The Port Clinton football team has struggled to generate offense early in games this season.
But it’s also made a habit of finishing strong, including a 21-17 victory over visiting Edison in the Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division on Friday, Oct. 10.
Port Clinton trailed 14-0 in the first quarter and 17-7 at the half.
“It’s unfortunately been our MO to start slow,” Port Clinton coach Eric Leuthold said. “They responded coming out of halftime. The kids played hard and were tough. Fortunately, we’ve come out in the second half of games and played really well.”
The Chargers chewed up much of the clock in the third quarter, forcing Port Clinton to make fast work of any comeback. Port Clinton quarterback Landon Leis ran in from eight yards out to cut the deficit to 17-14.
“We played a little bit cleaner in the second half,” Leuthold said. “That shows how we can adjust. (Edison) is a tough group over there. At halftime, our defensive coaches did a great job at making adjustments that were able to mitigate their offense in the second half.”
Port Clinton (5-3, 2-1) continued to swing the momentum with a red-zone stop, before Malakii Pinkelton went to work with back-to-back runs covering 20 yards. He finished the drive with a touchdown from three yards out to cap the scoring.
“He was able to hit the holes and really get things going in the run game for us, which sets up a lot of different things,” Leuthold said. “Malakii is a good running back and does a great job for us.”
To seal the win, Gavin Cornell flew through Edison’s offensive line and stuffed a fourth-down run with fewer than 2 minutes to play.
“I haven’t beaten them (Edison) in a really long time,” Pinkelton said. “Especially knowing that they run a wing-T and we shut that down. They’re a team that likes to stop the run, and we didn’t let them stop us.
“This was just a great experience.”
Lucas Bodie caught a touchdown pass from Leis for Port Clinton’s first touchdown in the second quarter.
“I’m entirely happy with where we’re at right now,” Pinkelton said. “We’re about to go for the SBC championship next game. It feels great.”
Port Clinton controls its own destiny for at least a share of the crown in the SBC Bay Division as it plays host to Bellevue (5-3, 1-1) next week to cap its league slate. Each team in the league has at least one setback.
This article originally appeared on Port Clinton News Herald: Port Clinton football controls Bay Division destiny after comeback win over Edison
Reporting by Ryan Harless / Port Clinton News Herald
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
