By Mike Hutchens, UC Schools Communications Director
Union City’s statistical numbers against Lake County looked largely similar to the ones the Tornadoes piled up against the remainder of Region 7A this season.
And that was a good thing for the Purple and Gold.
Third-ranked UC – which beat all seven of its league foes by 25 or more points this year – completed a perfect run through region play with a 41-16 victory over the Falcons Friday night at War Memorial Stadium.
The win was Union City’s seventh straight after a 1-2 start to the season and sends the Twisters into the state playoffs next week as a heavy favorite against Middleton (4-6) in a first-round game at Randy Barnes Field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Though they briefly fell behind for the first time since Week 3 vs. Lake County, the Tornadoes quickly responded and went on to solidify their standing as the region’s most superior team.
Quarterback Zak Summers added to his stellar season totals with two more touchdown runs and two TD passes to Cohen Simpson, giving him a hand in 25 scoring plays this year for an offense that tallied more than 40 points in six of seven games against league competition.
Summers also went over 1,000 yards rushing for the season (1,005) with his fifth 100-yard outing after piling up 135 yards on 15 carries.
Fullback Aiden Reid joined Summers in the 100-Yard Rushing Club, eclipsing the century mark with 131 yards and two touchdowns before leaving the contest late in the third quarter with an ankle injury.
Simpson caught both of Summers’ scoring throws and has been on the receiving end of half his quarterback’s dozen TD passes this season.
UC head coach Nick Markle praised the production of Summers, Reid, and Simpson and went on to single out the play of his offensive linemen, who’ve paved the way for a Tornado offense to average more than 40 points per game this season.
“Our guys up front have been outstanding all year, even when we’ve subbed out for some of our starters,” the Union City skipper said. “Our backs and quarterback run the ball hard, and we have guys on the edge who’ve made big plays and made us a high-octane offensive club.
“But it all starts up front. We’ve evolved and gotten better each week. And we’ve played with a chip on our shoulder that’s kept us from getting satisfied.”
The Twisters scored on three consecutive drives after falling behind 8-6 late in the first quarter.
Reid capped a methodical 82-yard, 13-play drive with his second TD – a three-yard run – before Summers and Simpson hooked up for the first of their two touchdown plays. The 18-yard scoring connection gave UC a 20-8 halftime lead.
Summers had scoring carries of 51 and three yards in the second half to help his team take firm control.
Union City’s defense – save for two long scoring runs by the Falcons’ Ka’devon Gross and Camden Chamberlain that accounted for 131 of their 234 yards – turned in a solid performance.
Reid posted a team-high eight tackles, while interior linemen Kelan Roberson and Alijah Simpson, along with Tucker Davis, had six stops apiece. Deyton Buckley, Andre Small, Kirben Thompson, and Cohen Wood were each in on five tackles.
“Giving up big plays is something we haven’t done in a while,” Markle continued. “You have to have a desire to make a play and want to be a playmaker. Whether it was a misalignment, a poor fit, or bad tackling, that’s not something we can continue to do and expect to survive for very long in the postseason.
“Other than those two plays, I thought our defense was solid.”
Placekicker Marcos Landeros was good on five PAT kicks and booted a school-record six touchbacks through the endzone on kickoffs. Landeros finished the regular season with 52 extra points for a squad that totaled 405 points in 10 games.
While acknowledging that his club would be a heavy favorite against Middleton in Round 1 of the postseason next week, Markle said the Tornadoes’ preparation would be thorough.
“Everything from here on out is just focus,” he concluded. “We’ll probably do a little more film study than we have in recent weeks, just because we’re not familiar with Middleton.
“The key to winning and being prepared in the postseason is to have a great week in practice. We have to see things, get lined up correctly, and play with aggression and intensity.
“As long as we play smart, are physical, and stay aggressive, we’re going to be a tough team to deal with in the playoffs.”
Lake County (5-5) will face Region 8 champion MASE in its opening-round playoff game in Memphis.
Union City 41, Lake Co. 16
Lake Co. 8 0 0 8 — 16
Union City 6 14 7 14 — 41
UC — Aiden Reid 25 run (conversion failed). 7:37, 1st
LC — Ka’devon Gross 55 run (Chance Estes conversion run). 1:07, 1st
UC — Reid 3 run (Marcos Landeros kick). 7:11, 2nd
UC — Cohen Simpson 18 pass from Zak Summers (Landeros kick). 3:36, 2nd
UC — Summers 51 run (Landeros kick). 8:46, 3rd
UC — Summers 4 run (Landeros kick). 8:28, 4th
LC — Camden Chamberlain 76 run (Estes conversion run). 6:24, 4th
UC — Simpson 33 pass from Summers (Landeros kick). 4:36, 4th
LC UC
Total Offense 234 372
Rush Att.-Yards 30-183 43-305
Comp.-Att.-Int. 8-14-0 3-6-0
Passing yards 51 67
First Downs 10 21
Punts-Avg. 4-29.0 —-
Fumbles-Lost 1-0 1-1
Penalties-Yds. 10-105 6-75
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
RUSHING: Lake Co.— Camden Chamberlain 5-80, Ka’devon Gross 12-70, Chance Estes 13-33 . Union City — Zak Summers 15-135, Aiden Reid 21-131, Tayehari Jones 7-39.
PASSING: Lake Co. — Chances Estes 8-14-0—51. Union City — Zak Summers 3-6-0—67.
RECEIVING: Lake Co. — Camden Chamberlain 6-29, Jatavion Ricks 1-13, Ka’devon Gross 1-9. Union City — Cohen Simpson 2-51, Adrian Crawford 1-16.
RECORDS: Lake Co. 5-5 (4-3); Union City 8-2 (7-0).
NEXT GAME: UC plays host to Middleton next Friday in Round 1 of the Class 1A state playoffs at 7 p.m.