Well, what did you expect? In a matchup of defending state champions, it only makes sense the game would go to overtime before coming up with a winner. The Perry Pirates, just one boy over the limit of returning to defend its Division V state title, gave two-time defending D-IV state champion Glenville all it could handle for 32 windy, cold and rainy minutes Nov. 22 in their Region 13 final at Nordonia. Unfortunately, for Perry, the overtime was a different story, as the Tarblooders dominated the extra session on the way to a 12-6 victory. “It was what we expected from (Perry),” veteran Glenville coach Ted Ginn Sr. said. “They have some athletes, you know, and they’re so well-coached. We expected a game. We didn’t think it was going to be anything different from what it was.” With the temperatures hovering in the mid-40s and the wind kicking up enough that the ball fell off the tee several times before kickoffs, conditions were not conducive to scoring points. That’s something that probably worked against the Pirates, who scored at least 40 points in all but three of their playoff games this season, featuring an explosive passing game led by quarterback Walter Moses, a Toledo commit. Perry coach Bob Gecewich wouldn’t blame the conditions for the heartbreaking loss. “Both teams played in it,” he said. “I mean, we live in Ohio. If we were down in Texas or whatever, maybe I would complain about it. But we’re not. We’re in Ohio, and we’ve got to be able to do certain things. We’re not going to use the weather as an excuse. We’re not going to use anything. We had our opportunities, and we didn’t win.” Glenville, which will play Sandusky Perkins in a state semifinal Nov. 29, won the coin toss heading into overtime and chose to go on defense first. Things went wrong for the Perry offense right from the start. Moses was hurried into an incomplete pass on first down, and on second down the Pirates committed a holding penalty, moving the ball back to the 30-yard line. Dare’On Howard gained 3 yards on a run up the middle, but on the next play the Pirates were flagged for a chop block, a 15-yard infraction. On third-and-32, Moses was sacked for minus-8 yards by Jamir Perez, making it fourth-and-40. To make matters worse, Perry was then called for a delay of game penalty and faced a fourth-and-45 situation. Moses hit Luke Sivon for 24 yards on fourth down, but the Pirates well still well short of the goal line. Glenville took over possession and wasted little time. Quarterback LaMarques Greenwood, looked to be running a keeper to the right, but he handed the ball off the C.J. Newell on a counter back to the left, and the junior sprinted into the end zone untouched. It was the first overtime experience this season for the Tarblooders, but they came through with flying colors. “We always talk about being tough on O and on D,” Ginn said. “We have to be able to run the rock when we get that close.” Neither team accomplished much in the first half, as the Tarblooders totaled 110 yards of offense to 87 for Perry. The difference was Glenville had two big plays on the same drive, a 48-yard burst up the middle by Romell Phillips and a 38-yard dash by Greenwood. Those long runs led to a 1-yard scoring run by Newell on the first play of the second quarter to complete a six-play, 80-yard drive. On the PAT, the snap was low, and the holder was unable to reach the end zone, making it 6-0. Perry countered on the opening possession of the second half, putting together an impressive 14-play drive that covered 75 yards and ate 7 minutes, 11 seconds off the clock. Despite going into the wind, Moses completed all five of his pass attempts for 43 yards, including a 10-yard swing pass to sophomore Carter Hopkins, who sprinted untouched into the end zone. However, kicking into the wind, the PAT kick was wide left, making it 6-6. Midway through the fourth quarter, it appeared Glenville had taken a 9-6 lead, as freshman Eniere Lemon booted a 30-yard field goal into the wind and through the uprights. However, just before the ball was snapped the referees blew their whistles because Lemon didn’t have his mouthpiece in his mouth. By rule he had to sit out the next play, so Glenville was forced go for it on fourth-and-12 from the 14 and Greenwood’s pass fell incomplete. In the end, Perry had to take solace in giving the presumptive state champion all it could handle. The Pirates, who finished with a record of 12-2, played their hearts out but came up just short. “That’s what we’ve come to expect from our guys,” Gecewich said. “We don’t win too many pre-games. Nobody looks over at us and they’re like, ‘Oh, man, we’re in trouble this week.’ But the effort that they give, how hard they go every play, that’s our expectation, and they’ve lived up to it. They’ve done an amazing job of that.” THE SCORE Glenville 12, Perry 6 (OT)