Sandusky's Stewart sets records as Streaks run into playoffs

PERKINS TWP. — One team was playing for its playoff life. The other was playing spoiler. Only one was going to go home happy Friday night.Behind a record-setting performance from junior running back Terion Stewart at Firelands Regional Medical Center Stadium, Sandusky got back to its winning ways with a 43-14 triumph over Perkins, securing at least an extra week in the state playoffs. Sandusky will be on the road in the first round at a site to be determined Sunday. There hasn't been a close game in the series, with each team having won five times since the rivalry began in 2009. The closest margin of victory was a 31-13 Sandusky win in 2016, and there have been four shutouts.Stewart finished with 334 all-purpose yards Friday, including 223 on the ground on just 13 carries. He now has 3,363 career rushing yards, including 2,151 this season. Both are Sandusky records. He also hold the season touchdown mark with 33 and counting."I'm blessed by my line, my team," Stewart said. "I couldn't do it without them."On his second carry of the game, Stewart gained 5 yards to give him the career mark for the Streaks. On his next carry, an 8-yard run, he set a new season record. His final carry of the first quarter, a 4-yard gain, put him over the 2,000-yard mark for the season.By halftime, Stewart had 145 yards on eight carries, including touchdown runs of 54 yards and 70 yards, in which he went right with the handoff, cut across the middle and avoided two pursuers, using a stiff-arm that kept a Pirate at bay to put Sandusky (6-4, 1-4 Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division) up by two touchdowns.He added a 74-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that gave the Streaks a three-touchdown lead, putting them up 29-8 after Max Corso's third of five extra points."We wanted to make the playoffs so bad," Stewart said. "We worked hard all week. Everybody did their one-11th, and we just executed well tonight."The most impressive run on the game, though, was a kickoff return to close the half after the Pirates (2-8, 1-4) got on the board with 17 seconds to play in the second quarter. Stewart corralled the squib kick at his own 20, went down the right sideline with a bevy of Streaks and Pirates in a pile, hurdled one of his own players at midfield and outran the pursuit to complete the 80-yard return. Shonsai Aaron's 2-point conversion run after a fumbled snap put the Streaks up 22-8, and they were never threatened again."(Stewart) does a lot of things not a lot of guys can," Sandusky coach Mike Franklin said. "We're very blessed to have him. He runs hard. He has tremendous vision. We're happy he's on our football team."That half-ending kick return put a damper on the Pirates' momentum after having just gone 78 yards in 16 plays, taking more than six minutes off the clock and pulling Perkins to within 14-6 when J'Andre Jackson's 3-yard run capped the impressive drive."Stewart's a good player, he hurt us," said Perkins coach Jason Ziegler. "Going into halftime that kick was a squib. We were trying not to kick to him, and the darn thing bounced to him. It was a heckuva run. Going down two scores at the half and hoping to be down one."This is a night I'm proud of how our seniors played. You get to this point and one team is better than the other. Tonight was their night."Sandusky senior Eian Sherman got in on the act, too, putting up two second-half scores — a 48-yard burst in the third period and a 34-yard fourth-quarter run to finish the scoring. He had 114 yards on five carries. Jackson added the other Perkins score on a 2-yard run, finishing the night with 102 hard-earned yards on 19 carries.Ranked as high as No. 3 in the Division III Associated Press poll before a four-game losing streak, Friday's win secured a playoff spot for the Streaks. They currently sit in the sixth position in Region 10. It will be the third straight season Sandusky has qualified for the playoffs, a new school standard. Perkins' last trip to the postseason was in 2015."Every game's a journey, and our guys needed this to get back on track," Franklin said. "I think we were close a few times in the last four games and we were able to seal it. I think our kids were really excited to have the possibility of playing a Game 11."I'm really proud of our defense. Our defense has been getting a lot of crap lately and I think our defense came out and played really well. We should have had some more turnovers, more interceptions. I think we moved the ball well on offense, and we've got to continue to work on being more than one dimensional. We worked on that tonight and hopefully we get better."Sandusky 7 15 14 7 - 43Perkins 0 6 0 8 - 14S - Terion Stewart 54 run (Max Corso)S - Stewart 70 run (Corso kick)P - J'Andre Jackson 3 run (kick failed)S - Stewart 80 kickoff return (Shonsai Aaron run)S - Stewart 74 run (Corso kick)S - Eian Sherman 48 run (Corso kick)P - Jackson 2 run (Dylan Nason pass from Blake Smith)S - Sherman 34 run (Corso kick) [gallery]Sandusky's Terion Stewart rushes the ball during a game against Perkins on Friday, Oct. 26, 2018, in Perkins Township.Perkins' Christopher Campbell runs the ball during a game against Sandusky on Friday, Oct. 26, 2018, in Perkins Township.Perkins' Simeon Hunter reaches to tackle Sandusky's Tevin Stewart during a game in Perkins Township on Friday, Oct. 26, 2018.Sandusky's Noah Caston breaks up a pass intended for Da'Quise Clinton during a game in Perkins Township on Friday, Oct. 26, 2018.