Bulldog senior Quarterback Jess Roller kept his balance as he made his way toward the end zone in Batavia’s 46-14 loss to Bethel-Tate.
Tigers receiver Jordan Essig attempted to break free from Batavia defender Evan Hamilton.
Batavias’ Junior receiver Ziaire Underwood extended the ball across the goalie for a touchdown early in the first half of the Bulldogs matchup against Bethel-Tate.
What could only be described as a historic night for the Bethel-Tate football team saw the Tigers (2-3) defeat fellow Southern Buckeye Athletic Conference foe Batavia (2-3) by a final score of 46-14.
Nearing the halfway point of the season, Bethel-Tate looked to rebound from last week’s loss to Miami Trace, while Batavia tried to pick up back-to-back wins after defeating Shroder in their previous matchup.
In an area full of passionate fans, the crisp fall air and the unmistakable sound of High School bands performing fight songs set the stage for a magical evening unique to High School Football on Friday nights.
Before the action began, a historic and extraordinary moment as Bethel-Tate senior Quarterback Cam Snider was recognized as the school’s all-time leader in passing yards (5,119) after breaking the previous record held by Alex Manz (5,043) in the Tigers game last week.
Head Coach Jeff Essing had the following to say about Snider’s achievement.
“Cam has been our QB in some capacity since his freshman year, so we knew the opportunity to break the record would be possible. He played in 4 games his freshman year & due to the injury of Chris Long, Cam was the QB for most of the history-making playoff game (farthest round ever achieved in school history) vs. Clinton Massie in the 2020 season. Even though we lost that game, Cam showed he had the skills to be a varsity QB (17 of 31 for 257 passing yards & threw for 3 TDs). In 2021, he helped to lead our team to a SBAAC League championship. We are halfway through this year’s schedule, and he is on pace to be a 2,000-yard passer & add some more yards to the current record of 5,397 yards he now has after the Batavia game.”
Amidst the celebration, visiting Batavia tried to play the role of the spoilers. The Bulldogs still rode the momentum built from their victory the previous week.
The game began with the Bethel-Tate offense first to take the field. Snider wasted little time showing why he is now the passing King for the Tigers, completing four passes on a 60-yard drive that resulted in a 12-yard touchdown run by Nolan Darnell. After a missed PAT, Bethel-Tate led 6-0.
The Tigers also appeared to be up for the challenge after forcing Batavia into a turnover on downs. At a crucial time in the first half, The Bulldogs responded with a solid defensive stand, giving their offense a chance to put points on the board. Bethel-Tate was called for a 15-yard pass interference penalty before giving up a 16-yard run by Bulldog senior Quarterback Jess Roller. However, the Tigers stymied Batavia again, forcing the Bulldogs into another turnover on downs.
Just as all momentum appeared to favor Bethel-Tate, Batavia’s defense bailed them out once again. Senior Evan Hamilton picked off Sniders’ pass and returned it across the Tigers 35-yard line, putting Batavia in prime position to strike back. Only a handful of plays later, the Bulldogs did precisely that. Roller found Ziaire Underwood for a nine-yard touchdown pass that gave Batavia the 7-6 lead after Cheikh Fofana hit the PAT.
Bethel-Tate quickly reclaimed the lead on their ensuing possession when Snider hit Troy Harris on a 16-yard strike. After a failed two-point conversion, the Tigers led 12-7.
The Bulldog offense showed remarkable resilience after capping off another touchdown drive, which ended with Tito Wagoner pounding the ball into the endzone. Fofana nailed the PAT, making the score 14-12 in favor of Batavia.
Bethel-Tate tightened up their play for the remainder of the first half. The Tigers locked down on defense and used two consecutive touchdown drives, the first being a 16-yard pass from Snider to Harris for the score and the second being a 35-yard touchdown catch by Jordan Essig from Snider. Bethel-Tate held a 26-14 lead at the halftime break.
The second half began as a defensive battle; neither team found the scoreboard in the third quarter. Waylon Morris broke the deadlock with consecutive touchdown runs, giving Bethel-Tate the 39-14 lead in the final quarter. Snider ended his night with a 32-yard touchdown run to solidify the win for the Tigers. Bethel-Tate did not allow any more points on the night on their way to defeating Batavia 46-14.
After the game, Coach Essig noted his team’s confidence heading out of halftime.
“Our players were very confident going into halftime. We reminded them that the game was nowhere near being over, especially with the style of offense Batavia plays. Coach Randy Hospelhorn always does a great job with our defense, and we were extremely proud of how our guys shut out Batavia’s offense in the 2nd half. Our DBs Will Rapp & Joe Kilgore had a tough assignment covering Batavia’s WR Max Mehlman (holding him to 1 catch for 17 yards). Our offense was shut out in the 3rd quarter, but we started making plays in the 4th quarter to add to our lead. Big plays from our WR Waylon Morris to score 2 TDs in the 4th quarter gave us another spark to finish the game strong.”
Essig ended with what he believes is just want his team needed before they begin league play.
“It was a great way to get ready for league play, heading in on a WIN. We had a tough non-league schedule. 4 of the 5 teams on our non-league schedule were from higher divisions (New Richmond, Woodward & Miami Trace were D3 & Batavia was D4). We really needed to get back to the winning side of things after playing such a tough schedule so far, and this game will serve as a springboard entering into league play. This win also put us back into playoff contention for our region. There are 3 teams in our league who are in our region all vying for the 16 spots to make the playoffs & currently Blanchester is the highest rank at 10. We have got to play even better than we have been to maintain positioning in one of the 16 spots, and this game was a good way to evaluate just how good we can be. This game showed our team that when we play as a team and all 3 phases are fundamentally sound, we can be very successful.”
With the Win, Essig earned his 50th win for the program and became the all-time winningest coach in the school’s history.
Bethel-Tate will welcome East Clinton (2-3) to Tiger Stadium for their matchup next week. Batavia hits the road once again to take on Western Brown (1-4)
Bethel-Tate Stats:
Passing: Snider 20/30, 278 yards, 5 TDs, 1 Int
Rushing: Darnell 14 attempts, 48 yards, 1 TD
Snider 7 attempts, 61 yards, 1 TD
Receiving: Waylon Morris 7 receptions, 85 yards, 2 TDs. Troy Harris 5 receptions, 69 yards, 2 TDs. Jordan Essig 4 receptions, 83 yards 1 TD
Batavia Stats:
Passing; Roller 15/31 220 1 TD, 2 Ints
Rushing: Austyn Shepherd 25 yards, Roller 31 yards, Hamilton 23 yards, Carson Harris 3 yards, 1 TD.
Receiving: Marcus Hughbanks 133 yards, Harris 45 yards, Underwood 16 yards 1 TD