The Crestwood Red Devils’ football team is finally over the hump. Crestwood secured its first victory of the season by overpowering Chagrin Valley Conference rival Beachwood 44-6 in a crossover conference duel last Friday evening at Bison Stadium.
“It feels nice,” said Coach Jack D’Amato. “The kids really battled the last three weeks. We had a little bit of adversity and hit some different things, but we really have battled the last three weeks with some good football teams and to be able to come out here and get it taken care of, that set our tone that we have to start fast and shut them down.”
Since joining the CVC in 2020, the Red Devils (1-3, 0-0) and Beachwood have become well-acquainted, having faced off in crossover conference duels in five of the last six seasons. Lately, Crestwood has controlled in the intra conference rivalry, winning the last four games.
In addition to continuing to reign supreme against the Bison, Crestwood finally snapped its winless start to the season with a much-needed victory just before beginning CVC Valley Division play.
“The CVC Valley Division is tough,” noted the six-year coach. “It is tough every year. That is the beauty of the conference. Every week is a challenge, and it is going to be hard every week for our guys, but we would not want it any other way.”
On Friday, the Red Devils assumed a firm grip by scoring 30 unanswered points in the first quarter to take a commanding lead.
After engineering a seven-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that was capped off by a 5-yard touchdown run by junior tailback/defensive back James Lancaster to take a 6-0 lead after a failed 2-point conversion attempt, Crestwood carried that momentum to the defensive side of the ball by allowing only three offensive plays from Beachwood before forcing a punt.
Senior wide receiver/defensive back Wyatt Januska wreaked havoc on the Bison defense, scoring three touchdowns in the first quarter all on explosive plays.
First, the 6-foot-4 senior recorded a 36-yard touchdown run, followed by a 27-yard touchdown run and found the end zone once again from 10 yards out, pushing the Red Devils to a 30-0 advantage.
“It felt great,” Januska said. “I just tried to my job and when I do my job, good things happen. I could not do what I do without the whole offense doing every single one of their jobs.”
Januska’s dynamic first quarter helped the Red Devils build a lead so large that they triggered the running clock at the beginning of the second period. The Red Devils’ senior delivered one more touchdown in the second quarter on a 48-yard touchdown reception from sophomore quarterback/defensive back Michael Kalista.
According to D’Amato, Januska’s big game was just a continuation of a breakout performance against CVC rival Cuyahoga Heights where he tallied four touchdowns. Against the Bison, he recorded 73 rushing yards and three touchdowns on three carries while hauling in four receptions for 96 yards and a touchdown, fueling the Red Devils to big lead.
“He is a force,” D’Amato said. “He has proven that he is a force and is one of the top guys in the county and he is going to do that. He just does a great job every week and has stepped up as a leader and is great on defense and offense. He does everything for us.”
In addition to operating a well-oiled offense, the Red Devils’ defense was strong, applying early defensive pressure on sophomore Beachwood quarterback Dylan Paul, holding him to only one completion out of eight attempts.
Senior offensive lineman/linebacker Jake Eyerman said that Crestwood’s defense was aware of how mobile Paul was and never allowed him to break free for a big gain.
“We practiced all week and knew he was a fast quarterback,” said the 6-foot-1 senior. “I was spying him all night. We knew he was going to get out of the pocket. If the pass broke down, we knew he was going to run so we just keyed in on that and when the play broke down, we were there to make the play.”
In addition to a dominant showing on both sides of the ball, D’Amato said it was a nice confidence-builder for his young squad to execute in all facets of the game for the first time this season.
The Red Devils will return home and host CVC rival Brooklyn for another crossover conference game at Jack Lambert Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m.
