Football

Cambria Heights, Marion Center has ‘big-game feel’ for high school football

H.S. football

Cambria Heights and Marion Center are the only two remaining undefeated teams in the Heritage Conference and two of the three unbeaten teams in District 6 Class 2A.

The Highlanders and Stingers meet tonight in Patton at 7 p.m.

"This is a big game, because you have two quality teams," Cambria Heights coach Jarrod Lewis said. "This is a team people thought would be first or second in the league in Marion Center, and with them coming in undefeated, it makes for a big-game feel. This is a game we had circled, because they have played us tough. Coach (Adam) Rising does a great job with his players. Since we have been in this league, they have been tough and physical. We expect a battle."

Cambria Heights won at Marion Center last year, but it wasn't easy. The Highlanders left with a hard-fought 21-7 win, and the Stingers got better from there. Marion Center won a quarterfinal playoff game before falling to Richland in the Class 2A semifinals and finishing its season 8-4.

"They have been a contender in D6, and we have been a contender as well," Rising said. "I use every week as a measuring stick. We don't look ahead at all. Cambria Heights has good players that came back. The running back -- (Nolan) Clawson sticks out. The quarterback, (Kaiden) Ivory, throws a nice ball. They are just a real well-balanced team that plays physical defense."

Clawson already has 463 yards rushing and is averaging 8.6 yards per carry. He played limited minutes last season but like many Cambria Heights players, has stepped into an expanded role this year.

"The first game, a lot of those guys were nervous," Lewis said. "They wouldn't have said it at the time. Even though they played in a lot of varsity games, it was very rarely at the beginning of games. It's a whole different story when you go in with a comfortable lead. I'm proud of the way they have battled, and I think they are getting more confident every game."

Marion Center is led by quarterback Camden Rising, who has helped the Stingers open with wins over Conemaugh Valley, Portage and previously unbeaten Homer-Center.

"You have a senior quarterback who has been a three-year starter for them," Lewis said. "He's very good. He has a strong arm and has a lot of weapons around him. Looking at that team, they are a big play waiting to happen. We definitely have to limit those big plays. That is a significant challenge, because they have a lot of athletes."

Marion Center is now 11-4 over its past 15 games.

"Whenever you start the season off on a positive note, it builds confidence and gives the guys hope," Rising said. "More importantly, we have played really well the first third of the season. There's always things to correct, and there is a lot of room for improvement with our team that we're trying to fix day by day, but we know we have a tough test Friday traveling to Cambria Heights."

Rising said Cambria Heights is a challenging cover defensively because they run so many shifts on offense.

"I see a team that won a D6 championship last year," Rising said. "There are a lot of kids on this team that learned from and played a lot of football with that group. I see a lot of maturity. The thing that sticks out to me is they are very efficient and good at what they do. They are very disciplined, and that's a credit to Coach Lewis and his staff for always having his team ready."

Win or lose Friday's game, it's possible these teams could meet again in the postseason, and Rising is happy with the direction his team is headed.

"I'm really happy with our balance between throwing and running the ball," Rising said. "We like that as a staff. I like how our defense has been getting after the ball and creating a lot of turnovers. Week by week by correcting the things that are correctable that we see on film, we are becoming better and developing depth. We have to continue to attack multiple areas of the football field like we have been doing."