The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Physical play highlights Chardon-Mentor tuneup
Cardinals prepare for St. Edward matchup; Hilltoppers set to face Geauga rival West G
The final scrimmage of the preseason high school football teams is often a lighter dress rehearsal for the regular-season opener a week later.
You know — game situation without the physicality of the real thing that is about to come.
That wasn’t the case at Memorial Stadium in Chardon on Aug. 22, however, when the Hilltoppers hosted Mentor in the final preseason tuneup for both teams.
Bone-jarring hits, driveblocking 15 yards downfield and thunderous swarm-tackling highlighted a night when Mentor hung a 35-7 score on Chardon in one half of gamesituation play.
“What I liked about it was it being physical,” Mentor coach Steve Trivisonno said. “We needed that. We can’t always duplicate that in practice like they can. Granted, we’re not going to see this type of offense. But we got to see tough, hardnosed football. When you open with Eds and Ignatius like we do, that’s not pattycake football. We needed this tonight.”
After giving up an early touchdown to Chardon’s James Pettijohn on a 75-yard jetsweep, Mentor’s defense held the fort.
Meanwhile, the Mentor offense scored every time it had the ball.
Brian Trobel had a 67yard run, part of a night when he ran for more than 100 yards, and junior quarterback Ian Kipp threw for three scores and ran for another.
“I think we did some good things,” Trivisonno said. “We caught the ball,
we ran well and we threw well. But we still have a lot to do before next week.” Mentor opens Aug. 29 at St. Edward, while Chardon plays West Geauga on Aug. 30.
The scrimmage was even for a while. After Trobel scored to start the scoring, Pettijohn went 75 yards on the very next play.
Mentor took the lead on Kipp’s 24-yard run, which featured him hurdling a pair
of players at the goal line.
Chardon went to answer, but on third-and-goal from the 4, a motion penalty backed up the Hilltoppers. Mentor’s Jackson Paglio picked off a pass to thwart the scoring effort.
“Critical. Critical,” said Chardon coach Mitch Hewitt of the penalty. “It’s 14-7 and we’re going into score. I don’t know if we were going to stop them tonight, but I thought we played hard. We
just have some things we need to get better at.”
After Paglio’s pick, Mentor went right down the field and scored on a 16yard pass from Kipp to Luke Floriea.
On Chardon’s next possesssion, two straight motion penalties put the Hilltoppers behind the sticks and they punted. Kipp then hit Floriea on a long post pattern for a 28-7 lead.
The scoring was wrapped up with Mentor’s two-minute offense produced a Kipp-to-Nolan Vernon touchdown.
Despite the score, Hewitt liked what he saw from his team. Starting quarterback Max Vujaklija was held out of action for precautionary reasons, with Joey Trivisonno and Brady Toth taking the lion’s share of the quarterback snaps.
“For is the physicality I was very pleased with,” Hewitt said. “I think we’re going to be a tough, hardnose football club. (Mentor’s) skill is as good as any in the state of Ohio. In order for us to win our league, we’re going to see that stuff.”
Trivisonno gave warning to the team’s on Chardon’s schedule.
“I told Mitch this — he’s got a tough team,” Trivisonno said. “I tell ya what, they’re gonna be hard to beat.”