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MANSFIELD -- The Massillon Tigers dominated the host Mansfield Senior Tygers on the ground and through the air, but didn't shake Mansfield until the final gun gave them a 17-14 victory in non-conference play Friday at Arlin Field. Massillon (5-1) racked up 343 yards of total offense compared to 201 for Mansfield Senior (5-1), but Tiger penalties and a fumble into the end zone in the final minute gave the Tygers opportunities to at least tie. The Tiger defense, though, shut both down, stopping Mansfield quarterback George Andress a yard short of a first down on the Tygers' next to last drive and intercepting Andress on Mansfield's final offensive play of the game. The visitors appeared primed to take control of the game early on. Massillon's first drive stalled inside Senior High territory, but after the Tigers' Andy Alleman intercepted Andress on Mansfield's first play of the game -- Andress' first interception of the 2001 season -- the Tigers' next two drives produced. Massillon drove 36 yards on six plays and capped the journey with a five-yard Robert Oliver touchdown run, giving the Tigers a 7-0 lead. Massillon then forced a punt, took over at its own 41-yard line, and drove 22 yards before David Abdul nailed a 54-yard field goal, putting the Tigers up 10-0. But Mansfield Senior got seven back just before the end of the quarter. Massillon stopped the Tygers on the drive after Abdul's long field goal, but Senior's Marcus Davis recovered a fumble on the punt. On the very next play, Andress hit receiver Jeff Montgomery from 42 yards away for a touchdown. Massillon held their 10-7 first quarter lead to the third quarter and added to it on the first drive of the third. The Tigers drove 81 yards in nine plays -- despite being backed up as far as their own eight-yard line -- and scored what proved to be the game winning touchdown on Ricky Johnson's two-yard run. The hosts closed to within three points late in the third quarter as Andress plunged over the goal line from a yard out, capping an eight play, 39-yard drive with 44 seconds to play in the period. But the Tygers' three possessions in the final period never advanced any farther than their own 29-yard line, even though Massillon watched potential game-clinching drives fizzle due to untimely penalties and the fumble into the Senior High end zone with 30 seconds left. Massillon coach Rick Shepas balanced his team's offense very well, rushing the ball 32 times and throwing 37. Ohio State signee Justin Zwick completed 24-of-37 passes for 230 yards and Devon Jordan caught 10 of those aerials for 105 yards. Oliver rushed 20 times for 99 yards to lead all rushers in the game. Senior's Andress was 14-of-29 through the air for 157 yards and a touchdown, but threw his first two interceptions of the season, the final one picked off by Massillon's Brian Hill to clinch the win. Montgomery led the Tyger receivers with five receptions for 69 yards. David Phillips topped the Senior High run game with 21 yards on seven carries. Both teams host their next games on Friday night. Massillon will welcome Youngstown Woodrow Wilson's Redmen to Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, while Senior will take on the Ohio Heartland Conference and Richland County rival Lexington Minutemen at Arlin Field. SCORE BY QUARTERS Massillon.......................10.....0.....7.....0...........17 Mansfield Senior..............7.....0.....7.....0...........14 SCORING SUMMARY FIRST QUARTER MASS-Robert Oliver 5 run (David Abdul kick), 6:35. (6 plays, 36 yards, TOP 2:23) MASS-FG David Abdul 54, 2:59. (7 plays, 22 yards, TOP 2:32) MANS-Jeff Montgomery 42 pass from George Andress (Hollister Histed kick), :26. (1 play, 42 yards, TOP 0:09) THIRD QUARTER MASS-Ricky Johnson 2 run (David Abdul kick), 3:29. (9 plays, 81 yards, TOP 3:20) MANS-George Andress 1 run (Hollister Histed kick), :44. (8 plays, 39 yards, TOP 2:45) TEAM STATISTICS................MASS.........MANS First Downs......................................20................11 Rushes-Yards...........................32-113...........25-44 Passing Yards.................................230..............157 Comp-Att-Int..........................24-37-0.......14-29-2 Total Offense..................................343..............201 Punts-Avg..................................4-25.8.........6-32.0 Fumbles-Lost..................................6-2..............0-0 Penalties-Yards.............................7-59............4-50 Time of Possession.......................27:31...........20:29 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING: Massillon-Robert Oliver 20-99, Ricky Johnson 8-35, Justin Zwick 4-(-21). Mansfield Senior-David Phillips 7-21, Ivory Perdue 7-12, Jeff Montgomery 2-7, George Andress 6-3, Jason Rogers 3-1. PASSING: Massillon-Justin Zwick 24-37-0-230. Mansfield Senior-George Andress 14-29-2-157. RECEIVING: Massillon-Devon Jordan 10-105, A.J. Collins 4-50, Marquis Williams 4-32, Joe Jovingo 2-8, David Hill 2-7, Robert Oliver 1-19, Stephon Ashcraft 1-9. Mansfield Senior-Jeff Montgomery 5-69, Marcus Davis 5-49, Dane Greer 2-34, Brian White 1-8, Ivory Perdue 1-(-3). INTERCEPTIONS: Massillon-Andy Alleman 1-6, Brian Hill 1-0. Mansfield Senior-None. clecinosu |