Check out a photo gallery of the game from Scott Iles Photography
By Brad Morris
SportingPumpkin.com
Caden Moore helped deliver a first-half blow on Friday that Logan Elm wasn’t able to recover from.
The Cambridge senior quarterback passed for 258 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the first half to send the Bobcats to a 31-13 win over the host Braves in a Division IV, Region 15 first-round game.
Moore, a three-year starter for the Bobcats, finished the night 23 of 37 passing for 344 yards and two touchdowns. Davion Bahr caught six of those passes for 155 yards and a touchdown and Devin Ogle chipped in six grabs for 63 yards and scored the other touchdown.
“I have to give Cambridge’s guys a lot of credit, because they came out early and really took charge of the game,” Logan Elm coach Terry Holbert said. “They didn’t do anything that we hadn’t seen on the field, but they executed very well and kind of knocked us back on our heels early.”
A short kick gave No. 11 seeded Cambridge great field position on its own 46-yard line to begin the game.
Moore connected with Ogle on a seam route for 45 yards on the first offensive snap to give the Bobcats first-and-goal on the nine.
The Logan Elm defense stiffened and a 25-yard field goal by Luke Parsons gave Cambridge a lead it would never relinquish.
Cambridge took advantage of good field position again, starting its second drive from midfield. Moore connected with Devin Ogle seven plays later on a slant route for a 12-yard touchdown that extended the lead to 10-0.
The Bobcats scored again on the first possession of the second quarter when Bahr literally picked the ball off the right shoulder of a Logan Elm defender and scored from 79 yards out on a deep post route to push the Cambridge advantage to 17-0.
“Cambridge did a really nice job, especially in the first half, of being pretty efficient with its passing game,” Holbert noted.
Sixth-seeded Logan Elm went for it on fourth-and-six from its own 47-yard line midway through the second quarter but was stopped and turned the ball over on downs to Cambridge.
Moore then capped the ensuing six-play drive with a one-yard touchdown run to put the Bobcats ahead 24-0.
Logan Elm finally reached the scoreboard on its second possession of the third quarter. A punt return by Landon Thompson for 22 yards set the Braves up on the Cambridge 39.
Aaron Walters hit Braylen Baker on a slant for 20 yards, then Blayton Reid did the rest of the work with a 19-yard touchdown run around left side that cut Cambridge’s lead to 24-6.
“Our guys showed a lot of fight and character in the second half, and we were finally able to put some things together consistently and put the ball in the end zone a couple of times,” Holbert said.
Logan Elm was on the move again, facing fourth-and-two on its own 47. Reed Thompson made his second interception of the game and returned it 56 yards for a touchdown that put the game away for Cambridge.
The Braves scored their final touchdown when Baker hauled in a 16-yard pass off a deflection from Walters early in the fourth quarter. The extra point kick by Owen Elswick made the eventual final 31-13.
The Braves entered the game feeling like they had an advantage in the box, but a combination of some early stops by the Bobcats and falling behind forced the Braves into the air for most of the night.
“Cambridge held our running game in check early and then with getting behind, we had to pass the ball a lot tonight,” Holbert observed.
Walters was 30 of 59 passing for 310 yards and a touchdown. Baker caught eight of those passes for 95 yards and a score, Landon Thompson made nine receptions for 74 yards and Keegan Diehl added five grabs for 69 yards.
Reid had 18 carries for 93 yards and a touchdown.
Zack Parks, Drew Tomlinson and Diehl each had a fumble recovery for the Braves.
Cambridge (8-3) advances to a regional quarterfinal game next week at Columbus East (9-1), a 34-14 winner last night over Vinton County.
The Braves (8-3) finished second in the Mid-State League Buckeye Division, claimed the Pickaway County championship and secured their most wins in a season since 2011.
Logan Elm loses Reid, Baker, Elswick, Parks, Tomlinson, Tanner Holbert, Nick Coleman, Nolan Brumfield, R.J. Weber, Gavin Griffey, Jake West and Owen Braun to graduation.
“I told the seniors after the game about how much I love them and appreciate everything that they’ve done for our program,” Holbert said. “Our senior class and their leadership have been tremendous all season and they’ve set a solid foundation for what’s to come for Logan Elm football.
“I also challenged our juniors and told them it’s their turn now and the process begins again. We’ll rest and recoup after this and then we’ll get ready to build off this season and hopefully take the next step forward in 2023.”
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Cambridge 31,
Logan Elm 13
Score By Quarters 1 2 3 4 F
Cambridge 10 14 7 0 31
Logan Elm 0 0 7 6 13
First Quarter
CB — Luke Parsons 25 field goal, 10:52.
CB — Devin Ogle 12 pass from Caden Moore (Luke Parsons kick), 8:00.
Second Quarter
CB — Davion Bahr 79 pass from Caden Moore (Luke Parsons kick), 11:41.
CB — Caden Moore 3 run (Luke Parsons kick), 5:12
Third Quarter
LE — Blayton Reid 19 run (pass failed), 8:38.
CB — Reed Johnson 56 interception return (Luke Parsons kick), 3:43.
Fourth Quarter
LE — Braylen Baker 16 pass from Aaron Walters (Owen Elswick), 11:01.
TEAM STATISTICS
CB LE
First downs 19 26
Rushing yards 21-88 31-99
Passing yards 344 310
Comp.-Att.-Int 23-37-0 30-60-4
Total yards 432 409
Fumbles-Lost 3-3 1-0
Penalties-Yards 10-85 9-85
Punts-Ave. 4-35.5 4-41.5
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – Cambridge — Trey Stottsberry 12-52, Caden Moore 10-44, Team 1-(-8). Logan Elm — Blayton Reid 18-93, Michael Bock 2-16, Landon Thompson 6-11, Aaron Walters 5-(-21).
PASSING – Cambridge — Caden Moore 23-37-0-344. Logan Elm — Aaron Walters 30-59-4-310, Carson Summers 0-1-0-0.
RECEIVING – Cambridge — Davion Bahr 6-155, Devin Ogle 6-63, Beau Stottsberry 5-40, Owen Feldner 1-30, Trey Stottsberry 2-29, Xander Caldwell 3-27. Logan Elm — Braylen Baker 8-95, Landon Thompson 9-74, Keegan Diehl 5-69, Carson Summers 5-29, Blayton Reid 2-25, Michael Bock 1-18.
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