Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Austintown Fitch senior Jamell James leaps over multiple Foothill (Nev.) defenders during the first half of the Falcons’ big win Friday night at Austintown Fitch High School.

AUSTINTOWN — It was the Battle of the Falcons, just in an unconventional way.

Foothill traveled over 2,000 miles to take on Austintown Fitch Friday evening. When it was time to hit the gridiron, Austintown took the opportunity to present their running back corp to their foe from Nevada.

Fitch won their season opener 42-10 and coach TJ Parker was more than delighted with his squad’s ground game.

“I thought we came out, some people doubted us in this game, and they came out excited and prepared to play. The effort was there and I’m really proud of that, ” Parker said. “All year, it’s a one-two punch, when you have Jamell, that battering ram running at you, and then DJ like he’s shot out of cannon.

“I thought that combination was really tough for them to handle tonight, but I think if you ask those two, they’ll credit the offensive line, whose much improved. They want to move people, they want to keep the ball on the ground and I thought we did a good job of that.”

Williams scored three touchdowns on the ground, accumulating 97 yards on four carries. His first touchdown came through the air on a 23-yard out route from DeShawn Vaughn Jr.

“It felt great for a team from Nevada to come, and we represent Northeast Ohio and Youngstown as well,” Williams said. “Ohio football is different, I know you got all you other states, but I feel like Ohio is a truly different brand of football from every other state.

“We’re very physical, we got a lot of grit, and we just play with heart and passion.”

Leading 14-10 moments prior to halftime, Fitch drove down the field, capping off a drive with a six-yard score from Vaughn, to go up 21-10 into the locker room. Fitch also started the second half with the ball.

Vaughn’s athleticism was on display as he moved around the backfield and found his receivers when they could beat their corner in one-on-one situations. He gained 51 yards on six rushes but threw for 127 yards on 8-for-11 passing, with a trio of touchdowns.

Scoring passes to Dominic Perry (25-yards) and Jayden Eley (30-yards) came on nearly perfect throws.

“I was very nervous, first start at quarterback as a junior, so it felt great,” Vaughn said. “We came here with a game plan, we did our our job and we all played as a team. We treated it like any other team that we’ve always been playing. Come ready, come prepared, focused and just play Falcon football.”

Despite it being his debut under center, Parker was impressed with Vaughn’s game.

“I thought he was poised and made all the right decisions. A lot of those throws he made were on run calls, the way he handled our offense tonight, I was really proud of him.” Parker said.

Jamell James made his return to the turf following a missed 2021 season, leading the Falcons with 135 yards on 19 attempts. Eley led with 45 receiving yards on three receptions.

Defensively, Fitch held Foothill to 143 total yards, with Brian Robinson accumulating two sacks and Kylen Foster adding a third.

“I thought (Foothill) were really good tacklers in space, they had some athletes,” Parker commented, “(Mason Drew) is a really good quarterback, and Coach Brown over there is doing a really good job. I just loved the way our kids came out and fought from the beginning to the end.”

With week one under their belt, Austintown faces another tough matchup next Friday at home versus Canton McKinley.

With some rust knocked off, Williams feels like his team is in position for a big fall.

“We have a rotation and it always keeps teams on their feet, because we all have different running styles, so it can help us attack teams in different ways,” Williams said about James and Vaughn. “We told (Vaughn), this is a good start, and you just have to relax and play your game how you play you game, and everything will handle itself.

“It feels sweet because we start off the season right, and we just have to keep it rolling.”