Skripac, Lindstrom bombs lead South Range past Springfield

CANFIELD, Ohio (WKBN) – Billy Skripac and Shane Lindstrom connected for two long touchdown passes Thursday night as the South Range Raiders kicked off the 2022 high school football season with a convincing 37-7 victory over rival Springfield.

Blake Ewert also scored two touchdowns for the Raiders in the game.

Springfield (0-1) hosts Brookfield in week two. South Range (1-0) visits University School.

Ewert got things going for the Raiders with just over three minutes left in the first quarter with a 20-yard touchdown run to give South Range a 7-0 lead.

A couple of minutes later, the Raiders got the ball back and Skripac hooked up with Lindstrom for a 67-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 14-0.

“We have that capability,” Raiders coach Dan Yeagley remarked about their big-play offense. “We had it last year, and those guys are back. Billy (Skripac) can make things happen and Shane is always there. He is dynamic. And then Ayden (Leon) too, and then we have JD (Crouse) also. We had a nice trio going on tonight.”

Early in the second quarter, Tyler Remish’s four-yard touchdown run made it 21-0, South Range.

Kaesen Kosek’s four-yard touchdown run put the Tigers on the board late in the second quarter to close the gap to 21-7.

Lindstrom’s second long touchdown catch from Skripac in the game, this time for 50 yards, came shortly after, putting the lead back to three scores, 28-7.

“Billy has that trust in me and I have that trust in him and our offensive line and coaches. It just shows our chemistry. I wouldn’t have scored if it was for JD (Crouse) and Ayden (Leon) blocking downfield for me,” Lindstrom said. “It’s a collective team effort.”

“Billy had time to throw. That is huge. He was able to hit those passes because he wasn’t getting pressured. If we have that kind of time our guys can get open,” Yeagley praised his offensive line. “And running the ball. We ran the ball well. Give credit where credit is due. It was the offensive line that did a great job tonight.”

Ewert’s second touchdown run of the night, a 7-yard run, extended the Raiders lead to 34-7.

A Luke Starkey field goal extended the lead to 37-7.

“We just have to make sure that we keep pushing,” Tigers coach Sean Guerriero said of his team. “We can’t come in tomorrow with our heads down. We have to make sure we get back after it and play Springfield football.”