Symmes Valley rolled on Friday night, Nov. 13, beating Shadyside 56-22 at Willow Wood in an Ohio High School Athletic Association Division VII, Region 27 semifinal. The final score is listed in the Mansfield News Journal’s statewide regional-semifinal list, The Columbus Dispatch’s third-round scoreboard, the Ironton Tribune’s state playoff scores and the Reflector’s Friday scores.
The Vikings, the region’s No. 1 seed, entered the night 11-0, according to the OHSAA’s regional-semifinal pairings, and improved to 12-0 with the 34-point win. Shadyside, the No. 5 seed, finishes its season 10-3.
It was Symmes Valley’s second straight lopsided playoff win. The Vikings beat Steubenville Catholic Central 55-0 on Nov. 6 in the regional quarterfinal, a result shown on the team’s MaxPreps schedule, after a first-round bye as the region’s top seed.
The sources used for this story published no individual scoring plays or player statistics for the semifinal itself, so none are reported here. The four statewide lists agree on the final: 56-22.
Shadyside’s season ends in the regional semifinal after a 10-win campaign. Symmes Valley has now outscored its two playoff opponents 112-22.
The Vikings have been dominant all season in Willow Wood, in Lawrence County. MaxPreps’ schedule page for Symmes Valley, updated Nov. 11, listed the Vikings at 11-0 and having outscored their opponents 560-62 across those 11 games, including a 56-0 win over South Gallia on Oct. 23 and the 55-0 quarterfinal shutout of Catholic Central.
Friday’s 56 points matched that season-long pattern rather than breaking it: Symmes Valley has scored 55 or more in at least three of the games on the MaxPreps schedule page, and the 22 points Shadyside managed were still not enough to keep the Tigers within five scores by the final whistle recorded on the statewide lists.
The Vikings advance to the Division VII, Region 27 final on Friday, Nov. 20, against Danville, which blanked Toronto 46-0 in the other Region 27 semifinal on Friday, according to The Columbus Dispatch’s third-round takeaways. The final pairs the region’s top two seeds — Symmes Valley was No. 1 and Danville No. 2 in the OHSAA pairings — and both teams will arrive unbeaten at 12-0. The OHSAA will announce the neutral site on Sunday, Nov. 15.