2025-26 had plenty of thrilling Route 20 Rivalry moments

When I first got back into sports journalism over a decade ago, there was always something spectacular about covering Bellevue against Clyde in any sport. As the 2025-2026 high school sports season comes to an end, that feeling hasn't changed. As the two teams met in a postseason softball contest May 19, I realized how many Route 20 Rivalry games I was fortunate to cover this past school year. My first football game of the season was the Route 20 Rivalry, and somewhat fittingly, I covered the playoff rematch 10 weeks later. Things will change just a little bit next year for Bellevue and Clyde. After being members of the Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division and playing twice a year in sports like volleyball and basketball, Bellevue will move to the Bay Division when the Northern Ohio Conference starts play in August. That means all games between the two rivals will technically be crossover — or non-league — games in 2026-2027. From football and volleyball to basketball and spring sports, here are my top five Route 20 Rivalry contests I was able to write about during this school year: Honorable mention: — Bellevue 69, Clyde 32, girls basketball: Bellevue was the cream of the crop when it comes to girls basketball teams in the area. The Lady Red took care of business in quick order when they met at Bellevue on Dec. 6. Ava Jakubcin-Theis scored 20 points in her first Route 20 Rivalry contest. Bellevue took care of business later in the season at Clyde (64-28 on Valentine's Day) en route to finishing as state runner-up. — Bellevue 3, Clyde 0, volleyball: The Lady Red struggled to finish matches against Willard and Edison in the days leading up to their matchup against Clyde at home Aug. 28. After a tough first set, Bellevue rolled to a 25-21, 25-16, 25-16 win. Finley Lapata had 13 kills for the Lady Red, who also swept the Fliers 3-0 in the rematch on Sept. 25 in Clyde. — Bellevue 11, Clyde 1, baseball: The Redmen lost a heartbreaker on Clyde's field during the 2025 season. It eliminated the Redmen from winning at least a share of the SBC Lake Division title. When they met April 9, things went a bit smoother for Bellevue, which scored in five of the six innings it hit in. Ike Brown and Sam Bollinger each had four hits for the Redmen, who won the second meeting 5-0 (started April 24, ended May 12). My top 5: 5. Lilly Sosa (Bellevue) & Braylee Laughlin (Clyde), pole vault: The very last moment of the Route 20 Rivalry this school year came at this past weekend's track and field state meet at Ohio State. They were two of the 18 pole vault state qualifiers in Division III and both did well. Sometimes pole vaulting within seconds of each other, Sosa ended up sixth. She cleared the first four heights without a miss before fouling out at 11 feet, 6 inches. Laughlin got the first three heights before not being able to clear 11 feet. It seemed like a fitting end — along with each school's 4x200 boys relays competing against each other — to a tremendous 2025-2026 school year. 4. Clyde 11, Bellevue 1, softball: For the first time in 10 years, the two teams met in a tournament softball game. This meeting took place at Lions Park in Castalia on May 19. After the Fliers won 6-0 (April 8 at Clyde) and 8-3 (started April 24, ended May 7 at Bellevue) during the regular season, they scored eight runs in the first inning and took control early. Clyde coach Marc Marshall told me after the game that the Fliers had never defeated Bellevue in a postseason meeting. Marshall celebrated his 600th career win earlier in the season. 3. Bellevue 33, Clyde 23, football: Meeting to kick off the 2025 football season Aug. 22, the Redmen got a statement win at Robert J. Bishop Stadium. Bellevue led just 26-23 with under three minutes to play when Ike Brown connected with Billy Sberna on a seven-yard touchdown pass to seal the win. The game honored former coaches Ed Nasonti (Bellevue) and Bob Bishop (Clyde) as honorary captains. Brown scored four touchdowns in a game that had a 38-yard interception return touchdown by Evan Bova for Bellevue and an 87-yard kickoff return touchdown by Dekin Crockett for Clyde. Those came on back-to-back plays to electrify both crowds. It wouldn't be the last time the two teams saw each other on the football field... 2. Bellevue 66, Clyde 63, boys basketball: Clyde led 56-46 with under seven minutes to go in this classic inside Nancy Hanger Gymnasium at Clyde High School on Jan. 22. The Redmen got 3-pointers from Elijah Turinsky and JJ Vogel to quickly cut the deficit to four points. Bellevue used that momentum and made 3-of-4 free throws in the final 30 seconds for the final margin. The Fliers had a good look at a tie, but two misses gave Bellevue the wild win. Bellevue won a meeting earlier in the season, 69-59. 1. Bellevue 12, Clyde 6, OT, football: There wasn't a lot of debate on this one. After meeting in Week 1 in Clyde, the two teams ran it back in the opening round of the playoffs Oct. 31. This one, though, took place in Bellevue. This meeting was much lower scoring than the first contest. Clyde led just 3-0 at halftime — the field goal coming after a 12-plus-minute drive. Bellevue took a 6-3 lead early in the fourth quarter only for Mitch Newsome to tie the game on a 40-yard field goal in the final minute of the game. Once in overtime, Bellevue's Ike Brown secured an interception to end Clyde's possession. A few plays later, Billy Sberna scored on a six-yard run to give the Redmen the victory. The game ended up being the final game as Clyde head coach for Ryan Carter.