Rombach, Senecas sprint by Gibsonburg 42-25

Jacob Rombach really wasn't feeling well Saturday.With the way the bruising running back played for Calvert, it was hard to believe.The senior carried 10 times for 139 yards with two touchdowns to lift Division IV, ninth-ranked Calvert to a 42-25 win over Gibsonburg in Sandusky Bay Conference River Division action at Frost-Kalnow Stadium."I just tried to give it my all," Rombach said. "The whole team has been battling sickness for the last week. We just persevered. Our team pulled through."The Senecas improved to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in conference. It is the first 5-0 start for Calvert since 2020 COVID season and only the third such time since 2000."Being 5-0 feels really good, but we're never settling," Rombach said. "I feel like we have bright plans in the future and the rest of the season. We have to take it one game at a time and keep improving. We can be a lot better than we played tonight."It is the first time the Senecas have scored 35 or more points in at least four straight games since 2018."I wish I could pinpoint it," said Calvert coach Steve Reser about what is working so well with the offense. "I think a lot of it comes down to effort. Obviously we have some players. That always is key to a lot of success in any sport or any competition. We're putting a lot of effort up front and are committed to establishing a ground game."The gentlemen up front have done a great job of gelling a little bit."Rombach and Cal Warnement are one of the top 1-2 options in the area at running back for the Senecas. Warnement added 10 rushes for 94 yards and two more scores."Each one of them are so selfless because they could both be 1,200- or 1,500-yard backs, but they compliment each other so well," Reser said. "They're so happy for each other's success. We have a good team vibe going on right now."Calvert got on the board early. Logan DeMoss and John Schumacher combined to block a punt on the Golden Bears' first possession. That started the Senecas at the Gibsonburg 8 and Warnement covered that distance on the first play. The extra point was no good, but Calvert was up 6-0 just over 90 seconds on.The Golden Bears (1-4, 0-2) responded with a nice drive. Camden Mooney completed a 21-yard pass before Grant Smith picked up 20 yards on the ground. After Smith left with an injury, Gibsonburg relied heavily on Spencer Waugaman.He rumbled his way through the defense for chunks of yards at a time, eventually scoring from two yards out. Gibsonburg missed the extra point, tying the game 6-6 with 5:34 left in the first quarter.After a pair of punts, Calvert kept the offense going. An offensive pass interference negated a touchdown pass from Harry Shultz to Billy Clouse, forcing the Senecas to punt. It was muffed by the Golden Bears, giving Calvert new life.After Shultz was sacked, Rombach scampered 17 yards to make up for lost yardage. Later, he scored on a two-yard run on fourth down. Warnement added the two-point conversion run.As if Rombach wasn't doing enough offensively, he helped his defense. Gibsonburg picked up a pair of first downs and was inside the Calvert 40, but a pass from Mooney sailed high and Rombach was there for the interception.That led to the Senecas marching down the field and scoring again. Rombach picked up 21 yards on a carry to get into Gibsonburg territory. Shultz added a 10-yard run before Schumacher blitzed through the Golden Bears' defense for a 21-yard touchdown. The extra point by Cameron Lucius made it 21-6.Calvert kept its foot on the pedal. After forcing a four-and-out, Warnement went 39 yards on the Senecas' second play for the touchdown and 27-6 edge."We have a good commander in the offensive huddle with Harrison running the show," Reser said. "He's got a lot of calmness. Sometimes he keeps me calm. Offensively, they're clicking. We're not messing with a whole lot."Gibsonburg did have the last say in the first half. The Golden Bears milked the clock and strategically used their timeouts. After a pair of first downs, Mooney hit Grant Dawson in the end zone with three seconds left in the half. The two-point run failed, leaving Calvert up 27-12 at halftime."I was not real excited about the last minute-and-a-half of the first half, giving up that score," Reser said. "I think we bent again, but didn't necessarily break. We keep striving on defense to get guys in the right position. We might have missed a couple tackles tonight."The offenses had full reign in the third quarter. Calvert sprinted down the field on its opening drive. Rombach caught an 18-yard pass from Shultz and added runs of 13 and 12 yards to get in the Gibsonburg end zone. Shultz then hit Billy Clouse for a seven-yard touchdown and added the two-point run for a 35-12 lead.Gibsonburg answered with a 47-yard touchdown run by Aiden Morant on a double handoff. It came one play after Gibsonburg converted on fourth-and-three in its own territory.The Golden Bears made it two scores in a row after recovering a Calvert fumble. Facing fourth-and-12, Gibsonburg dug into its bag of tricks with Morant catching a 30-yard TD from Shuy Rodriguez on a trick play. That brought the Golden Bears within 35-25.But, Calvert went back to Rombach for perhaps the biggest run of the night. Rombach took a handoff and had enough for a first down when it looked like a plethora of defenders would tackle Rombach. He was able to juke and jive his way free and escape for a 54-yard touchdown. The extra point by Lucius gave Calvert a 42-25 lead 12 seconds into the fourth quarter."My line created an open hole and I hit it," Rombach said. "I got to the secondary and they were all running to the right so I jump cut to the left and I was gone from there."Calvert will look for its first 6-0 start to a season since 2001 next week when it travels to Fremont St. Joseph (0-5, 0-2)."I don't think we're anywhere near as good as we can be," Reser said. "I think we're getting a lot of hype right now and I hope our young men are mature enough to set that aside and not be happy. That's what happens on social media."They're getting a lot of love, that's for sure," he added. "I hope we understand that only matters because we're winning. We have to keep working."