Photos by Bethany McCullough | CatchMark
NORTH MUSKEGON — Hunter Hogan and his Ravenna football team remembered the feeling walking off North Muskegon’s field Oct. 7 after losing a shot at winning the West Michigan Conference Rivers Division title.
The Bulldogs did not want that kind of feeling again, especially with the season on the line.
Ravenna relied on its stingy defense as well as Hogan’s feet and his kicking leg in earning a hard-fought 10-7 victory over host North Muskegon in a Division 7 playoff opener Friday night at Fred Jacks Memorial Field.
The Bulldogs (7-3) advance to next weekend’s district final against the winner of Ithaca (8-1) and Lake City (5-4), a game that will be played today (Saturday, Oct. 29). If Ithaca wins, Ravenna will play on the road. Should Lake City win, the Bulldogs will host the district final.
North Muskegon, champion of the WMC Rivers, closes its season with an 8-2 record.
Photos by Laura Moat for CatchMark
Here are notables and highlights from Friday’s Ravenna-North Muskegon game:
- North Muskegon defeated Ravenna, 28-7, in the North Grove Brewers WMC Game of the Week on three weeks earlier.
- Last season, Ravenna won at North Muskegon in Week 7 (17-6), then the Bulldogs defeated the Norse three weeks later in a first-round playoff matchup at Ravenna (7-6).
- Hogan, the do-everything senior for Ravenna, got the Bulldogs on the board in the first quarter with a 30-yard touchdown run. He also booted the PAT.
- North Muskegon tied the game at 7 near the midway point of the second quarter on junior Ben Meyers’ TD on a 12-yard shovel pass. Jack Erne’s PAT knotted it.
- Hogan gave Ravenna the lead for good with 1:08 left in the first half on his 23-yard field goal.
- From his quarterback spot, Hogan finished with a game-high 123 rushing yards on 29 carries. He completed 6 of 12 passes for 90 yards. The hard-hitting free safety also notched 7.5 tackles, seven of them solo.
- Ravenna junior Chase Thomas caught three passes for 48 yards, while junior Drew Mabrito made two receptions for 29 yards.
- Ravenna junior Carter Schullo paced his team defensively with eight tackles, six of them solo.
- Ravenna sophomore Derek Finlay, Hogan’s cousin, also had 7.5 tackles.
- North Muskegon sophomore James Young, a first-team All-WMC Rivers Division QB, completed 11 of 20 passes for 126 yards with a TD and two interceptions.
- Meyers paced North Muskegon in the running game with 58 yards on 15 carries.
- North Muskegon senior Carsen Moat caught two passes for 44 yards, while Meyers made four receptions for 33 yards.
- North Muskegon sophomore Drew Bartos paced his squad defensively with a game-high 8.5 tackles, three for lost yardage.
- North Muskegon senior Sam Gallo registered six stops.
- Total offense was tight between the two teams, as Ravenna finished with a 223-209 edge. The Bulldogs have 12 first downs to nine for the Norsemen.
AUDIO LIVESTREAM REPLAY
