H.S. Football: Colt Cowling, Keystone rebound, pick up win over Oberlin

LAGRANGE — After back-to-back losses to finish non-conference play, it was back to business for Keystone on Friday night as the defending Lorain County League champions kicked off their conference slate with a 42-7 win over Oberlin.The Wildcats didn't get off to the best of starts, with sophomore quarterback Colt Cowling throwing an interception on their first drive after a three-and-out by the Phoenix."I was in my head a little bit," Cowling said. " I've been in my head all season."Cowling responded quickly, however, and after the Keystone defense forced another three-and-out, he marched the offense down the field and finished off the drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass over the middle to senior Kaleb Scott."Colt's a competitive kid," said Keystone coach Don Griswold. "He's mentally tough, a gifted athlete and very coachable. That's a high-character kid."Cowling's night got even better after that first touchdown drive, and he completed all six passes he threw the rest of the half, leading the Wildcats to two more touchdowns and a 20-0 halftime lead.While it took the Keystone offense a little while to get going, the defense had no such issues.It wasn't until the Phoenix's third drive that it managed to pick up a first down, and just a couple of plays later, Wildcats senior Shane Ohl picked off Drew Walter and would have put six points on the board if not for a holding penalty.The defense came close to putting points on the board again at the start of the second half, as the Phoenix fumbled on each of its first two plays and the second was recovered by the Wildcats at the 1-yard line."We played a lot of guys, and they didn't have a lot of yards, except that one possession in the third quarter," Griswold said. "We had a lot of guys flying to the football and getting after it, that's team defense.After the Wildcats allowed 22 and 28 points in their last two games, Friday's performance was a return to form for a defense that allowed fewer than 10 points per game in the LCL last season.Possibly the most encouraging part of the win, however, was Keystone's offensive balance, especially in the running game.Five of the Wildcats' six touchdowns came on the ground, scored by five players, including freshman Kaden Colon, who had a breakout game with 77 rushing yards and 86 receiving yards."We're deep at (the running back) position, and our skill is good," Griswold said. "We saw a freshman scoring there, that was fun. You've got to be able to run the ball and stop the run, so I'm very happy with that."The win was exactly the start the Wildcats were looking for to their LCL title defense, and while they still have some things to clean up, they are definitely one of the teams to beat in the conference.For the Phoenix, the loss was a setback after the last two weeks saw the program's first winning streak in seven years, but this year's team is clearly much improved from the last few seasons and will have a good chance to win its first conference game since 2021.