Leopards Earn 1st Victory on the Road at Northwest 16-6 – Varsity Football
Louisville 16, Northwest 6
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The Louisville Leopards Varsity Football Team earned their first victory of the season by defeating the host Northwest Indians 16-6 Friday Night at Dr. Martin Smilek Stadium. With the win, Louisville improves to 1-2 on the season.
Game Stats | Scoring Summary | Team Stats | Individual Stats
Essik Totals 162 Yards of Offense
Senior runningback Andrew Essik carried the ball 26 times and finished with 112 yards rushing to lead the Leopard offense. Essik also caught a 40 yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Daveion Cruse on a 3rd-and-11 play with 1:44 to go in the third quarter that gave Louisville a commanding 16-6 lead.
Cruse would finish 12 of 18 passing for 154 yards and throw two touchdowns. His first went to senior wide receiver Charlie Roberts who scored on a 51 yard touchdown reception to give the Leopards a 6-0 lead with 7:23 to go in the second quarter.
Loy Ends Northwest Threat with Endzone Pick
The game began with three straight three-and-out possessions. Louisville junior returner Chase Mueller returned Northwest’s second punt 12 yards setting up the Leopards with great field position at the Indians 40. The Leopards recorded the first first down of the game on an Essik burst through the middle. However, the LHS drive would stall in the redzone as Louisville netted only a yard on a 4th-and-2 from the NHS 17.
The Indians began moving the ball successfully on their next drive and also reached the 17 yard line on the other side of the field. However, an errant snap on 3rd-and-4 pushed Northwest back 9 yards setting up a 4th-and-13. Sophomore quarterback Chase Badger’s pass to the endzone on the next play was intercepted by 6’3 Leopard sophomore defensive back Kolton Loy and returned to the Louisville 18.
Louisville Turns Takeaway into Roberts TD
The pick would give the Leopards possession on what would turn out to be their first scoring drive of the contest. Louisville’s 8 play, 82 yard drive featured two key conversions before they reached the endzone. On 3rd-and-3 from the LHS 25, Cruse hit Mueller for an 11 yard reception to move the sticks. On their next series of downs, the Leopards were stopped short on a third down run bringing up 4th-and-1. Louisville sent the punting unit onto the field, but it was senior runningback/linebacker Jacob Davide who took the direct snap and ran up the middle for a gain of 4 yards to the LHS 49.
On the next play, Cruse hit Roberts on a swing to his left. Roberts was sprung free down the left sideline by blocks from senior wide receivers Brandon Jackson and Mueller. Roberts sprinted untouched into the endzone for the Leopards first passing touchdown of the season. The extra point attempt missed leaving the score a 6-0 in favor of the Leopards with 7:23 left before halftime.
Two Minute Drill Sets Up Colley Field Goal
The next three possessions resulted in punts as Louisville got the ball back on their own 40 with 2:02 to play before the break. The Leopards efficiently moved the ball down the field and into field goal range. Cruse hit junior wide receiver Tate Golden for a 17 yard first down reception. Then Cruse scrambled for 12 yards for another first down on the next play. A Cruse to Mueller completion to the right sideline moved the chains once more putting Louisville inside the redzone.
The Leopards were unable to move the sticks again, but they were able to put sophomore kicker Seth Colley into position to boot home a 27 yard field goal with three ticks remaining on the second quarter clock. Louisville went into the locker room ahead 9-0.
Miragila Gets Northwest on the Board
The Indians defense forced a Leopard punt on the opening possession of the second half. Northwest took over from their own 31 yard line and marched 69 yards on 10 plays to paydirt. Junior runningback Kyler Miragila carried the ball six times on the drive which included scoring on a 5 yard touchdown run on 1st-and-goal. Miragila would finish as the Indians leading rusher with 24 carries for 101 yards on the night.
The Northwest scoring drive was keyed by a 3rd-and-10 sophomore connection from Badger to wide receiver Landen Cross that went for 25 yards to the Leopard 31. Cross was the Indians leading pass receiver on the night with 5 grabs for 39 yards. Badger would finish 10 of 25 passing for 137 yards.
