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Moeller rolls past Fairfield

NORWOOD, Ohio – For the second straight week, the Moeller Crusaders knocked off a team from the Greater Miami Conference, beating the Fairfield Indians 35-7 Friday night at Norwood’s Shea Stadium to advance to the third round of the OHSAA Division I playoffs.

“I’m really proud of the guys, the team,” Moeller Head Coach Mark Elder said. “I think that we showed up and played well, collectively, in all three phases. I think we did a really solid job tonight.”

After a defensive battle in the first quarter, the Crusaders finally got on the board first when Alec Weeder found the end zone on a five-yard rushing scamper to put Moeller up 7-0. The first score set the tone for the Moeller offense the rest of the game.

“We finally got that score and took control and we didn’t lose the momentum at all,” Moeller quarterback Noah Geselbracht said. “I feel like we had a great overall team win and this is the best game we’ve played all year.”

With less than two minutes left in the first half, Geselbracht found Tennel Bryant from 31 yards out to go up by two scores. The Crusaders were able to go up by three scores when Alex French picked off Fairfield quarterback Talon Fisher, leading to a 42-yard scoring strike from Geselbracht to Jordan Marshall.

“To get the takeaway was huge then to convert that to make it a three-score game going into half, that sequence was a major, major part of our success tonight,” Elder said.

That momentum bled into the second half when the Crusaders went down the field fast, scoring another touchdown on a 36-yard run by Marshall.

Fairfield finally responded on its next drive when Fisher found Nate Hannah for a 41-yard scoring pass. That brought the Indians within three scores again.

However, Moeller wasn’t satisfied with four touchdowns. Jordan Marshall scored his third touchdown early in the fourth quarter on a seven-yard run. That gave the Crusaders a 35-7 lead and the win to advance.

Moeller excelled on both sides of the ball, forcing two interceptions and limiting the Indians to only 129 rushing yards after Fairfield ran the ball for 297 yards in last week’s win over Mason.

“I think our guys did a great job on defense,” Elder said. “We tackled better, we didn’t have the most complex plan in the world by any stretch. We had a very limited call plan but our guys went out there and executed it very well.”

Jordan Marshall led the Moeller offense with 132 yards rushing on 12 carries and two touchdowns. Marshall also hauled in a scoring pass. Geselbracht led the passing attack with 168 yards through the air and two touchdowns.

Despite the big win, Geselbracht said there are still things the Crusaders can work on as they advance through the playoffs.

“I think we need to limit the penalties,” Geselbracht said. “Penalties and turnovers are the two biggest things we need to focus on on offense.

Moeller (9-3) will move on to take on Princeton next Friday night. Princeton advanced after beating Sycamore 37-35.

SCORING BY QUARTERS

Fairfield  0-0-7-0-7

Moeller  0-21-7-7-35

SCORING PLAYS

M: Alec Weeder 5-yard run (William Steele kick)

M: Noah Geselbracht 31-yard pass to Tennel Bryan (William Steele kick)

M: Noah Geselbrach 42-yard pass to Jordan Marshall (William Steele kick)

M: Jordan Marshall 36-yard run (William Steele kick)

F: Talon Fisher 41-yard pass to Nate Hannah (Aiden McGuire kick)

M: Jordan Marshall 7-yard run (Steele kick)

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