Athens beat Nelsonville-York 14-13 on Friday night at Boston Field in Nelsonville to win the Tri-Valley Conference-Ohio championship, the Bulldogs’ first league title since 2018. Athens finished the regular season 9-1 overall and a perfect 6-0 in conference play.
Both teams arrived at 8-1 with the championship on the line, and Athens spent the first half getting shut out in a physical, defensive game. The Bulldogs’ defense kept them within reach, and the offense finally broke through after halftime to take control of the title race.
Quarterback Briar Thomas threw for 112 yards and two touchdowns, all of it coming in the second half. His scoring passes turned a scoreless first half into a 14-point rally, capped by a 48-yard touchdown strike that stood up as the game-winner in the one-point finish.
Liam Kline led the Athens receivers with 66 yards, 48 of them on that game-winning touchdown, while Jaxon Warner caught the Bulldogs’ other touchdown. Cohen Stalder carried the ground game with 124 rushing yards and added the night’s most important short catch, a two-yard grab that kept the decisive drive alive.
The loss drops Nelsonville-York to 9-1 and 5-1 in the TVC-Ohio. The Buckeyes had beaten Athens in Week 10 in each of the past two seasons to take the league crown, and Friday’s result denied them a third straight championship in front of their home crowd.
Athens head coach Nathan White praised his players’ persistence after a game full of swings, saying the win felt especially good after three years of chasing it and that he could not have been prouder of the effort against a strong Nelsonville-York team.
The championship was also a farewell of sorts: Friday was Athens’ final regular-season game as a member of the TVC-Ohio. The Bulldogs now turn to the Ohio high school playoffs with a league trophy secured, while Nelsonville-York also heads into the postseason at 9-1.
The one-point margin fit the rivalry’s recent history, with the championship meeting decided late after Athens was held scoreless for a half and Nelsonville-York controlled long stretches behind its defense. Both teams now carry 9-1 records into the playoffs, and a postseason rematch later this fall remains a possibility neither side would turn down after Friday’s finish.
Photo: Ohio Redevelopment Projects – ODSA, CC BY