Lexington's Streak Breaker Looks for Another Big Win

For the first time in four years Lexington and Shelby will matchup in week two after starting the season with a win. Lexington broke it's three game losing streak to Ontario in week one behind an offensive explosion of over 400 total yards and five touchdowns. Shelby continued it's dominance over Madison in recent years with another blowout win over the Rams in week one, 56-14.

All of that being said, the bigger story about Friday night is that it marks the 10th anniversary of Lexington's last win over the Whippets. Back in 2015 the Minutemen took down Shelby by a final of 34-20 and since that night not only has Shelby won nine straight in the series but the majority of those games got out of hand. Shelby has had an incredible ability to churn out high level quarterbacks that not only sling the ball all over the field like a video game on easy mode, but they can always run the ball effectively as well.

Last year however, it felt like the Minutemen did a good job at containing (if there is such a thing) star quarterback/recruit Brayden DeVito and gave themselves a chance. The game ended 21-10 and felt like an opportunity had slipped away from Lex, especially at home. Sometimes a heartbreaker like that lingers in the minds of players and coaches and the guys at Lexington are no exception. They want this one and if there's a man for the job it's head coach Andrew Saris, the streak breaker.

Under Coach Saris' leadership the Minutemen have broken several significant losing streaks. The most recent came last year against the pesky Mansfield Senior "TY" Tygers. The Minutemen not only broke their six game losing streak to Senior High, but dominated defensively in a game that the Tyger offense barely even sniffed mid field.

In his first year as the coach at Lex, Coach Saris was able to lead the Minutmen to a victory over Wooster for the first time in 5 years. It was one of the most exciting games Lexington has seen in a decade. The Minutemen roared back to win with under a minute left when then Freshman Brayden Fogle caught a touchdown from AJ Young to pull within one point. Instead of kicking the extra point and tying the game, Saris elected to go for two and sure enough just as the Minutemen had scored the touchdown, they ran almost an identical play to score the two and take the lead by one point. AJ Young to Brayden Fogle broke the losing streak.

In 2023, his second year as the coach at Lex, Saris and his Minutemen were able to break a four year losing streak to Clear Fork that actually went back to 2016 (CF left the conference briefly and came back, the teams didn't play for two years). That game was another nail biter. The Minutemen won by a single point. The highlight of that game was a 93 yard halfback pass from Markale Martin to newcomber Seven Allen on the very first play of the second half. Again, another gutsy call helped the Minutemen break another losing streak.

Another four game losing streak the Minutemen have broken under Saris' tenure was last season against Ashland. In Coach Saris' first season the Minutemen had a 28-7 halftime lead at Ashland in a win and get in game at Community Stadium. The Minutemen went into that game knowing if they won they'd have a playoff spot sealed up. Ultimately the Arrows had an enormous second half and won the game 42-28. 2023 was revenge time. At home last season the situation was the same. Beat the Arrows and get into the playoffs. In a rainy late October slugfest the Minutemen were able to secure a 24-14 victory and secure their spot in the playoffs, one spot ahead of Ashland, and breaking yet another losing streak.

You get the point. Coach Saris has seen a lot of bad streaks end under his leadership but the theme seems to be, when it happens, it's thrilling. Friday night may be another one to add to the list for Saris and his Minutemen. Either they break the streak, or the streak goes to double digits. One thing is for certain, if you like a lot of offense, head to the Whippet Athletic Complex on Friday night for a matchup between arguably the two best teams in Richland County because there will surely be plenty of points to go around.