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Lowellville, Mineral Ridge prepare for MVAC matchup

Staff photo / Brian Yauger Mineral Ridge junior Ian Erb runs for a gain earlier this season against Jackson-Milton.

At this point in the season, Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference opponents Lowellville and Mineral Ridge have hit their strides.

The Rockets (8-0) still hold an undefeated record and are scoring a mind-boggling 48.12 points per game. On the other hand, the Rams (7-1) suffered their lone loss of the season to Springfield four weeks ago and have put together a three-game winning streak ever since as they make their final sprint towards the playoffs.

Outside of a conference championship that both teams are eyeing, each team is eager to finish the season on a strong note.

“Both of us want the same thing, obviously you want the league title, but the playoffs are also right around the corner,” Lowellville coach Andrew Mamula said. “It’s one of those things where this win helps you with position, with seeding, it makes your path a little bit easier. I think we’re both in spots in our programs where we don’t just want to make the playoffs, we’re not happy to just be a part of it. We want to advance and we want to go on and move on and the winner of this game is going to put themselves in a situation where they can go on a little run in the playoffs.”

It won’t be easy to get a win tonight at the Joe Lane Sports Complex in Mineral Ridge either as both teams have been on a roll as of late.

The Rams come into tonight scoring 38 points per game and have only allowed an average of 10.2 points per game this season. They tied their season-high of 48 points last week against Sebring and the combination of running back Ian Erb and quarterback Triston Valley has been running rampant all season long.

Valley has rushed for 800 yards and 11 touchdowns this season on 116 carries while throwing for 1,022 yards and eight touchdowns on 82 completions. Erb has been the workhorse for the Rams though, rushing for 1,095 yards and 17 touchdowns on 119 carries this season.

Wide receiver Mason Miller has also been big for the Rams and has caught 18 passes for 399 yards and three touchdowns.

The combination of their top players have made the Rams difficult to stop this year and Mamula believes they do a great job of playing to their strengths.

“They know who their players are and they get them the ball,” Mamula said. “The Miller kid at receiver, Ian Erb in the backfield, Rohrman in the backfield and then Triston Valley. I mean they do a good job of knowing who their guys are, the guys that they trust, and getting them open.”

The matchup between Mineral Ridge and Lowellville may be as balanced of a matchup in terms of talent as you’ll see all year in the area as the Rockets offense has been just as dangerous all season long.

Senior signal-caller Vinny Ballone, who’s passed for 2,415 yards and 41 touchdowns this season, leads the way for the Rockets. But while the 6-foot-5 quarterback is at the head of the offense, the talent around him is just as spectacular.

Senior wide receiver Brady Bunofsky has racked up 769 receiving yards this year with 14 touchdowns on 45 catches while Matt Lucido has tallied 506 yards and six touchdowns on 28 catches. Six-foot-two, 248-pound tight end Anthony Lucente is also a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses as he’s caught 28 passes for 392 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The Rockets’ talent is endless but Mineral Ridge head coach Brian Shaner believes it all starts with Ballone, and rightfully so.

“He’s really good in the pocket with their quick passing game, and that’s scary,” Shaner said. “But when you throw his elusiveness into it and the way he can carry out a play to give his wideouts extra time to get open that is really worrisome because you have to contain him and I don’t know anyone that has yet.”

When team’s have challenged Lowellville this year, they’ve been able to get pressure on Ballone and make him scramble around the pocket, while also having to make quick decisions in order to get the ball out of his hand.

With a young offensive line, sometimes those decisions have had to come quicker which makes this week’s matchup against the Rams that much more intriguing. Mineral Ridge has been known to be aggressive and bring pressure all season long, which puts a little more emphasis on both Lowellville’s quick passing game and the play of its offensive line. But, it’s something similar to what they saw against Springfield earlier this year.

“Early in our Springfield game, when we went empty sets or tried to spread out, they tried to bring pressure, but the ball was out before anyone got up field,” Mamula said. “If he (Ballone) can do those things, that should help keep that rush at bay.”

When it comes to a regular season matchup, this is as big as it gets for both teams, and trying to stay within themselves is always a key. In fact, it’s the message that Shaner is delivering to his team this week. He believes when they play within themselves, they are hard to beat.

“Our message each and every week is just be us. Just be us, play our style of football and do what you’re taught to do. When we do that, we are a really good football team,” Shaner said. “When you buy into the hype because it is a big game and we start to do things different, that’s when we become average.

“It’s really hard to downplay this game because Lowellville is really really good. They are loaded across the board with skill and talent and everyone knows how good the (quarterback) is. Ballone is really athletic and he’s the total package. But we have to take care of us and when we do that, I really like our football team.”

The two teams kickoff at E.Z. Whittaker Field in Weathersfield at 7 p.m. tonight.

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