photo by: Photo by Andrew Grimm
Weir High’s Corey Lyons runs for a big gain during Friday’s game against Keyser at Jimmy Carey Stadium. Lyons had five touchdowns in a 49-21 Red Rider win.
WEIRTON — While it’s usually the backs that get the headlines, Weir High head coach Frank Sisnni was quick to put the credit somewhere else after another strong night running the football for his Red Riders — the offensive line.
The line opened big holes for several different ball carriers in red as the Red Riders racked up 402 yards and scored all seven of their touchdowns on the ground in a 49-21 win over Keyser on homecoming night at Jimmy Carey Stadium.
The win gives the Red Riders their first 5-1 start since 2018.
“Our offensive line has been phenomenal all year,” Sisinni said. “Coach Dan Rovira has been amazing with those guys. We have taken over some games up front, and that’s what you saw (Friday). We had a lot of yardage on the ground.
“That happened because we saw a lot of great blocking up front and on the perimeter with our receivers.
“The linemen don’t always get the recognition, when you see numbers like (Friday night), that’s a notch for those guys and what those guys have done this season.”
Leading that attack was Corey Lyons, who found the end zone five times on runs of 11, 5, 1 and 10 yards while also busting off gains of 24, 48, 26 and 31 yards that were stopped short of the goal line.
He finished with 191 yards on 17 carries, but did leave the game in the second half with an injury after a 32-yard catch and run on a screen pass.
“That was a Corey Lyons night,” Sisinni said. “He had a big night and that’s been the tale of the year for him. (Five touchdowns) is an impressive performance.”
While he didn’t have to throw the ball much with the success of the ground game, quarterback Malachi Stromile made his impact felt with his legs as well, rushing for 101 yards and a score on 11 carries. More than half of his carries went for more than 10 yards with a long of 35 setting up a Lyons score. He was 2 of 5 passing for 39 yards.
“There was a point where we talked about wanting to get him some touches in space, and we were able to,” Sisinni said. “Having him as a dual threat is a great things for us. He did a phenomenal job.”
Da’Shjuan Smith added 62 yards and a 7-yard score on six carries.
The win is the Red Riders second over a ranked opponent in a big Class AA showdown as the Golden Tornadoes (3-2) entered at No. 11 in the rankings, while Weir High was No. 9.
The win boosts the Red Riders back into the top-8, according to WV Tailgate Central’s unofficial rankings following the win on Friday night.
“We bring quality opponents into our schedule because we want to test ourselves and see where we are at, especially a game like this where we get to play a team that is ranked in the state of West Virginia,” Sisnni said. “This is a great team win by the players, staff and everyone involved.”
The Red Riders led 15-7 after one and 29-14 at halftime. Then, similar to its big win over Frankfort two weeks ago, controlled the second half, out-scoring the visitors 20-7 in the final two quarters, including scoring the game’s final 20 points after the Golden Tornadoes had pulled within a score in the third quarter.
After Keyser cut the lead to 29-21 on the first drive of the third quarter, the Red Rider defense blocked a punt for a short field that led to a Lyons scoring run, got an interception from Stromile that led to another score, got a piece of another punt, forced a turnover on downs and then recovered a fumble.
Adding to the special teams performance, Colin “G” Cross had a 61-yard kick return in the first quarter that set up the Red Riders’ second touchdown.
Jack Stanislawczyk had all three of the Keyser TDs, a 68-yard catch and run in the first quarter and touchdown receptions of 13 and 3 yards in the second and third quarters. He finished with 117 yards on six catches.
Logan Rotruck finished 11 of 22 for 152 yards for the Golden Tornadoes.
Keyser finished with 148 yards on the ground as a team, spreading the carries over seven different runners.
Lilliann Caranda was crowned the homecoming queen at halftime.
“It’s big for these seniors to win on homecoming, they’ve put in a lot of work the last few years to have a night like this,” Sisinni said. “It’s great for the student body, and the City of Weirton and the whole community. We always want them to be proud of the product we put on the field and we feel like we’re playing a pretty good brand of football right now, we’re playing Weir High football.”
UP NEXT
Keyser: Returns back to the eastern panhandle to host another Ohio Valley team in John Marshall.
Weir High: Will go on the road to 4-2 Martins Ferry next Friday.
