Area players honored on all-district team

Published 12:00 am Monday, November 29, 2004

This is some kind of honor roll list.

A total of 49 area players were honored Monday on the Associated Press' Southeast Ohio All-District football team in voting conducted by sports writers and broadcasters.

Ironton, considered the top team in Southeast Ohio regardless of division, landed seven players on the Division IV first team with an additional three players each on the special mention and honorable mention lists.

Email newsletter signup

Leading the way for Ironton was senior defensive back Marcus Williams and junior running back Darius Lewis.

Williams was a first team defensive back selection and runner-up in the Defensive Player of the Year award won for the second straight year by Wellston linebacker Lance Phillips.

Lewis, who gained 1,152 yards on just 136 carries and scored 14 touchdowns, was voted Co-Offensive Player of the Year along with Westfall quarterback Wade Bartholomew who threw for more than 2,000 yards.

Ironton's Bob Lutz was named the district Co-Coach of the Year as he guided the team to a 9-1 record. The only loss was 17-14 to Division III power Columbus DeSales.

Senior tight end Patrick Kouns, possibly the best blocking tight end Ironton has produced, was a first team pick.

Also on the first team from Ironton were senior defensive lineman Josh Carty, the team's leader in quarterback sacks. Senior linebacker and leading tackler Adam Ferguson was named first team on the defensive side.

Senior end Shane Kerns was on the first unit. Kerns caught only 10 passes in the run-oriented Ironton offense, but he averaged 31.4 yards a catch and had an amazing six touchdowns.

Senior center Ryan Walker was a solid performer on the offensive line and earned first team honors.

Named to the special mention list or second team were senior defensive back Tyler McDaniels, junior fullback Jared Murphy and senior quarterback Josh Adkins.

Honorable mention selections were senior offensive tackle Greg Igo, junior guard Michael Phillips and junior defensive end Brandon Walker.

Fairland senior quarterback Michael Hill threw for 2,432 yards and 20 touchdowns to share first team quarterback honors with Bartholomew. Teammate Sam Huff, a junior wide receiver, was on the first team with 51 receptions for 1,113 yards and eight TDs.

Senior lineman Brad Malone was named special mention.

Junior running back K.C. Christian, who gained 1,264 yards and scored 18 touchdowns for Rock Hill, was named to the first team along with senior defensive lineman Justin Lavender.

Senior lineman Matt McFann was voted special mention.

South Point senior defensive back Tommy Hayner, who had 40 receptions for 640 yards on offense, was named to the first team. Sophomore quarterback Chris Smith was special mention after throwing for 1,548 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Chesapeake topped the area Division V selections, but Coal Grove junior running back Justin Hyland was voted the Offensive Player of the Year after running for 2,028 yards on 275 carries and scoring 23 touchdowns.

The Hornets senior defensive back Patrick Roush and junior offensive lineman Nick Bazell were also named to the first team. Senior linemen Paul Dale and Jimmy Lemon were named special mention.

Senior wide receiver Dustin O'Brien was a first team pick for Chesapeake after catching 21 passes for 368 yards and eight TDs. Senior offensive lineman Bryan Eldred and senior defensive linemen Shane Williams and Matt Whitmore were also voted to the first team along with junior punter Jeff Thornburg who averaged 40 yards per kick.

On the special mention list for Chesapeake were senior defensive back Keith Marcum and senior running back Jackson Caynor. Junior quarterback Caleb McComas was honorable mention.

Symmes Valley topped the Division VI selections including senior linebacker Justin Holland who was the Co-Defensive Player of the Year and Rusty Webb who shared Coach of the Year honors with Trimble's Phil Faires.

Holland had 108 tackles, six caused fumbles, 15 tackles for loss and seven sacks to share the honor with Trimble linebacker Bruce Fouts.

Senior running back Cory Burcham, who ran for 651 yards and 10 TDs in the regular season, was a first team pick for the second straight year.

Senior lineman Jon Dillon, senior tight end Derrek Cremeans, senior defensive back Craig Neal and senior lineman Eli Bowling were also named to the first team.

On the special mention list were junior running back Derek Carpenter and junior lineman Alex Burnette. Named to the honorable mention list were senior linebacker Michael White and junior lineman John Wiseman.

Green landed senior defensive back C.J. Blevins and senior lineman Kyle Bailey on the first unit. Junior fullback Mark Castro was named special mention.