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River Faces Frontier, Goes for Fourth 10-0 Regular Season

HANNIBAL — River will try to complete the school’s fourth undefeated regular season in football Friday night when it welcomes southern rival Frontier to Martin Flannery Field for Senior Night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

The state-ranked Pilots (8-0) have compiled spotless 10-0 records in 1972, 1997 and 2008. River is actually 9-0 but the Ohio High School Athletic Association doesn’t recognize a victory against the Columbus Crusaders.

The 1972 Pilots were led by quarterback Mike Flannery, River’s current head coach in his 14th season. He was coach of the 2008 squad, which finished 12-1 with a loss to Malvern in the Division VI, Region 23 championship game at Harding Stadium in Steubenville. Terry Snivley coached the 1997 squad.

However, Flannery doesn’t get caught up in those type of things.

“I don’t like comparing teams,” he said. “I like to leave that up to the kids and other people because those teams were all different teams with different kids.

“The thing I really like about this group of kids is that they don’t get too excited about anything. They come to practice and do what we tell them and then they go hunting, fishing or do whatever they do. This is a unique group of kids, but come game time they come to play and they enjoy winning.

“Another neat thing about this group is everyone understands their role and embraces it. There are no egos. These kids are very unselfish and have the opportunity to become just the fourth team in school history to have an undefeated regular season. That’s quite an accomplishment.”

The Pilots sit atop the Division VI, Region 23 computer ratings. They hold a more-than-two-point lead on fellow Ohio Valley Athletic Conference member Fort Frye and a sizable lead in the OVAC Class 2A race.

“We have a lot to play for. It’s our seniors’ last regular-season home game and if we win it assures us home field in the first round of the playoffs,” Flannery said. “But we know Frontier is hoping to come up here and try to knock us out of a few things. We understand that we have a big X on our backs. They have nothing to lose, so we’ll have to be aware of trick plays and those type of things.”

A veteran offensive line paves the way for junior quarterback Lukas Isaly to either run the ball or distribute it to a bevy of skilled athletes.

“Lukas stands out because he’s the one with the ball in his hands the most,” Flannery said. “But to be successful it takes several little pieces coming together. Offensive linemen are the unsung heroes of many football teams and they don’t get the recognition that the players scoring the touchdowns do.”

Isaly has had quite a season after making the switch from tailback, where he ran for just less than 1,200 yards and 16 touchdowns. This fall he surpassed the 1,000-yard mark rushing last week and totals 1,018 and 22 scores. He has completed 65 of 105 passes for 1,347 yards, 12 TDs and four interceptions. To complete his offensive game, he has run for 11 2-point conversions.

Senior Parker Caretti has run for 341 yards and two touchdowns on 31 carries. Dakota Smith has 293 yards and a trio of touchdowns, while Drew Wagnild has 258 and three touchdowns. Junior tight end Drew Dietz leads the team with 24 catches for 459 yards and five touchdowns. Caretti has 15 receptions for 484 yards and four scores. Wagnild has 11 catches.

The veteran line is anchored by center Trey Isaly, with three players rotating at the guard slots in Tucker Boggs, Luc Baker and Collin Huffman. The tackles are 3-year lettermen Mason Ladyga and Luke Matusik. Dietz is also a key member.

Defensively, senior linebacker Cody Saksa and Matusik are the leading tacklers.

Frontier is coming off a 37-0 loss to then-winless Monroe Central last week. The Cougars’ lone victory was a 28-26 triumph against Valley in double overtime. They have scored a total of 51 points in their other eight games and have been shut out three times.

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