TIPP CITY, Ohio — No. 2-seeded Tippecanoe scored early and often Friday night, routing No. 10 Goshen 49-7 in a Division III, Region 12 regional quarterfinal at Tipp City Park. The final was confirmed on scoreboards published by The Columbus Dispatch, the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Mansfield News Journal and the Zanesville Times Recorder, and Press Pros Magazine reported the game from Tipp City.
Press Pros Magazine reported that the Red Devils ran out to a 42-0 lead and rode the running clock the rest of the way, leading 35-0 late in the second quarter and pushing the margin to 49-0 early in the second half. Senior quarterback Larkin Thomas threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third, according to Press Pros Magazine, including a 10-yard scoring run two plays after Tippecanoe recovered a mishandled Goshen punt snap at the Goshen 8.
“Coach always talks about coming out fast, and tonight we came out fast,” Thomas told Press Pros Magazine. “We controlled the game up front with that O line, and our defense put fear into them and caused some turnovers.” Thomas’s two touchdown passes both went to Bentley Heckman, on strikes of 50 and 38 yards, while Colston Artz added two rushing touchdowns and sophomore Levi Jones scored twice, according to Press Pros Magazine.
Goshen’s offense never recovered from a cascade of mistakes. After its best early drive stalled on a failed fourth down inside the Tippecanoe 15, Goshen turned the ball over on its next five possessions, including botched handoffs recovered by Ethan Rice and Rohan Nicholls and a Nicholls interception, Press Pros Magazine reported. Gage Croley, who entered with 1,417 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns this season according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, scored Goshen’s only points on a 4-yard run early in the fourth quarter, Press Pros Magazine reported.
The result fit Tippecanoe’s season-long defensive profile. The Cincinnati Enquirer reported in its playoff preview that the Red Devils had posted seven shutouts and allowed only 20 points total since a Week 1 loss to Bellbrook, while averaging about 45 points per game on offense. Goshen, the Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division co-champion, had beaten Hughes 39-36 a week earlier for its first playoff win since 2020, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“I loved how the boys came out and played,” Tippecanoe coach Matt Burgbacher told Press Pros Magazine. “I love the tempo our offense played with, and that’s a tough offense that we were facing.” Tippecanoe improves to 10-1 with its 10th straight win, and Goshen’s season ends at 10-2.
Tippecanoe hosts again in the Region 12 semifinal on Friday, November 13, when No. 3 Cincinnati McNicholas visits Tipp City, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Week 13 matchups. McNicholas shut out Kettering Alter 10-0 on Friday to reach the semifinal at 9-2, Press Pros Magazine reported.
Photo: Niagara66, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons