Marion Local Proves Their Worth

2001 OHSAA DIVISION VI STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME MARIA STEIN MARION LOCAL 63, MOGADORE 7 MASSILLON -- Having already defeated Mogadore's Wildcats 54-0 for the 2000 Division VI state title, the Maria Stein Marion Local Flyers had to prove their worth to only one team -- themselves. As it turned out, they one-upped themselves. The Flyers broke the record they set just one season ago, racking up nine touchdowns and cruising to a 63-7 victory over Mogadore in the 2001 Division VI state championship game Saturday at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium in Massillon. Marion Local (14-1) put up a pair of 28-point quarters en route to their overwhelming victory and started in the first. Brent Homan put the Flyers on the board just 51 seconds into the game, intercepting Mogadore (14-1) quarterback Charlie Molnar just two plays into the game and taking the pick back 32 yards for the score. The Flyers then scored three touchdowns in a span of 4:19 just before the first quarter ended. Game MVP Chad Otte connected on a 12-yard touchdown pass to Cole Dahlinghaus, capping a 12-play, 85-yard drive, to give Marion Local a 14-0 lead. Otte then picked off Molnar on the first play of the Wildcats' next drive, then threw a 25-yard strike to Craig Wolters two plays later to put the Flyers up by 21. Otte and Wolters connected again with 34 seconds left in the first quarter, this time from eight yards out, putting Marion Local ahead 28-0 after one period. Mogadore, shutout in five consecutive quarters and outscored 82-0 by Marion Local starting with last season's title-game loss, finally broke through with a smart drive in the second quarter. The Wildcats started at their own 24-yard line and used 12 plays before running back Tommy Lee broke free along the left sideline and raced 30 yards for Mogadore's first score against the Flyers. Mogadore would get plenty of yardage but no more points against Marion Local, who, despite allowing 232 yards of total offense and 166 yards on the ground, never allowed the Wildcats to progress farther than the Flyers' 41-yard line at any point in the second half. The Flyers, meanwhile, put the game away in the third quarter. Wolters' 38-yard punt return set Marion Local up at the Mogadore 21, and Otte found Kevin Moeller in the end zone from 20-yards out two plays later to put the Flyers back up by 28. Kris Shannon's ensuing kickoff then pinned the Wildcats back at their own three-yard line, and two plays later, Brad Kremer sacked Molnar to force a fumble into the Mogadore end zone. Mick Bollenbacher fell on the football for another touchdown, giving the Flyers a 42-7 lead. Greg Schulte capped a 46-yard, five-play drive on the Flyers' next possession with a seven-yard touchdown run with 4:28 left in the third, and Otte gave the Flyers a 56-7 lead with 3:05 left after picking off Molnar again and returning the interception 36 yards for a score. Marion Local's last score would come thanks to another Mogadore mistake as Homan recovered a Mike Wagner fumble in the backfield at the Wildcat 39 on the first play of the fourth quarter. Four plays later, Dan Otte darted into the end zone from 21 yards out to close the scoring. Mistakes killed the Wildcats all day. Mogadore fumbled five times in the game and lost three of them, while Molnar was picked off three times, with all three leading to 21 Flyer points. In total, four of the six Mogadore miscues cost them 28 points. Chad Otte completed 10-of-17 passes for 194 yards and four touchdowns while being picked off only once -- the lone Marion Local turnover in the game. The junior quarterback also rushed five times for 55 yards and picked off two passes, including the one he returned for a score. Schulte topped all Flyer rushers with 77 yards on 19 carries while Dan Otte added 45 yards on three totes late in the game. Wolters caught five passes for 107 yards and two scores to lead all receivers. Moeller also had three receptions for 71 yards and another touchdown. Lee led all rushers in the game with 97 yards and the Wildcats' lone touchdown on 20 carries. Jon Raddish also had 43 yards on 12 carries for Mogadore. Molnar's three picks hurt, but the junior signal-caller still had a decent day, completing 7-of-17 passes for 66 yards. Robert Pickering, Wagner and Mike Roth each caught two passes, Pickering for 40 yards, Wagner for 18 and Roth for nine. SCORE BY QUARTERS Marion Local.........28.....0...28.....7.........63 Mogadore...............0.....7.....0.....0...........7 SCORING SUMMARY FIRST QUARTER ML - Brent Homan 32 interception return (Kris Shannon kick), 11:09. ML - Cole Dahlinghaus 12 pass from Chad Otte (Kris Shannon kick), 4:53. (12 plays, 85 yards, TOP 4:39) ML - Craig Wolters 25 pass from Chad Otte (Kris Shannon kick), 3:47. (2 plays, 22 yards, TOP 0:49) ML - Craig Wolters 8 pass from Chad Otte (Kris Shannon kick), :34. (5 plays, 67 yards, TOP 1:48) SECOND QUARTER MOG - Tommy Lee 30 run (Greg Lawrentz kick), 7:27. (12 plays, 76 yards, TOP 5:07) THIRD QUARTER ML - Kevin Moeller 20 pass from Chad Otte (Kris Shannon kick), 6:25. (2 plays, 21 yards, TOP 0:42) ML - Mick Bollenbacher fumble recovery in end zone (Kris Shannon kick), 6:14. ML - Greg Schulte 7 run (Kris Shannon kick), 4:28. (5 plays, 46 yards, TOP 1:19) ML - Chad Otte 36 interception return (Kris Shannon kick), 3:05. FOURTH QUARTER ML - Dan Otte 21 run (Kris Shannon kick), 9:55. (4 plays, 39 yards, TOP 1:57) TEAM STATISTICS...............ML..........MOG First Downs................................20...............16 Rushes-Yards......................36-206.......51-166 Passing Yards...........................194...............66 Comp-Att-Int.....................10-17-1.......7-17-3 Total Offense............................400.............232 Punts-Avg............................1-26.0.........4-30.2 Fumbles-Lost............................2-0..............5-3 Penalties-Yards.......................3-15..............2-6 Time of Possession.................20:49...........27:11 RUSHING: Marion Local-Greg Schulte 19-77, Chad Otte 5-55, Dan Otte 3-45, Doug Giere 2-16, Kyle Hartings 2-13, Craig Wolters 1-2, Ryan Fleck 2-0, Jeff Otte 2-(-2). Mogadore-Tommy Lee 20-97, Jon Raddish 12-43, Kyle Clawson 4-17, Charlie Molnar 5-10, Robert Pickering 2-7, Tim Raddish 1-5, David Hanes 3-5, Andy Francis 1-3, Steve Lutz 1-2, Joe Poth 1-(-3), Mike Wagner 1-(-20). PASSING: Marion Local-Chad Otte 10-17-1-194. Mogadore-Charlie Molnar 7-17-3-66. RECEIVING: Marion Local-Craig Wolters 5-107, Kevin Moeller 3-71, Cole Dahlinghaus 1-12, Nick Prenger 1-4. Mogadore-Robert Pickering 2-40, Mike Wagner 2-18, Mike Roth 2-9, Jon Raddish 1-(-1). INTERCEPTIONS: Marion Local-Chad Otte 2-60, Brent Homan 1-32. Mogadore-Greg Lawrentz 1-8. clecinosu