovery’s other 44 carries — it only threw the ball three times — it averaged 4.1 yards. That proved to be enough as a stout defense limited Wayne Trace to just 198 yards of offense.

Luke Lochtefeld and Evers led the defensive effort with 10 tackles apiece. Brodie Hart had eight and Breaker Jutte recorded six.

The Tribe, which lost 18-14 to Wayne Trace in 2022 and 32-20 last season, held the Raiders without a score until Cole Morehead connected with Tyler Head for a 10-yard TD pass with just 1:15 remaining.

The game was well in hand by then, as Ethan Hartnagel had extended the Fort Recovery lead to 14-0 on a 1-yard TD run with three seconds left in the first half. The home fans were treated to another touchdown when Evers scored on an 11-yard run at the 1:30 mark of the third quarter to make it 20-0.

Wendel’s big run pushed him to a 164-yard evening on the ground as he toted the ball 20 times. Hartnagel added 54 yards on 12 carries, and Caden Grisez ran seven times for 21 yards.

Most of Wayne Trace’s offense came through the air, with Morehead completing 16-of-24 passes for 148 yards.

Fort Recovery will head on the road next weekend when it visits Urbana (1-0).