Lake County Sentinel
Fairport moves to 6-0 for the first time in 60 years with 42-6 thrashing of Grand Valley
BY KEN KRIZNER
STAFF
(FAIRPORT HARBOR, OH) - Head Coach John Nagle calls it a dream season in the making. But he is quick to point out that the success Fairport Harding is experiencing in 2025 is the result of hard work and dedication, and there is nothing fluky about it.
And after a 42-6 drubbing of Grand Valley at Greig Field Friday night that earned Nagle a Gatorade shower, that hard work and dedication is paying off handsomely.
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Fairport Harding is 6-0 for the first time in 60 years.
Fairport Harding is 6-0 for the first time in 60 years.•After back-to-back wins over Pymatuning Valley and Grand Valley, the Skippers are 3-0 in the Northeast Athletic Conference and squarely in the driver’s seat for the championship with two league games remaining. Fairport Harding has not won a conference title since 2003.
After back-to-back wins over Pymatuning Valley and Grand Valley, the Skippers are 3-0 in the Northeast Athletic Conference and squarely in the driver’s seat for the championship with two league games remaining. Fairport Harding has not won a conference title since 2003.•The win should solidify Fairport Harding’s ranking as the No. 1 team in Division VII, Region 27 for the OHSAA playoffs.
The win should solidify Fairport Harding’s ranking as the No. 1 team in Division VII, Region 27 for the OHSAA playoffs.“It’s a dream come true for a lot of guys, especially the seniors,” Nagle said. “Our seniors have worked hard for four years. It has been a dream season, but these kids have earned it.”
Defensively, the Skippers did a good job bottling up the Mustangs’ offense, with the exception of one play, including three turnovers and a number of plays that lost yardage.
“Early on, we got pressure on the backfield by getting through the line,” Nagle said. “We try to use our speed to create gaps and mismatches.”
Offensively, between senior quarterback Brady Lawson and the Castellano brothers – Abraham, Jan and Yomar – the Skippers consistently hit big play after big play.
After Fairport Harding’s defense held the Mustangs to no yardage on the opening drive, the Skippers’ first offensive turn was impressive. They went 75 yards on a mix of running by sophomore Abraham Castellano and the passing of Lawson, mainly to senior Jan Castellano. The key play was a 31-yard pass from Lawson to Jan Castellano for a first down on a third-and-23 play, one of four first downs Fairport Harding picked up on the drive.
Abraham Castellano finished the drive with a 6-yard touchdown run and a 6-0 Fairport Harding lead.
Grand Valley (3-4, 2-1) got the ball back and overcame two procedure penalties to get to the Skippers’ 28 yard line. But junior quarterback Carter Turk overthrew his intended receiver and was intercepted by senior Shane Greenwood. The Skippers’ drive, however, ended deep in Grand Valley territory when Abraham Castellano fumbled the ball away.
That might have been the only mistake the Skippers’ offense made on the night.
A potentially early key play occurred when Grand Valley faced a fourth down inside its own territory. First-year Head Coach Matt Rosati decided to go for the first down, and the gamble was rewarded when Turk connected with junior Liam Hart on a wide receiver screen for the first down. On the next third-down play, Turk scrambled for five yards and picked up another first down. However, later in the drive, Turk, trying to avoid the Skippers’ defense and throwing across his body, threw his second interception, this time to junior Yomar Castellano.
Immediately, the Skippers took advantage.
Lawson hit an outstretched Abraham Castellano over the middle for a 32-yard gain. Later in the drive, Abraham went 14 yards for a first down, with his brother Yomar throwing a key block. Lawson hit Drennan for a 14-yard touchdown, then Lawson completed the two-point conversion.
It appeared that Grand Valley was going to get back in the game when freshman Lukah Mramor went 67 yards for a touchdown with about a minute to go in the first half. Thanks mainly to Lawson, it was as close as Grand Valley would get to Fairport Harding for the remainder of the game.
Lawson ran the two-minute drill almost to perfection. Starting at his own 45 yard line with about one minute left in the second quarter, Lawson passed the Skippers deep into Mustangs’ territory. After a penalty moved the ball back, Lawson hit Yomar Castellano on a 31-yard catch-and-run for Fairport Harding’s third touchdown of the night and a 21-6 halftime lead.
Nagle praised Lawson as someone who has come into his own as a senior.
“He controls the game, and he controls his emotions,” Nagle said. “He knows he has a whole team around him, and he rallies around them.”
After Grand Valley’s attempt at an onside kick to start the third quarter failed, Fairport Harding’s offense picked up where it left off in the first half. With Abraham Castellano running and Lawson passing, the Skippers moved to the Mustangs’ 9 yard line, where Lawson finished the drive with a quarterback scramble for a touchdown.
Grand Valley lost yardage on its next possession and on fourth down, sophomore Cale Milliman blocked a Turk punt, giving the Skippers the ball at the Grand Valley 17. On the following play, Yomar Castellano took a handoff on a wide receiver end around and had a clear path to the end zone and a touchdown, giving Fairport Harding a 35-6 lead.
The Skippers intercepted Turk for the third time on a long pass on Grand Valley’s next possession, with Greenwood's second of game, returning it 45 yards to the Mustangs’ 35 yard line.
Two plays after he ran for 30 yards, sophomore Evan Murphy finished the scoring with a 5-yard touchdown run, stretching the Skippers lead to 36 and producing a running clock for the remainder of the game.
The Skippers continue play next Saturday night, hosting Steubenville Central Catholic. They then get back into NAC play with games against Ashtabula Saint John and Windham to end the regular season. Nagle said his players know what’s ahead of them, and he has no worries about them losing focus.
“Our motto is, ‘We’re not done yet.’ The coaches preach it; the kids buy into it,” he said. “It’s easy to keep the kids up every week when they buy into the system.”
POSTED 10/04/2025 00:52
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Abraham Castellano runs the ball for the Skippers on Friday night at Greig Field. Photo by Ken Krizner
