WILMINGTON — On a night when they needed big plays to seal the win, the Wilmington Hurricane found a way to get it done.

Michael Streety’s pick-six late in the game clinched Wilmington’s 35-21 win over visiting Ross Friday night at Alumni Field.

It was a back and forth game with the Rams engineering several time-consuming drives on the ground, keeping the clock moving. Although the Hurricane did not chew up the clock with their drives, they maximized their chances. In the crucial fourth quarter, the Cane defense came up with big defensive stops on the Rams final two possessions to get the victory.

“Tonight, the defense really stepped up and made huge stops,” a jubilant Hurricane head coach Ryan Evans said as he headed to the locker-room in the Mike Marine Center. “That was championship caliber defense out there. It’s not how you start that matters, it’s how you finish. These kids made it happen.”

The turning point in the game happened mid-way through the final quarter, when the teams were deadlocked in a 21-21 standoff. Wilmington executed successfully on a fake punt (for the second time in the game), and Josiah Puller put WHS on top with a 24-yard scamper up the middle with 7:00 to play.

On the ensuing drive, Jessie Keith recovered a fumble on an errant center to quarterback exchange but Wilmington’s offense could not convert and turned the ball over on downs, allowing Ross another chance to tie the score. Keith came up with a crucial quarterback sack with less than one minute remaining.

Ross quarterback Emory Severance heaved a desperation pass on fourth down, but Michael Streety stepped in front of the intended Rams’ receiver at the 25 and rambled into the end zone, slamming the door on the potential comeback.

Several Hurricane players stepped up in the contest. Elijah Stewart returned a second quarter kickoff return 89 yards for a touchdown just seconds after the Rams had tied the game at 7-7.

Stevie Rickman made an acrobatic catch in the right corner of the end zone just before halftime, connecting with Hurricane quarterback Jake Stephens, enabling the Hurricane to grab a 21-14 halftime lead. Rickman had the first Hurricane touchdown when he and Stephens completed a 59-yard scoring effort on the game’s opening drive.

Coach Evans was proud of his teams’ bounce-back effort from the loss at Mount Healthy.

“We had our share of adversity and Ross is a very good team. Our crowd tonight was great. The fans really kept the enthusiasm going tonight,” Evans said.

Wilmington honored its 2024 Hall of Fame Class during halftime ceremonies, which included Ashley Howard, Marque Jones, Quentin Rollins and former WHS football and track coach Roger Ilg.

The Hurricane will return to Alumni Field next Friday night, hosting the Chillicothe Cavaliers.

SUMMARY

Sept 13, 2024

@Alumni Field

Hurricane 35, Rams 21

First Quarter

W-Steven Rickman 59 yard pass from Jake Stephens (Dylan Groves PAT)

Second Quarter

R-Sam Marcum 35 yard pass from Emory Severance (AJ Sparks PAT)

W-Eli Stewart 88 yard kickoff return (Dylan Groves PAT)

R-Emory Severance 3 yard run (AJ Sparks PAT)

W-Steven Rickman 6 yard pass from Jake Stephens (Dylan Groves PAT)

Third Quarter

R-Emory Severance 25 yard run (AJ Sparks PAT)

Fourth Quarter

W-Josiah Puller 24 yard run (Dylan Groves PAT)

W-Michael Streety 49 yard interception return (Dylan Groves PAT)

STATISTICS

TEAM

WILMINGTON: 11 first downs, 234 total yards (89 rush, 145 pass), 6-45 penalties, 0 fumbles lost

ROSS: 14 first downs, 281 total yards (214 rush, 67 pass), 5-55 penalties, 2 turnovers

INDIVIDUAL

RUSHING: WHS (25-91) Josiah Puller 10-54, Bryson Schutte 8-38, Jake Stephens 4-(-12), Luke Johnson 2-8, Eli Stewart 1-3; Ross (45-214) Lucas Kunkel 23-131, Emory Severance 20-84, Mason Smith 2-(-1)

PASSING: WHS (12-22-0, 2 TD, 174 yards) Jake Stephens 12-22-0, 2 TD, 174 yards; Ross (4-9-1, 67 yards, 1 TD) Emory Severance 4-9-1, 1 TD, 67 yards

RECEIVING: WHS (12-174) Steven Rickman 5-91, Zane Smith 3-37, Josiah Puller 2-14, Eli Stewart 2-32; Ross (4-67-1) Sam Marcum 1-25-1, Evan Gabbard 1-23-0, Andrew Gettler 1-11-0, Mason Smith 1-8-0

DEFENSE

FUMBLE RECOVERY: Eli Stewart 1

INTERCEPTIONS: Michael Streety 1, Eli Stewart 1

TACKLES: Jesse Keith 20 (2 tfl), Bryson Schutte 17 (1 tfl), Malachi Cumberland 10 (4 tfl), Luke Achtermann 12 (2 tfl), Eli Stewart 9 (2 pd), Iona Cioca 7 (1.5 tfl), Zane Smith 7 (2 tfl), Michael Streety 5 (1 tfl, 1 pd), Blake Turner 6 (1 tfl), Bryant Conley 5 (1 tfl), Steven Rickman 6 (1 pd), Rodney Goings 6 (o.5 tfl), Luke Johnson 5, Josiah Puller 4, Payden Mawyer 3 (1 pd)