High School Sports

Rivalry Renewed Between Shadyside and Barnesville

By SETH STASKEY

For The Intelligencer

Rivalry renewed!

That's exactly what will occur Friday night at Shamrock Rock Stadium in Barnesville.

For the first time since Nov. 1, 2013, Barnesville and Shadyside will meet in a regular-season game on the football field.

Both Barnesville's Blake Allen and Shadyside's Mark Holenka are excited to have the game back on the slate.

"I don't think the people involved with the present should be involved with the judgement of everything that's developed in the past because of a person's particular belief in a particular time," Holenka said. "The rivalry is bigger than any one coach or person, so it's definitely good to have this game back."

Allen believes this week's game will give his Shamrocks a taste of what a true playoff atmosphere feels like.

"We played into the third round of the postseason last year and never got the full effect of a full capacity crowd or true playoff atmosphere," Allen said. "I expect both communities to really show up (on Friday). A packed house is going to make for a special environment."

Prior to the stoppage in the series, the Shamrocks and Tigers had clashed every year since 1982. With both schools now members of the Mid-Ohio Valley League, the game will be held annually.

All told, Shadyside has won 46 of the 76 meetings in the series. Included in that are victories in the last seven meetings.

None of that, however, is more than watercooler talk.

"Barnesville is a good, well-coached team that is extremely dangerous," Holenka said. "I've seen them look explosive at times and they have the ability to put you behind the 8-ball because they're so good at playing to their ability."

The Shamrocks come in with a 2-0 record and are fresh off a come-from-behind 27-20 victory at Buckeye Trail last week. That win came on the heels of a COVID-19 pause, which cost them their week two game against Meadowbrook.

"We played a really sloppy first half," Allen said. "Some of that might have been the week off and the COVID issues, but no excuses. We just couldn't get out of our own way offensively. We settled down on offense and we didn't allow any more big plays, which hurt us defensively."

Meanwhile, the Tigers are a spotless 3-0 thus far, but they've certainly dealt with their share of adversity, too. After losing one of their scrimmages due to COVID, Shadyside lost senior All-Ohioan Mason VanNest to an injury against Martins Ferry and last week, at Buckeye Local, watched senior quarterback Rhys Francis leave the game and not return. Due to COVID protocols, the Tigers were already shorthanded against the Panthers when the game began.

"The pre-season made it tough to put the puzzle pieces in the right places, and that's still an on-going process, but the response and resiliency of our young men has been tremendous," Holenka said. "Each injury has caused each of us to squeeze a little tighter to take on more burden."

Though Francis' status remains unclear, Shadyside has prepared as if sophomore Ben Wach, who was thrust into duty last week, will be the starter. He completed 9 of 16 passes for 157 yards and landed three touchdowns.

Shadyside's chief offensive weapon is senior tailback Wyatt Reiman. The two-time All-Ohioan has been impressive to say the least. He's rushed for 354 yards and six touchdowns. All told, he's scored an area-best 61 points this season.

"Shadyside is very good and very sound on both sides of the ball," Allen said. "They've well balanced and Reiman is a special player. He's a guy who definitely stands out when you look at Shadyside. He's dangerous in the open field."

Barnesville, meanwhile, has been effective on offense by spreading the ball around to multiple people both as runners and pass catchers.

C.J. Hannahs triggers the offense at quarterback. He's thrown for 276 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. On the ground, Owyn Wise had a solid game against the Warriors, accumulating 68 yards and scoring twice. Senior Spencer Bliss is a threat both as a runner and receiver. He's hauled in 11 catches, while classmate Chase Conner has made seven receptions for 123 yards and two touchdowns.

"Barnesville definitely have some dangerous offensive players," Holenka said. "They're very opportunistic and do the little things so well that it makes them even more dangerous. They do a lot of neat things offensively out of several different sets, so we have to be prepared defensively."