Photo by Kristin Mazgaj Wheeling Central’s Braden McWreath outruns a Shadyside defender during Friday’s 45-7 triumph.

SHADYSIDE — What’s better than having two dominant running backs? How about four.

Wheeling Central’s rushing attack took control from the first snap of the game on the road Friday night as the Maroon Knights defeated host Shadyside 45-7.

Central’s Lorenzo Ferrera ran for 101 yards, Braden McWreath tallied 121, the ferocious freshman Isaac Martin charged forward for 91 yards on the ground and Riley Watkins added 41 as the team totaled 364 yards rushing in the triumph.

“We’ve said that we had a two-headed monster in Zo (Ferrera) and Riley but then you throw big Isaac Martin in there along with McWreath and you’ve got four guys who can carry the mail,” Central coach Mike Young said. “Those guys did a great job of doing that. I’m proud of them and I’m proud of what they accomplished.”

Of course the gaping holes were created by the phenomenal blocking the offensive line provided all night long in the trenches.

“The line up front was blocking and that was the key (Friday),” Young said. “They’ll be the first ones to say it and give credit to the line.”

Although Shadyside is still searching for that first win of the season, interim head coach Mike Kernik believes his squad is growing every night it takes the field.

“Wheeling Central is a great team,” Kernik said. “They are disciplined and they are a very explosive team but I couldn’t be more proud of our guys. They are growing and getting better every week. We’re cutting down on the penalties, too. They’ve come a long way from the beginning of the season.

“Every week these kids in the locker room are getting better and doing everything we ask them to do. We just need them to keep growing and going in the right direction.”

Despite the improvements, Central opened the game strong and opened the game fast.

Ferrera, a 2021 first team all-state running back, took the handoff on the first snap of the game, found a lane and went untouched for a 61-yard touchdown run.

“A play like that to start the game definitely picks up momentum,” Young said of Ferrera’s electric start to the action. “We knew we could be explosive (Friday) and right off the bat we were. This is a good win for us. We finished injury free and a lot of kids were able to play.”

After a Tigers 3-and-out, the Knights rattled off a 66-yard, 10-play scoring drive that culminated with a 25-yard touchdown strike from quarterback Payton Hildebrand to McWreath to create a 14-0 cushion.

However, the Tigers clawed their way back as an offside penalty on Central on fourth-and-3 kept the drive alive.

Shadyside also used the 6-foot-5 frame of senior receiver Elijah Brock to its advantage as he went up and made a trio of grabs for 53 yards on the march to lead to a 5-yard touchdown run by quarterback Ben Wach to cut the deficit in half at 14-7 to end the first quarter.

Wach tallied 136 yards on 10 of 22 passing, while Brock finished with five receptions for 94 yards.

“Elijah is a good athlete and a big time playmaker,” Kernik said. “He goes up and gets the ball. With him and our seniors — our leadership from our seniors to our underclassmen is growing every week. Even with the underclassmen, they are getting more comfortable with their leadership roles and they are growing as players and young men.”

That was as close as the game would get as Central outscored Shadyside 21-0 in the second quarter and finished the game on a 31-0 scoring run to continue its unbeaten season.

In the dominant second stanza, Ferrera had a 5-yard touchdown scamper and a 51-yard touchdown reception from Hildebrand, while Martin added a 9-yard TD run on a drive where he carried the ball five times for 61 yards.

Central came out of the half with a 35-7 advantage and Central all-state kicker Eli Tucker blasted a 30-yard field goal for the only points of the third quarter.

McWreath wrapped up the scoring in the fourth as he broke an 87-yard touchdown run down the Knights’ sideline to put the icing on the cake.

Hildebrand threw for 106 yards on 4 of 7 passing with two touchdown throws, while Ferrera caught a pair of passes for 71 yards and a score.

Joey Hall also secured an interception for the Knights’ defense.

“Hats off to Shadyside,” Young said. “They played hard and tough but our kids also played hard and tough and now we have a week off and we have to get ready for Mount View in two weeks. It was a good win for our kids. They came out overall pretty healthy. To be 4-0 at this stage in the game says a lot about our kids and our program.”

Wheeling Central 45, Shadyside 7

WC 14 21 3 7 — 45

Shad 7 0 0 0 — 7

W — Ferrera 61 run (Tucker kick), 11:44

W — McWreath 25 pass from Hildebrand (Tucker kick), 6:19

S — Wach 5 run (Bommer kick), 1:28

W — Ferrera 5 run (Tucker kick), 11:47

W — Martin 9 run (Tucker kick), 7:51

W — Ferrera 51 pass from Hildebrand (Tucker kick), 3:56

W — Tucker 30 field goal, 4:04

W — McWreath 87 run (Tucker kick), 10:01

Rushing: Wheeling Central 34-364-4td (Ferrera 6-101-2td, Watkins 5-41, Hildebrand 1-0, McWreath 7-121-td, Martin 10-91-td, Sands 1-6, Koroneos 2-9, Team 2-(-5)). Shadyside 29-92-td (Wach 5-27-td, Tsoras 3-5, Waggoner 13-42, Brock 1-(-1), Mavrikas 7-19).

Passing: Wheeling Central 4-7-106-2td (all by Hildebrand). Shadyside 10-22-136-x (all by Wach).

Receiving: Wheeling Central 4-106-2td (Ferrera 2-71-td, Marling 1-10, McWreath 1-25-td). Shadyside 10-136 (Brock 5-94, Tsoras 1-6, Miller 2-24, Micker 1-8, Baker 1-4).

First Downs: Wheeling Central 17. Shadyside 9.

Penalties-Yards: Wheeling Central 5-35. Shadyside 3-15.

Fumbles-Lost: Wheeling Central 3-0. Shadyside 1-1.