Trailing 9-6, Northwest would go to the air again on the two-point conversion attempt. Badger threw to the right corner of the endzone to senior wide receiver Carter Magyarics. However, the 6’2 Mueller was there to either slightly tip or obstruct the view of Magyarics enough to cause an incompletion. That left the score 9-6 in favor of Louisville with 5:48 left in the third quarter.
Perfect Call Springs Essik for Backbreaking Score
The Leopards began their next drive at their own 39 after Davide snagged the ball on a short squib kick for the second straight Indian kickoff. Louisville slowly moved the ball across midfield netting 21 yards on 8 offensive plays setting up a 3rd-and-11 from the Northwest 40.
Cruse took the snap and began rolling to his right as Northwest came blitzing in unblocked from the weak side. Essik nonchalantly drifted by the blitzer and found himself wide open on the right side of the line. Cruse made a leaping throw over the oncoming linebacker and Essik made the catch at the 41 yard line. The senior runningback sprinted into the open field, sidestepped a defender on the right sideline, and fell into the endzone carrying a Northwest defender. The back-breaking 40 yard touchdown reception put the Leopards ahead by two scores with 1:44 to play in the third quarter.
Colley’s extra point kick was true giving Louisville a commanding double digit 16-6 advantage.
Mueller Makes Game Sealing Interception
The Leopard defense did the rest to preserve the lead and the victory. The Indians marched into Louisville territory three times in the fourth quarter but came up empty.
Northwest drove to the LHS 43 on their next possession, but a 4th-and-8 pass was overthrown down the left sideline. Louisville also turned the ball over on downs on a 4th-and-10 wide receiver pass incompletion at the Indian 32 yard line following that.
The Indians marched 53 yards into the redzone before being stonewalled the Leopard defense line at the 15 yard line. On 3rd-and-9 a lame duck pass to the right was nearly intercepted by senior defensive back Clay Chambers, but fell incomplete. Northwest passed to the left side of the endzone on 4th-and-9 and Roberts pushed the pass into the ground in the secondary to give the ball back to the Leopards.
The Indians got the ball back with 48 seconds left in the game looking for a miracle. One prayer was answered on 3rd-and-10 when Badger threw deep to senior Caden Beichler. The 6’3 wide receiver hauled in a one-handed catch on the facemask of the perfectly position Louisville defensive back and kept possession all the way to the ground for a 32 yard gain.
Beichler’s effort would be all for not. Badger’s pass to the right side of the endzone was intercepted by Mueller to seal the game with 22 seconds remaining. For Mueller, it was his second pick of the season capping off a great game by him in all three phases of the contest. The Leopards went into victory formation and ran out the rest of the clock.
Louisville Vs. Northwest Football Series
The Leopards have now won four straight matchups with the Indians dating back to 2008. Louisville leads the all-time series 17-5, which includes a 9-2 record when playing at Dr. Martin Smilek Stadium.
As of Saturday morning, the Leopards currently hold the 16th and final playoff spot in DIII, Region 9 after the computer points they earned in Canal Fulton Friday Night.
<<< Previous 2010 | Northwest All-Time Series
UP NEXT: The Leopards will next travel to take on the North Canton Hoover Vikings on Friday, September 9. The 100th Louisville Vs. North Canton game will begin at 7:00 PM from Memorial Stadium.
