Keystone rolls over Oberlin

The three-headed Wildcats made the presence known early.

Keystone wide receiver Ryan Shackelford, quarterback Konner Rodick, and Gideon Lampron showcased their dominance in their 55-6 win over short-handed Oberlin in their home opener.

The tone was set on the opening kickoff as Shackelford took it back 85 yards into the endzone to lead 7-0.

“We wanted to get off to a fast start,” Wildcats’ coach Don Griswold said after the win. “We aren’t always aware of what it’s going to look like, but we have playmakers and we want to give our playmakers the ball in space and we did. I didn’t think we’d start off that fast but we did.”

Keystone ran wild in the first half scoring 27 points at the end of the first quarter and led 40-0 at halftime to initiate the running clock. Their Big 3 scored at least one touchdown in the first half.

Their offense used their big-play abilities to score on five of their touchdowns from 25 yards or more.

“We are built for ..,” Griswold said.

“We can score from anywhere on the field, we stretch the field horizontally and vertically. That’s who we are.

Lampron shined the brightest of the Big 3, amassing 160 rushing yards with three touchdowns. All three of his touchdowns came off his first three carries in the night, but he and Griswold credited the offensive line’s play.

“have been working really hard,” Lampron said. “They have experienced a lot of adversity… I’m proud of them, but we need to keep looking forward to next week.”

Quarterback did not need to throw the ball to be effective, as he rushed for 111 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Oberlin struggled to get their offense going, accumulating 76 yards of offense in the first half that ended with the Wildcats leading 40-0.

Oberlin did have a drive that appeared to gain momentum in the second quarter, but it resulted in an interception by Zach Shackelford, the freshman. It was one of Shackelford’s two interceptions on the night.

“We were getting so much head ,” Phoenix head coach Mike Akers said after the game.”

“After the initial word to throw the ball, you really couldn’t look to a second receiver.”

The younger Shackelford also took snaps as quarterback in the fourth quarter, scoring a 51-yard rushing touchdown for Keystone.

The Wildcats came into this game after their 49-20 loss at LeBrae in Youngstown and were determined to right their wrongs from last week.

“We had a lot of work to do after last week’s loss (to LaBrae),” Griswold said. We wanted to come out here and get better and we did.”

Oberlin did manage to get their offense going in the fourth quarter as Andre Yarber scored on a 10yard touchdown. By then, it was too late for a comeback. He led his team in rushing with 80 yards.

Keystone improves their record to 2-1, while Oberlin drops to 1-3.

Both teams will play home games next week as the Wildcats take on Wellington on Friday the 17th. Oberlin will host Firelands on Saturday the 18th.