Ravenna battles injuries in shutout win over Shelby

By Brendan Samuels
LocalSportsJournal.com

SHELBY – Despite needing the trainer on the field at multiple points on Friday, Ravenna football cruised to a 42-0 win over Shelby.

The Bulldogs started the game on defense and quickly forced Shelby into a punt situation. After fielding the ball themselves, the Bulldogs turned to quarterback Blake Homoly to dial up multiple deep shots. Those shots were open for them as Shelby’s defensive secondary saw lapses in coverage, but Homoly’s receivers dropped sure-fire house calls on the opening drive.

Shelby’s defense stepped up deep in their own territory as Phillip Hayes hauled in an interception to give the Tigers the ball back. The ensuing drive turned into another Tigers punt.

“We turned in the best four practices in a row this week that we had all year,” Shelby coach Phil Fortier said. “The execution was better and we were in the game. We were doing well stopping the run, but at critical times we had breakdowns.”

Both the Bulldogs and Tigers got one additional drive each in the first quarter, with neither proving fruitful. Even worse for Ravenna, Drew Mabrito went down with an apparent leg injury and never returned to the game.

Things heated up with 11 seconds left in the first when Ravenna’s Derek Finlay punched in an 11-yard touchdown run following a pass interference call that set them up inside the 20. The Bulldogs offense exploded in the second quarter.  

After Nick Mabrito picked off Shelby’s Lalo Garcia as time expired and ran it back to the Tigers’ 20-yard line, Homoly found Chase Thomas on a passing touchdown. Homoly and Thomas connected once more late in the quarter on a 40-yard touchdown pass.

The defense also showed flashes in that same quarter. The Bulldogs put up points on the defensive side thanks to a Findlay scoop-and-score on a Shelby fumble.  Facing a 28-0 deficit at halftime, things looked bleak for the Tigers.

Shelby’s brightest spot in the first half came from a pair of interceptions and some special teams savvy. Levi Cooley joined Hayes in the interception category and Garcia turned a fake punt attempt into a 53-yard run.

“As far as Levi goes, he’s been sick all week and was in the emergency room,” Fortier said. “He got himself well enough to come back and play so I appreciate that toughness. We didn’t think he was going to play much but we ended up having to go to him. Phillip made some plays as well. Those interceptions were big. I just wish we could have cashed in on those opportunities.”

The Tigers unfortunately wouldn’t cash in on any of their opportunities in the second half. Ravenna turned to Homoly twice more in the second half and he connected with Nick Mabrito and Caleb Forsythe on touchdowns to put the Bulldogs up for good.

Ravenna battled their way back to .500 with the win as they now sit at 2-2 overall with a 2-0 record in the WMC Rivers. The Bulldogs will face Mason County Central at home next Friday.

Shelby falls to 0-4 and will host Hesperia next week in a game that looks eerily similar to the two teams’ meeting from 2022. The Tigers were winless heading into that matchup before defeating the Panthers in overtime.

“(This game) may be bigger (this year). We’ve got to find a way to win,” Fortier said. “Our stands deserve it, our kids deserve it and we’ve been working hard to make this thing go. Every week is huge for us.”

Photos by Brendan Samuels