The Ravens took to the road to play the undefeated Hickory Ridge Ragin Bulls in a conference game in Harrisburg.  The Ragin Bulls just stomped over the Ravens tough defense through the air, while their struggling offense continues to sputter.

Hickory Ridge is 7-0 overall and 3-0 in the SW4A Conference.  They are also ranked 1615 in the nation and 44th in the state and steadily rising in their stature with each win.  However, they will have a real challenge when they play the Butler Bulldogs and will be tested against Myers Park next week.

Rocky River’s team strength is their linebackers, a solid defensive line and some talented defensive backs.  They came into this contest with the strategy to stop the running game of Hickory Ridge.  The Ravens defense did a good job holding the Ragin Bulls to under 80 yards on the ground.  However, this opened up the passing game for the home team.

The Ragin Bulls QB Dylan Ratcliff had a solid game passing with a total of 280 yards in the air and four touchdowns.  His favorite target was Duke recruit Jarrett Garner who had three touchdowns on 5 receptions for a total of 207 receiving yards against a good Ravens defensive backfield.  This was accomplished because the offensive line of the Ragin Bulls did an outstanding job of pass protection.  They could not open up any huge running lanes for their backs, but did an excellent job in protecting their quarterback.

The Ravens defense took away the solid inside running game and put their excellent linebackers on the edge to prevent the sweeps the Ragin Bulls like to run.  Rocky River achieved their objective to make the game one dimensional, however, they ended up getting burned because of the outstanding offensive line play, one very talented wide receiver, a quarterback with enough arm strength and accuracy to complete the reckoning machine.

The Ravens offense continued it’s struggles for the third consecutive game, they need to change things up and rekindle an offensive plan they discovered against Vance scoring 27 points.  Only Vance scored 30 points in overtime, and now Hickory Ridge struck for 28 points.  In all other local games the defense gave up 14, 12, 16 and 21 points.  Myers Park scored on two pass interceptions so the defense allowed only 7 points.  The challenge continues to be scoring points consistently on offense.

The Ravens 1-7 overall can still right this ship when they continue on the road next week at East Mecklenburg on Friday night at 7:00 pm for a conference game.