Kenston rolls to win; Beachwood cancels

Kenston pitches a shutout against neighborhood rival Chagrin Falls, reports Rob Rodusky. Also, Beachwood’s opener against Orange is canceled due to COVID-19 protocols.

A near full moon hovering over Bomber Stadium on a clear night had a perfect view to see two crosstown rivals compete as Kenston hosted Chagrin on Aug. 20.

Kenston defeated their nemesis quite handily, blanking the Tigers, 35-0.

With close to 20 returning starters, Kenston had the competitive advantage and it showed on their first possession.

Junior quarterback Nikko Georgiou completed all five of his passes to march his squad 79 yards for a score. The drive culminated with a 29-yard strike to freshman wide receiver Tymir Cardona. A Parker Munday extra point made it 7-0 with 8:35 left.

After a Chagrin fumble gave Kenston a short field, it took two runs to tack on another score. The final by sophomore running back Sean Patrick saw him start right only to cut back and break three tackles on his way into the end zone from five yards out. Munday’s kick was true to put the home team up 14-0.

Kenston’s third scoring possession included a good mix of runs and passes ended with Georgiou (16 for 25, 229 yards, 4 touchdowns and 1 interception) hitting J.P. Germano for nine yards.

After an unsuccessful conversion on fourth and inches by Chagrin, Kenston needed one play to score as Georgiou connected with Carson Rivera-Gebeau on a beautiful 44-yard pass and run.

“Going in, I thought that we have a pretty good athletic team. I am very happy with how the offensive and defensive line played on both sides of the ball,” said Kenston coach Jeff Grubich.

And with good reason, as his offense generated more than 350 yards of total offense on the night while holding the Tigers to 120 yards. Most of Chagrin’s yards came with the reserves in and the game well in hand.

Kenston took the opening kick-off of the second half and with a steady dose of Patrick (13 carries for 102 yards, 1 touchdown) promptly marched 80 yards in 11 plays. Georgiou hit Germano again, this time on a 16-yard slant, for the touchdown. Munday, who was perfect on the night on extra points, hit his fifth to make it 35-0.

While the game did not go his team’s way, Tigers first year coach John Scott remained optimistic about his team’s future: “Week 1 to week 2 is where you make your biggest strides. Most of the things that we are going to see on film can be corrected”

Both teams are at home on Aug. 27 at Kenston (1-0) plays Perry (1-0) and Chagrin (0-1) faces off against Trinity at C.S. Harris Stadium.

In taking in the moment post game, Grubich seemed to appreciate the grandeur that seemed to be missing from the 2020 season, “This is what football is supposed to be about. I am happy to be back at it.”