Victory tempered by concern for Lenix
Sunday, November 07, 2004
Tim Warsinskey
Plain Dealer Reporter
Austintown, Ohio - Thanks to a defense led by standout linebacker Freddie Lenix, Glenville shut out host Austintown-Fitch in the second half of Saturday night's Division I regional quarterfinal, and the Tarblooders defeated Fitch, 29-21.
But a celebration of the second playoff victory in Glenville history came to a sudden halt in the north end zone when Lenix collapsed on the grass face down.
He was placed on a backboard and stretcher, and taken in an ambulance to St. Elizabeth's Hospital.
Glenville coach Ted Ginn said Lenix suffered a bruised lower back and had numbness in one of his legs, and was undergoing further tests.
Lenix, a 6-0, 195-pound senior, is considered one of the top linebackers in the country.
He also is a respected team leader for the Tarblooders.
"Freddie is just like a son," Ginn said. "For the last four years, I practically have raised Freddie. That's like my kid. He's the heart and soul of this team, a great student-athlete."
Glenville (10-1) plays next Saturday against St. Edward (6-5), which beat Warren Harding on Saturday.
Ginn credited Lenix and Glenville's defense for the come-from-behind victory. The Tarblooders trailed, 21-8, in the second quarter and were having difficulty stopping a stable of Fitch running backs, including 192-pound tailback Mike Eliseo. He rushed for two touchdowns and 90 yards in the first half, but took several thunderous hits and had 35 yards rushing in the second half.
"We made adjustments on their running game because they were pounding us pretty tough," Ginn said. "We had to stop the run and try to score."
Junior wideout and kick returner Raymond Fisher sparked the comeback with a 94-yard kickoff return for a touchdown with 26 seconds left in the first half. Fisher made a terrific play on a 28-yard touchdown pass from Arvell Nelson in the third quarter, breaking two tackles. Kicker Darren Gibbs' conversion run off a busted point-after attempt gave Glenville a 22-21 lead.
Glenville got the insurance score it needed after a 36-yard pass on third down from Nelson to Jacory Stone, who was tackled at the 1. Fullback Curtis Smith scored on a 1-yard run and Gibbs kicked the extra point for its 29-22 lead with 1:40 remaining in the game. Stone secured the win with an interception at the Glenville 14 on the last play of the game.
Nelson completed 8 of 11 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw an 8-yard TD pass to Daven Jones in the first quarter that was followed by a two-point conversion pass to Stone.
Fitch (9-2), which won the Federal League with a dominant running game, opened the evening with a 74-yard drive on 16 running plays that lasted 8 minutes, 20 seconds. Quarterback John Mang scored on a 3-yard run around right end after faking a handoff up the middle.
Glenville answered in typical style, gliding 62 yards in four plays. Jones made a nice play on his TD catch after the ball was tipped high in the air by a defender in the end zone.
Two Glenville mistakes helped Fitch score twice in the second quarter. A 14-yard Glenville punt to the Tarblooders' 32 set up a 4-yard touchdown run by Eliseo.
