Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Fitch sophomore Brayden Bryant is lifted up by sophomore Jayden Lumsden following a touchdown score in the second quarter.

AUSTINTOWN — On an evening where a chilly breeze pushed less than ideal rainy conditions throughout the Mahoning Valley, the Austintown Fitch Falcons kept their hot streak rolling before mother nature intervened.

By the time the torrential downpour began under the lights of Greenwood Chevrolet Falcons Stadium, the Falcons were already up a hefty slew of points following scores on their first four drives. Austintown walked off the water-logged turf with a 35-0 victory over Canton GlenOak, securing a 3-0 start to their 2024 campaign.

“I’m very proud of the guys, we have to sustain it more as the game goes on, they’re a bunch that’s growing and are proud of where we stand, looking forward to getting better every week,” Fitch coach TJ Parker said. “The kids are coming out every Friday night excited to play, they want to fly around and make plays. They’re unselfish as can be and I think that’s what is most important to me and our success to this point.”

“We feel good about our defense and anytime you can get the defense out front, it allows our guys to play faster and more aggressive, and then when things start rolling our way, we can start to mix it up. We want to be a defensive ball club and our offense up to this point has done a very good job of putting them in situations where we can do a lot of things. We’re a three faced team, all three sides are progressively working together.”

Austintown (3-0) began the contest with possession following the opening kick-off, driving down field to score on a nine-yard dash from junior quarterback Davanzo Tate. Following a GlenOak (0-3) three and out, sophomore running back Deon’Dray Richard broke through the Golden Eagles defensive line, finding paydirt from 55-yards out.

GlenOak’s following drive stalled a midfield, leading to a muffed punt that put Fitch in ideal field position. Tate sniffed out the end zone again on a two-yard run, allowing the Falcons to lead 21-0 following a successful PAT off the leg of Anthony Ruggles. The Falcons found points one final time early in the second quarter on a strike from Tate to sophomore Brayden Bryant as the sky began to open up, Fitch leading 28-0.

Up big, the Falcons retook the field after halftime sporting their navy jerseys, hanging up the red jerseys they began the evening with. The swap in duds didn’t seem to impact Austintown’s groove however, as they began the third quarter with a three and out defensively, then a 32-yard touchdown run by Richard soonthereafter to take a 35-0 lead, starting the running clock.

Richard had a tremendous evening, gaining 172 yards on 16 attempts.

He smiled from ear to ear recalling his first of two trips to the end zone versus GlenOak.

“After (our) first seven points, we knew there was no stopping us. Our momentum was through the ceiling, we had fire on offense and defense, then we were just firing off the ball and playing with our hearts,” Richard said. “It felt great, it felt excellent when I broke through, I seen that little space, I seen green grass, I started going fast like a Scat Pack.”

“The second one, I had to make my moves, make the cuts, and read the defense.”

Tate, posting 40 rushing yards on eight carries, while going 6-8 passing for 64 yards, helped guide his team to a 3-0 start under center while still learning a few things himself. For him, it’s about the other Falcons surrounding him.

“We just wanted to come in and play smash mouth football, that’s kind of what we’re trying to do this year all around, trying to get the ball to our guys in space when we can,” Tate said. “I love my teammates, those are my guys on and off the field, I feel like we talk it up on the field, off the field, always talking trying to figure out what we can do better.”

“Everybody’s juiced, the O-line is juiced, everybody is ready to go out there, ready to block their butts off, ready to make a play for their brothers and keep it going, lighting the score up.”

Parker adds “They’re just doing what they’re coached to do, not anymore. Every week we’re pounding certain aspects of the offense. They don’t have to do anything special, they just have to do what they’re asked to do and sometimes special comes out of that and I think you saw a little bit of that tonight.”

“I think there’s a lot of people who wouldn’t believe we’re standing here going into a game with a really good Riverside team away, I’m proud of our guys, I’m proud of our maturity, they worked their butts off for this.”

The Falcons outgained the Golden Eagles 326 to 78 offensively. Fitch will travel to Painesville, Ohio next weekend for a duel with the Riverside Beavers to begin a three-game road trip. Austintown will make trips to Akron Buchtel and then Youngstown State to face Ursuline before heading home for a contest with Perry on Oct. 4.