GALION (Crawford County Now) — Defense propelled Galion past Sandusky Perkins in a Division IV, Region 14 thriller at Unckrich Stadium.

Kicker Braylen Beachy nailed a 21-yard field goal with 1:45 left in the game to give the Tigers a 10-point lead at 17-7. Perkins answered with a late score, but Galion’s defense did what it had done all game to hold on for a 17-14 win.

The two-seeded Tigers hosted, but the six-seeded Pirates were no slouch as Perkins was fresh off dominating No. 3 Napoleon last week. And the visitors came in on an eight-game win streak.

Little action happened early in the game and Galion missed a field goal wide right at the five-minute mark. The very next possession, Galion’s Sam Evans ripped away a ball for an interception, but the teams remained scoreless after one.

This one was shaping up to be a hard-nosed, low-scoring affair.

“The idea that we play a tight ballgame and win by our (defense) is something … we have been playing great defense for a while here at Galion,” coach Matt Dick said. “This group of guys are athletic kids that love to fly around and play football the right way.”

Perkins made up for a missed field goal of its own with a 42-yard touchdown reception by Kaden Legando, and the game finally saw its first points of the night with 1:01 left in the half. Galion responded with 7:36 left in the third quarter when Kane Hay caught a 16-yard reception and that was all the momentum the Tigers needed.

With 1:22 left in the third, Galion hit paydirt for the second time. Quarterback Ayden Schmidt ran it to the one yard line, fumbled, and Kurt Hay recovered it in the end zone to take a 14-7 lead after three. Schmidt was efficient finishing 15-of-20 passing for 256 yards and a touchdown.

Plans on extending the game even further stalled early in the fourth when Perkins forced a fumble at their own four-yard line, but the Pirates were unable to capitalize.

Beachy drilled the aforementioned field goal with under two minutes to go giving Galion a 10-point lead before Perkins responded with a two-play, 60-yard drive making the game 17-14.

Perkins had one last shot from the 33-yard line with just four seconds left. Sam Schweinfurth’s pass was intercepted in the end zone by Hay who began to run the ball out of the end zone, but a whistle blew instead.

“He threw it up in the air, and I thought that I can pick it, so I did, and I ran it out of the end zone because I didn’t want any time left,” Hay said about the final play. “That’s when they blew the whistle.”

Perkins’ Braxden Martin then grabbed the ball from Hay and ran it into the end zone. The referees ultimately decided to give Perkins another chance with an untimed down. Jamesen Glew knocked the final pass attempt down to secure a spot in the regional finals.

Hay was a key contributor for the Tigers finishing with six receptions for 65 yards, a touchdown, and the interception. It seemed like he always stepped up at the right time.

Galion faces a familiar foe in longtime rival Shelby for a regional championship and a final four spot in Division IV on the line. The game likely will be played at Arlin Field in Mansfield.

Shelby got the better of the Tigers in Week 4, 45-34. But through 12 games, Galion is still the only team to truly test the Whippets.

“As a coach I told them, ‘Hey, if we do stuff right, we’ll get another shot at them,’” Dick said. “Two local teams, I mean how awesome is that? As a coach, playing a kid like Brayden DeVito is as good as it gets … he is awesome to watch. It’s going to be a heck of a game on Friday.”

Score by quarters   

Perkins      7           0            0         7 — 14

Galion         0          0          14         3 — 17

Scoring summary

Second quarter

SP — Kaden Legando 42 pass from Sam Schweinfurth (Grant Hickman kick), 1:01.

Third quarter

G — Kane Hay 16 pass from Ayden Schmidt (Braylen Beachy kick), 7:3

G — Kurt Hay recovered fumble in the end zone (Beachy kick), 1:32.

Fourth quarter

G — Beachy 22 field goal, 1:45.

SP — Legando 30 pass from Schweinfurth (Hickman kick), 1:21.

Individual statistics

Passing

Perkins: Sam Schweinfurth 18-32-2 266; Galion: Ayden Schmidt 15-22-0 256.

Rushing

Perkins: Levi Jackson 12-48, JoJo Moore 2-10, Brayden Martin 3-8, Sam Oprzadek 2-2, Sam Schweinfurth 3-(-11); Galion: Braxton Stuckman 21-53, Ayden Schmidt 12-28, Camden Kuehlman 3-8, Kane Hay 1-3, Kale Early 1-1, Kurt Hay 1-0.

Receiving

Perkins: Kaden Legando 7-107, Connor Smith 4-61, Blake Parker 5-60 Branden Martin 1-16, Bryce Davie 2-11, Levi Jackson 1-11; Galion: Kurt Hay 3-108, Kane Hay 6-65, Braxton Stuckman 2-46, Dominic Capretta 2-25, Jameson Glew 2-12

Team statistics 

SP               G

First downs                      14               15

Rushing                         22-57         38-93

Passes                           18-33-1       15-22-0

Yards passing                 266             256

Total yards                      323             349

Fumbles-lost                   1-0               2-1

Penalties                          2-30           3-20