SHADYSIDE – Something had to give Friday night as a pair of winless teams met on the artificial surface at Fleming Field. After the sun had long set and the yellow flags had quit flying, Buckeye Local came away with a 28-13 victory over homesteading Shadyside.

The Panthers (1-2) trailed 7-6 at the half after managing a mere seven yards on six offensive snaps in the second quarter. Head coach Jim Hoover issued a challenge to his team, specifically the offensive line. They accepted.

Buckeye Local scored on its first three possessions of the second half en route to outscoring the Tigers 22-6 in the second half and earning its first win since a week 9 win over Harrison Central last season.

“I challenged them. I knew we were bigger, stronger and faster than them. All we had to do was keep body punching and it paid off,” Hoover, a former Eastern Michigan performer, said. “At halftime, my son Trey, who is an all-state tailback, asked me to put him at fullback. That was the difference. You’ve got 220 pounds kicking out the defensive end and Dylan Palmer stepped up for us.”

With the younger Hoover paving the way, Palmer ran for 111 of his 120 yards in the second half and scored three touchdowns. The 5-11, 180-pounder had scoring runs of 12, 5 and 5. He also had a two-point conversion run.

As a team, the Panthers ran 45 times for 317 yards and four touchdowns. They had 15 carries for 130 yards at the half.

Junior quarterback Skyler Ebert led the potent ground game with 13 carries for 135 yards, which included a 91-yard scoring jaunt with 4:48 on the first-quarter clock. The dash around left end and a cutback at his 35 came one play after Brennin Takach picked off a pass inside the Panthers’ 10.

“We moved some guys around on the offensive and defensive lines and I think some guys have found a home,” Coach Hoover noted of the ground success and the defensive play in the second half. “I couldn’t be any more proud of these guys.”

For the third week in a row, Shadyside was its own worst enemy at times. The Tigers were flagged 14 times for 169 yards while picking up 333 yards of total offense.

“I’ve got to get this straightened out. I’ve got to change things up in practice. That’s all on me,” Shadyside interim head coach Michael Kernik said. “I’ve got to find a way to get things cleaned up and organized.”

“For the most part, I thought our defense played well,” he added.

The Tigers took the lead early in the second quarter when junior quarterback Ben Wach, who was under pressure most of the night, found senior Elijah Brock on a 10-yard scoring strike. Wach eluded a couple of defenders before rifling a laser to diving Brock in the middle of the end zone. Gavin Bommer’s placement made it 7-6.

Palmer capped a 48-yard march with a 12-yard run off the right side of the line for a 12-7 Panthers lead.

Following a three-and-out by the Tigers, Ebright fumbled deep in Shadyside territory, but the Tigers gave it back on the next play as Ebright redeemed himself with a fumble recovery at the Shadyside 7.

Two plays later, Palmer went in standing up from 5 yards out. His two-point run made it 20-7 with less than a minute to play in the third quarter.

Shadyside turned the ball over on downs on its side of the 50 and Buckeye Local added another Palmer 5-yard run. Trey Hoover’s two-point run upped the count to 28-7.

The Tigers tacked on a late 1-yard run by Grant Miller to cap the scoring.

Miller led Shadyside with three carries for 60 yards on three carries. Wach had 31 yards on 11 attempts and was 8-for-29 through the air for 116 yards, a TD and an INT.

“All of our kids are competitors. Benny is a competitor,” Kernik stressed. “He was running for his life most of the night trying to make plays, trying to make something positive.”

Buckeye Local travels north on Ohio 7 next week to Toronto, while Shadyside welcomes Barnesville.

Buckeye Local 28, Shadyside 13

Buckeye Local 6 0 14 8 – 28

Shadyside 0 7 0 6 – 13

BL-Ebright 91 run (kick failed)

S-Brock 10 pass from Wach (Bommer kick)

BL-Palmer 12 run (run failed)

BL-Palmer 5 run (Palmer run)

BL-Palmer 5 run (Hoover run)

S-Miller 1 run (kick failed)

RUSHING: Buckeye Local 45-317-4tds (Ebright 13-135-td, Palmer 17-120-3tds, Berry 5-28, Kourim 4-18, Hoover 6-16). Shadyside 30-117-td (Miller 3-60-td, Wach 11-31, D. Booth 3-17, Waggoner 4-11, Mavrikas 2-7, Brock 1-2, Micker 5-(-5), team 1-(-6)

PASSING: Buckeye Local 1-4-4-int (all by Ebright). Shadyside 8-29-116-td-int (all by Wach)

RECEIVING: Buckeye Local 1-4 (all by Palmer). Shadyside 8-116-td (D. Booth 3-61, Brock 3-26-td, Miller 1-22, Mavrikas 1-7)

FIRST DOWNS: Buckeye Local 16. Shadyside 11

FUMBLES: Buckeye Local 4-3. Shadyside 2-2

PENALTIES: Buckeye Local 8-85. Shadyside 14-169