McKinley travels West again in convincing victory
By Keno Sultan
Stark County Prep Press writer
www.starkcountypreppress.blogspot.com
CANTON--There is only one direction that McKinley travels.
And that direction is West.
Once again, junior Bulldogs tailback Kyelin West was the catalyst as he paced the McKinley offense with three touchdowns all in the first half and they were never opposed in a 35-7 ransacking of North Canton Hoover at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.
For the first time all season, McKinley did not secure a running clock victory as they had in their previous five wins as they improved to 6-1 on the season and 3-0 in the Federal League. The fact they did not have a running clock victory is of of minimal solace for the Vikings who were focused on being a factor in the league race.
It didn't take the Bulldogs long to set the tone as after a Braylon Crook pass to Kyelin West went for 24 yards, West took a handoff and sprinted into the clear for a 55-yard scoring jaunt and in a flash, McKinley put the first dent in the scoreboard for a 7-0 lead.
West has been terrorizing defenses and that score was no exception.
"He is a hard runner and I tell people every week that he shows a different part of his game and tonight he broke a lot of tackles tonight and he ran his butt off. I am super proud of him and he is a force to deal with," second-year McKinley commander Renzy Parnell said.
Hoover penetrated their way to the McKinley 37-yard line but quarterback Nolan Bonner was stifled by the Bulldogs interior that forced a turnover on downs.
The second quarter witnessd the Vikings traverse deep into McKinley territory. Following a Bonner pass to Ian Dennis and aided by a Bulldog personal foul via a devastating hit penalty, North Canton was in scoring distance inside the 20-yard line.
A scoring pass sailed wide and Hoover's bid stalled when they missed a 35-yard field goal.
With nothing to show for it, that is something Vikings head coach Brian Baum Sr. rued. And it came with solid reason as two plays after the miscue, West fought off several tackle attempts and sprinted for a career-high 76-yard touchdown run and a 14-0 lead midway through the second quarter.
A fake punt run by the Vikings was snuffed out by the parsimonious McKinley defense and had prime scoring position once again.
"The play was there but I'm not sure what we were doing there but that wasn't the play that was called. Then we had a missed field goal and that happens," Baum Sr. said.
And once again it was West scoring his third touchdown of the contest, a six-yard run and the rout was on as the hosts erected a 21-0 lead before the halftime show.
If anyone thought North Canton was going to slowly flatline away, their heart monitor displayed vital life when Bonner connected on a 47-yard strike for a much needed score that truncated the Bulldogs lead to 21-7 with over two minutes remaining in the half.
The game was still in reach at that moment according to Baum Sr.
"At that point, we knew we could score and felt we could build on that and we felt we could move the ball there," he said.
McKinley's response was swift and kind of hilly. Crook connected on three straight completions to Darius Hill with the third aerial sailing into his hands, where he outpaced a Viking defender for a momentum regaining touchdown that restored a three-touchdown advantage going into the intermission at 28-7.
Parnell attested the score was huge for his charges.
"That was huge! As you said, the timing of that was huge going into halftime and we're back up three scores instead of two," he said.
On their second possession of the third quarter, Crook took a hand off and raced to the end zone for a nine-yard touchdown run and that was the story of the evening and another night at the office for the hottest team in the Federal League as they pushed their winning streak to a tremendous 10 in a row.
For North Canton Hoover (4-3, 1-2), it is back to the drawing board as they are now at this point playing for playoff positioning having been all but virtually eliminated from the league race.
"We have to find a way to win each and every week as that is our mindset now. We have to win, every game is now a playoff game in which you can be put in a better position and a better seed," Baum said. "From here on out, every game is a playoff game."
McKinley once again is in the driver's seat for another league title and Parnell likes where his team is at as they will travel to Lake for another tough assignment against a Blue Streaks team, who at press time lost to Jackson 37-20.
McKinley will look to seize at least a share of the league crown next week.
"Lake I know is well coached and DeGeorge does a heck of a job with them. We have to watch the film of them and go from there," he said.
There is only one direction that Canton McKinley travels. And that direction is led by Kyelin West and a reason why the Bulldogs are the Federal League's best.
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