The No. 14 Fredericktown couldn’t keep up with No. 3 Archbold in the first round of the Division V Region 18 football tournament, losing 37-6 in a game they trailed early and couldn’t gain ground.
“Overall it was a hard draw for us going up against a really experienced Archbold team (22 seniors),” said Fredericktown Coach Will Hartley. “During the first half we played well on the defensive side of the ball. On offense we had some nice opportunities early but we couldn't get in the end zone. Archbold scored on a big pass play with 1:38 left in the first half. That was a big play because it put them up by 30 with a running clock for the second half."
Quarterback Blake Sipes was 12-for-20 for 126 yards and an interception. He also had a rushing touchdown in the game. Running back Elijah Roush had 14 carries for 43 yards. Brode Davis had three carries for 35 yards and a touchdown. Trevor Bellman caught five passes for 61 yards while Gavin Toombs and Grant Hartley had three catches apiece, for 28 and 27 yards respectively.
On defense, Devon Whitt and Hartley each had interceptions, while Toombs has a sack. Lane Warner had a team high nine tackles.
Sipes finished the season with more than 2,000 yards of offense. He ran 190 times for 987 yards and seven touchdowns. He was also 76-for-143 for 1,057 yards, 12 touchdowns and 13 picks.
“I felt overall it was a solid season, especially the second half of the year,” Coach Hartley said. “We had to replace a lot of experience from the 2022 team and had many sophomores filling important spots on both offense and defense. I was really proud of the kids' effort winning 3 of our last 4 games, beating Centerburg on week 10 and qualifying for the playoffs again."
Archbold goes on to face No. 6 Coldwater on Nov. 3 at 7 p.m.
