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Granville's defense the story on the night, in shutout of Clear Fork
BELLVILLE − The play of the night made by Granville's Dante Varrasso wasn't much of a surprise to head coach Wes Schroder.
"I was on the headset and I made the comment, 'Holy crap he caught that thing,'" said Schroder. "It isn't that outlandish from him because he's made plays like that before but it was pretty special."
The one-handed interception made near the sideline by Varrasso in the first quarter, playing defensive back, was one of those important plays made that would eventually lead to bigger things down the line. And it did. The Blue Aces scored a touchdown on the next drive and stayed in control the rest of the way in their 15-0 shutout win over Clear Fork.
Granville's (2-0) defense was the story, closing down the Colts (1-1) run game up the middle and tackling well on the outside. The Colts did a swell job on that end too, forcing two turnovers, but they were outshined by the Blue Aces, who compiled two turnovers of their own. None more showstopping than Varrasso's pick.
"I saw something in the backfield," said Varrasso, explaining the interception. "We've been preparing all week. They like to do the tight end leak out. I just saw it in time. They put it in the air and it was natural."
It wasn't just the senior defensive back either. It was linebacker Kyle Kirby who was stuffing the Colts run game. Linebacker Drew Vahalik was everywhere. Defensive back Noble Terebuh was covering ground. It was a full-out effort for a defense that has only allowed eight total points in the first two weeks of the season.
"The kids were flying. That's what we wanna see," Schroder said. "We pride ourselves on playing downhill and being the more aggressive team and I think we were."
"We had a couple of nice drives when we were inside the five and in the ten but didn't convert," said Clear Fork coach Aaron Brokaw. "We shot ourselves in the foot with a couple of false start penalties."
Add in two defensive stops on fourth downs and the Blue Aces had this game in their hand.
"We're really just progressing and coming together," Varrasso said. "Going into league play, we're going to have to keep progressing because we're going to see good offenses and even better athletes."
Twitter: @JamesSimpsonII