Park Tudor ousts Cloverdale

Cloverdale senior Max Secrest returns a kickoff Friday night against Park Tudor. (Banner Graphic/Trent Scott)

CLOVERDALE -- Having been unable to secure a win since the season opener, Cloverdale looked to the IHSAA tournament as a chance to start with a clean slate taking on Park Tudor Friday night.

The Panthers, also coming into the contest 1-8 on the season, proved better than their record indicated as they sent the Clovers into the offseason with a 56-22 victory.

Cloverdale coach Jarrod Duff said Park Tudor was a team far better than its record indicated.

"Coming into the game, we knew that they were very athletic on offense and they were a tough matchup for us," Duff said. "They were big up front, they had an athletic running back and a big, strong quarterback who could throw the ball.

"Their offense has played really well all year against a tough schedule. They've had a hard time defensively stopping people and we were able to run the ball and throw the ball against them."

Much of Cloverdale's early struggles could be attributed to the dual threats of quarterback Jack Dassow and tailback Ahrod Lloyd.

Dassow opened the scoring through the air with a pass to Brent Brimmage in the first quarter, followed by the first of three Lloyd scores on the ground.

Ethan Boyd responded with a score before the first quarter ended, keeping the Clovers within striking distance at 14-6.

The quarter embodied much of why the season had been rocky, according to Duff.

"We knew it was going to be a challenge early on," Duff said. "We drove the ball early, turned it over and for us on offense, it was a rerun of how the season has gone.

"We would move the ball, gain seven or eight yards a play but then we'd miss a couple of blocks, make a couple of mistakes and that would stall a drive. In that sense, it was frustrating."

Lloyd hammered in two more scores in the second, one following a muffed punt, to put the Panthers in a comfortable 28-6 position.

Cloverdale had several chances as the first half closed but Park Tudor's defense stiffened, stalling the best Clover drive at the 13-yard line to keep the 22-point lead intact.

Missing chances to cut the deficit in half going into halftime was another familiar sight for Duff and the Clovers.

"That's the frustrating part," Duff said. "We've been close so many times this year but we made too many mistakes tonight to beat a good football team.

"That's where we've been all year and it's little things. It's not brain surgery or any complicated concepts but the little things," he added. "We have to continue to work on that as a football program and as a coach I have to look at ways to get better at those things.

"We've been knocking on the door a lot this year but we haven't been able to kick the door down and tonight was a perfect example of that."

Dassow recorded two more passing touchdowns, one each to Evan Frank and Adam Hartman, and Lloyd scored a fourth time on a 65-yard run to increase the lead to 49-6.

At that point, Cloverdale had two choices as to how it could have approached the game, according to Duff.

"This season was frustrating at times," Duff said. "If it was frustrating and we didn't care about each other, didn't like to be around each other, there was in-fighting and there was turmoil going on within our team, it would have been a miserable year.

"But that wasn't the case. We stuck together, our leaders on this team kept the team together and we just kept coming back, kept fighting, kept battling and tonight was a perfect example of that," he added.

"When the game was 49-6 halfway through the third quarter and everything was going against us, they refused to quit," Duff noted. "We got it to 49-22 at one point, got the ball back and had a chance but we couldn't quite get over the hump."

Boyd scored his second touchdown of the game from a yard out before Tyler Lotz ripped a ball from the clutches of Panther running back Andrew Chen to set up a six-yard Tyce Jackson score to cut the lead to 49-22.

Cloverdale got the ball back before the third quarter ended but lost the ball on downs and Dassow capped the scoring on the ensuing possession with a 2-yard sneak.

The teams traded possessions over the final nine minutes before the clock finally ran out on the game and Cloverdale's season.

Duff said what was more disappointing was that it was the last time he would be able to coach the group as currently constructed.

"This group is special to me," Duff said. "They're great kids and they've really been a huge part of taking our program another step forward.

"The future of Cloverdale football is bright and this group of seniors is a big part of that. Our younger kids did a great job of stepping in and playing this year, getting experience during the games. I'm excited about the direction of our football program right now.

In particular, Duff had nothing but praise for the 11 seniors on the roster.

"More than anything, with this group of seniors, tonight was another example of how great these guys are," Duff said. "This group of seniors is a group for the ages for me."

"They're my favorite group of kids that I've ever coached. We're so close as a football team because we've gone through struggles and when you can do that with people you care about and people who care about you, it makes it a little bit easier."

The departing class leaves significant holes on the field to fill but Duff felt that their work this year, along with the group of underclassmen beside them, has put the Cloverdale football program in a good spot.

"One of the things we talk about is losing yourself in the team and this group of seniors has definitely done things by example. They've taking a lot of these younger guys under their wings and showed the way we want things done around here and because of them, our program is going to be in good shape."

At Cloverdale

IHSAA Class 2A Sectional No. 37

Park Tudor 14 14 21 7 -- 56

Cloverdale 6 0 16 0 -- 22

Scoring

1st Quarter

PT -- Brimmage pass from Dassow (XP no good) 6-0

PT -- Lloyd run (Conversion good) 14-0

CL -- 1:10 Boyd 1-yard run (Conversion failed) 14-6

2nd Quarter