Monroeville bounces back, tops Independence, 47-7

MONROEVILLE — Venerable Marsh Field. A large crowd was present and excited when fourth-seeded Monroeville earned their 10th win of the season and first playoff victory since 2016, topping No. 13 Independence, 47-7, in Division VII, Region 25 first-round action. The Eagles — ranked No. 8 in the final Associated Press poll — improved to 10-1 and face No. 5 Warren JFK (9-2) at home next week. After fumbling the opening kickoff, the Eagles responded well thanks to a 46-yard run by Colt Clark to energize the team. The Eagles capped off the drive with Evan Benfer, who found Derek Ackerman in the end zone for the touchdown and 6-0 lead. A strong kick by Landon Stein pinned the Blue Devils deep in their own end. The drive ended in the wrong direction for Independence when Dominic Narduzzi was pressured into an intentional grounding in the end zone. That safety extended the lead to 8-0. The Eagles took advantage and put together another score. An impressive spin and run by Connor Bores kept the Eagles moving down field. Clark finished off the drive with his first rushing touchdown of the night to increase the Eagles' lead to 14-0. Independence fumbled the kickoff return and the Eagles recovered to set up shop deep in Blue Devils' territory. Benfer again set up Clark to get his second touchdown of the night and put the Eagles up 21-0. The Blue Devils needed a response, getting a turnover off of a Monroeville fumble that set them up with a short field. Independence (4-7) chipped away at the Eagles defense before it faced a critical 4th-and-3 at the Monroeville 5. After a timeout by the Blue Devils, Narduzzi found Rocco Ressler for the score on a tipped pass to cut into the Eagles 'lead to 21-7. Monroeville punched right back with another scoring drive fueled by a long 30-yard run for Benfer, who set himself up to get into the end zone on a five-yard run to put the Eagles back up 27-7. Benfer then went up and grabbed an interception off of Narduzzi right before the half, which gave the Eagles the ball back with a minute left before halftime. The Eagles went 60 yards in 45 seconds to add another score before the half, with Benfer finding a wide open Clark for his third touchdown of the night, making it 33-7 at the break. Independence went three-and-out to start the second half and a 12-yard punt put the Eagles at the Blue Devils 39 to start the drive. It only took two plays for the Eagles to add to their lead with Clark getting his fourth touchdown of the night on a 36-yard pass from Benfer. Monroeville closed out the scoring on the night with another strong drive that ended with a fumble into the end zone. Landin Hershiser was able to get on top of the ball for the touchdown. Monroeville head coach Tylor Nester was happy with the way his defense rebounded after last week's tough loss to St. Paul. "One of our focuses this week was eliminating those big plays on defense", Nester said. "Shout out to our secondary that did a nice job tonight and our defensive line putting pressure on the quarterback all night forcing a few sacks." Nester was proud of the whole team and how they played Friday after last week's tough loss. "Bouncing back after last week, I was really proud of the kids and how they focused and took ownership of last week," he said. "Full steam ahead into next week." Independence 0 7 0 0 — 7 Monroeville 21 12 14 0 — 47 M — Derek Ackerman 9 pass from Evan Benfer (kick failed) M — Safety M — Colton Clark 5 run (kick failed) M — Clark 5 run (Landon Stein kick) I — Rocco Ressler 5 pass from Dominic Narduzzi (Panichi kick) M — Benfer 5 run (kick failed) M — Clark 3 pass from Benfer (kick failed) M — Clark 36 pass from Benfer (Stein kick) M — Landin Hershiser 0 fumble recovery (Stein kick)