North hangs on

Senior quarterback Jake Tanski did it all for North on Sept. 29 in a 26-20 victory over visiting Riverside at Nick Carter Stadium.

On offense, Tanski ran for two touchdowns and threw for another as the Rangers held off a late charge by the Beavers to prevail in an eventful, error-filled Western Reserve Conference contest.

On defense, playing cornerback, Tanski intercepted a pass with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. The crucial turnover stopped the Beavers dead in their tracks after they’d drawn to within six points with a touchdown and recovered the ensuing onside kick in North territory.

As punter, Tanski used his leg to repeatedly put the Beavers in disadvantageous positions.

The Rangers also got a yeoman night’s work from many players as they snapped a four-game losing streak that included a 46-13 thumping at the hands of archrival South in Week 5.

“This was a really important game for us, especially after what happened last week against South,” Tanski said.

Tanski got the Rangers going with just under four minutes remaining in the first quarter on a 16-yard TD pass to senior wide receiver Brad Burrows. With two placekickers sidelined by injuries, the Rangers went for and failed on three of four attempted two-point conversions after their touchdowns.

The Rangers moved ahead, 12-0, early in the second when the defense forced a three-and-out punt. On the first play of the ensuing North possession, junior running back Brett Payne raced 61 yards to paydirt after taking a pitch from Tanski. The TD jaunt marked Payne’s return after missing three games with an injury.

With time running out in the second quarter, the Beavers took advantage of recovering an errant snap on a punt attempt by North deep in Rangers’ territory. Senior quarterback Nate Sleek threw a 6-yard TD pass to junior wide receiver Michael Wojkowski with 17 seconds remaining to trim North’s lead to 12-6.

After a scoreless third quarter, North made it 20-6 early in the fourth quarter on a 5-yard TD run by Tanski, who also cashed in the two-point conversion attempt. Sleek atoned for an interception with a 12-yard TD pass junior wide receiver Daniel Smith. The two-point conversion attempt failed and North’s lead was 20-12.

Tanski struck again four minutes later, turning a broken pass play into a 16yard TD run that pushed North’s lead to 26-12.

Sleek and the Riverside offense answered that score immediately with another TD pass to Smith, this one covering 22 yards. The same duo connected on the two-point conversion with 4:27 remaining to make it 26-20 and set the stage for the interception by Tanski that turned out to be a game-saver for the Rangers.

“I am so incredibly proud of these kids for what they did tonight. They were physical on both sides of the ball,” North coach Shawn Dodd said.

The Rangers improved to 2-4 with the win. Riverside slipped to 2-4.

“We made too many mistakes, but you’ve got to give credit to North for the way they bounced back after losing to their rival last week,” Riverside coach Dave Bors said.

THE SCORE

NORTH 26, RIVERSIDE 20