The Sevastopol Pioneers broke a four-game losing streak to their county rivals in convincing fashion Friday night, beating Gibraltar 43-8.
The two teams exchanged punts to start the game, but the Vikings' attempt from the back of their own endzone failed to make it to their own 10-yard line, setting up the short rushing score for Bo Tanck.
The Vikings forced a fumble on a punt return, giving them their first short field of the night, but they were again turned away by the Pioneers' staunch defense. The Pioneers would score on three consecutive drives with two rushing touchdowns by Logan Schuh sandwiching his touchdown pass to Tanck to give the Pioneers a 28-0 halftime lead.
The Vikings would try to take control in the second half when the newly minted homecoming king Will Lecy hauled in a pass from Giovanni Mercier from over 80 yards away and took it the distance to make it 28-6. After the Vikings forced a turnover on downs on the next drives, the Pioneers put a stranglehold on the game's momentum with a safety and a 65-yard Sladon Asher punt return for a touchdown on consecutive plays. With Michael Wautlet and Tanck intercepting passes on two of the next three drives, the Pioneers put a bow on the victory midway through the fourth quarter on a 23-yard touchdown run by Schuh.
The Pioneers improve to 3-1 on the season and will host Algoma next week, while the Vikings hit the road to Gillett to face the Tigers. The Vikings/Tigers game will air on 105.1 The GOAT and NEWRadioSportsNetwork.com.
