Hill, who said he had not scored a touchdown in two years, found the end zone twice in the second half thanks to pinpoint passes by fellow senior Cam Fancher. That’s why Hill got to wear the gold chain with a large “W” at the end that stands for Wayne but could have also stood for “Win” on Friday at Heidkamp Stadium in Huber Heights.
“They were both the same play, both play action,” Hill said. “I come off the ball soft and just run past the defender. It means a lot. I’ve been waiting a long time for this.”
The No. 6 seed Warriors (5-2) will play No. 3 Springfield (6-1), which beat No. 14 Toledo Whitmer 27-17 on Friday, in the second round on Oct. 16 in Springfield. Wayne lost 21-14 at Springfield in the season opener.
The Wayne-Springfield winner will advance to play No. 2 Northmont or No. 7 Marysville in the regional semifinal on Oct. 23. Northmont beat No. 15 Middletown 35-0, while Marysville beat No. 10 Dublin Jerome 35-14.
No. 11 Centerville, which also lost to Wayne in the regular season, 28-23 on Sept. 11, exits the playoffs with a 3-4 record.
The touchdowns were the only catches of the night for Hill, who has 10 receptions for 165 yards in seven games. Fancher completed 5 of 13 passes for 77 yards and matched his season high with the two touchdowns.
With the game tied at 7-7, Fancher threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Hill with 3:59 left in the third quarter. After a 25-yard field goal by Centerville’s Jackson Courville, Fancher and Hill connected again on a 17-yard touchdown. The Warriors missed the PAT but led 20-10 with 7:04 left.
“That’s what we talk about: being playmakers,” Wayne coach Roosevelt Mukes said. “Cam made a great throw, and Brendan made a great catch. Twice. That’s what it’s about, just giving those guys the opportunities to make plays and when their number’s called, they’ve been doing it.”
Cam Fancher 17-yard TD pass to Brenden Hill. Wayne extends lead over Centerville to 20-10 with 704 left. PAT missed. pic.twitter.com/sAB9et0bNS
— David Jablonski (@DavidPJablonski) October 10, 2020
Interceptions by Wayne’s Christian Rand and Jaden Hurd in the final minutes helped seal the victory. Earlier, Wayne forced two more turnovers with Trayvonn Cobb and Adam Trick recovering fumbles.
“We talked about taking one play at a time and trying to finish drives," Wayne coach Roosevelt Mukes said. "The defense did an outstanding job. They kind of picked up the offense, and that’s what this game’s about. This was a great team win, and we’ll learn from it and move on.”
It was a defensive struggle in the first half. After a scoreless first quarter, Centerville took advantage of a fumbled punt by Wayne, scoring on the next play when Harrison threw a 13-yard touchdown to Cameron Smith with 10:55 left in the half.
Wayne answered on its next possession. Ray Greene broke a long run to start the drive and then scored on a 9-yard run with 8:33 remaining.
Greene finished with 75 yards on seven carries. Jordan Ward led Wayne with 81 yards on 10 carries.
Harrison completed 17 of 27 passes for 138 yards.
This was the first playoff meeting between Wayne and Centerville since 2010 when Wayne won 36-33 in double overtime on a 1-yard touchdown run by Braxton Miller.
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