LUCAS, Ohio — He had a career-high eight receptions for 89 yards, but the most important grab Lucas sophomore Jackson Hauger made Friday night was as a defensive back.
The Cubs trailed Tiffin Calvert 7-0 in the Division VII, Region 24 semifinal and the Senecas were on the march after recovering a Lucas fumble. That is when Hauger gave his team the spark it needed.
The Richland Bank Athlete of the Week picked off a pass intended for Calvert’s Corbin Kantner at the Lucas 35 yard line, outmuscling a receiver six inches taller and 16 pounds heavier for his fifth interception of the season. The Cubs would eventually score a touchdown off the turnover and rally for a dramatic 44-35 win, advancing to the Elite Eight for the first time in school history.
“Jackson is just a sophomore and he gets a little nervous out there,” said Lucas quarterback Rueben Luna, who completed 19 of 30 passes for 251 yards — all career highs. “Sometimes you’ve got to talk him into it, but once he gets going he’ll make plays.
“He’s not scared to go for the ball.”
The 5-foot-9, 160-pound Hauger proved it in the second half.
The resurgent Cubs were leading 18-14, but were facing a third-and-10 at the Calvert 36. Luna pumped once before lofting a back shoulder pass toward Hauger, who was running a stop-and-go route against Calvert defensive back Alex Keller, a 6-foot-3, 190-pound defensive back. Hauger came back for the ball before eluding a tackle and scampering down to the Calvert 3 yard line. Two plays later, Luna scored for a 24-14 Lucas lead.
“Jackson did a great job, as did all of our receivers,” Lucas coach Scott Spitler said. “We haven’t thrown the ball a lot because we haven’t had to, but we have faith in them.”
The Cubs (11-1) will face their biggest challenge of the postseason Friday at Tiffin’s Frost-Kalnow Stadium. Third-seeded Lucas faces No. 1 seed McComb (11-1) for the regional title and a spot in the state semifinals.
“I like by group and we’re going to … let it all hang out,” Spitler said. “We know that, with the way we practice and the way we condition, we can play four quarters of our brand of football.”