Leopard Northwest Week 3 Scoreboard
Friday, September 2
@Canfield 31, Poland Seminary 7
@North Canton Hoover 40, Akron Garfield 6
@Lake 31, Akron East 13
Perry 42, @Euclid 21
Tallmadge 47, @Green 46, OT
@Austintown Fitch 48, GlenOak 18
@Kenston 31, Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin 17
@Fairmont Senior (WV) 27, Linsly (WV) 24
Saturday, September 3
Archbishop Carrollon (DC) at Stuebenville
Donate to Leopard Nation
Louisville at Northwest Football Game Statistics
Scoring Summary
LEOPARDS 16, INDIANS 6
Team 1-2-3-4–TOTAL
Louisville 0-9-7-0–16
Northwest 0-0-6-0–06
1st Quarter
NO SCORING
2nd Quarter
LOUISVILLE – Charlie Roberts 51 Yard Pass from Daveion Cruse (Kick Failed) | LHS 6, NWHS 0, 7:23
8 Plays, 82 Yards, 2:26
LOUISVILLE – Seth Colley 27 Yard Field Goal | LHS 9, NWHS 0, 0:03
9 Plays, 60 Yards, 1:59
3rd Quarter
NORTHWEST – Kyler Maraglia 5 Yard Run (Pass Failed) | LHS 9, NWHS 6, 5:48
10 Plays, 69 Yards, 4:12
LOUISVILLE – Andrew Essik 40 Yard Pass from Daveion Cruse (Seth Colley Kick) | LHS 16, NWHS 6, 1:44
9 Plays, 71 Yards, 4:03
Records: Louisville 1-2, Northwest 2-1
Team Stats
First Downs
Louisville: 15 (9 Rushing, 6 Passing, 0 Penalty)
Northwest: 16 (6 Rushing, 7 Passing, 3 Penalty)
Total Offense
Louisville: 60 Plays, 320 Yards, 5.3 Average
Northwest: 58 Plays, 233 Yards, 4.0 Average
Rushing
Louisville: 40 Carries, 166 Yards
Northwest: 33 Carries, 96 Yards, 1 Touchdown
Passing
Louisville: 12 of 20 for 154 Yards, 2 Touchdowns
Northwest: 10 of 25 for 137 Yards, 2 Interceptions
Fumbles/Lost
Louisville: 0/0
Northwest: 1/0
Penalties/Yards
Louisville: 5 for 60 Yards
Northwest: 1 for 5 Yards
3rd Down Conversions
Louisville: 7 for 15 (47%)
Northwest: 4 for 11 (36%)
4th Down Conversions
Louisville: 1 for 2 (50%)
Northwest: 0 for 2 (0%)
Punt Yards
Louisville: 4 Punts, 121 Yards (30.3 Average)
Northwest: 4 Punts, 89 Yards (22.3 Average)
Kick Returns
Louisville: 2 Returns, 0 Yards (0.0 Average)
Northwest: 4 Returns, 45 Yards (11.3 Average)
Punt Returns
Louisville: 1 Return, 11 Yards (11.0 Average)
Northwest: 4 Returns, 52 Yards (13.0 Average)
Field Goals
Louisville: 1 for 1 (100%)
Northwest: 0 for 0
Individual Stats
Rushing
Louisville
Andrew Essik 26 Carries, 112 Yards
Daveion Cruse 9 Carries, 34 Yards
Jacob Davide 4 Carries, 15 Yards
Chase Mueller 1 Carry, 5 Yards
Northwest
Kyler Miragila 24 Carries, 101 Yards, Touchdown
Parker Kraft 7 Carries, 13 Yards
Chase Badger 2 Carries, -18 Yards
Passing
Louisville
Daveion Cruse 12 of 18 for 154 Yards, 2 Touchdowns
Charlie Roberts 0 for 2
Northwest
Chase Badger 10 of 25 for 137 Yards, 2 Interceptions
Receiving
Louisville
Charlie Roberts 1 Catch, 51 Yards, Touchdown
Andrew Essik 1 Catch, 40 Yards, Touchdown
Tate Golden 2 Catches, 26 Yards
Chase Mueller 2 Catches, 19 Yards
Braiden Hershey 2 Catches, 13 Yards
Brandon Jackson 4 Catches, 5 Yards
Northwest
Caden Beichler 2 Catches, 57 Yards
Landen Cross 5 Catches, 39 Yards
Carter Magyarics 2 Catches, 28 Yards
Kyler Miragila 1 Catch, 13 Yards
Kick Returns
Louisville
Jacob Davide 2 Returns, 0 Yards
Northwest
Parker Kraft 3 Returns, 45 Yards, 16 Long (15.0 Average
Landen Cross 1 Return, 0 Yards
Punt Returns
Louisville
Chase Mueller 1 Return, 11 Yards
Northwest
Ethan Nickey 4 Returns, 52 Yards, 19 Long (13.0 Average)
Punting
Louisville
Carter Duskey 4 Punts, 121 Yards, 34 Long (30.3 Average)
Northwest
Chase Badger 4 Punts, 89 Yards, 33 Long (22.3 Average)
Takeaways
Louisville
Kolton Loy 1 Interception
Chase Mueller 1 Interception
Northwest
None
