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Announcement
From the GAZETTE: By Lisa Gayle Grayson, Staff Writer
Buckeye's football team may not want to emphasize individual accomplishments, but that did not stop the state from singling out one player.
Defensive back Darren Cereshko was named Ohio's Division III co-Defensive Player of the Year Tuesday. The junior shares the honor with Newark Licking Valley's Jake Butler.
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Cereshko is the only Medina County player to earn first-team All-Ohio in D-III and IV.
"Wow, that's amazing," Buckeye first-year coach Chris Medaglia said. "(I thought the chances were,) honestly, slim to none. I didn't think we were covered enough by the bigger papers and I thought that'd be a factor."
Cereshko, who was also the Mohican Area Conference's Defensive Player of the Year and co-Defensive Player of the Year in the Northeast Inland District, is vacationing out of state and unavailable for comment.
Medaglia, however, thinks the two-way athlete will be stunned.
"I think he'll be very surprised," Medaglia said. "His stats are impressive but I didn't know how they'd compare against the rest of the state."
Cereshko had 51 tackles, three fumble recoveries, 12 interceptions with four returned for touchdowns.
Offensively, he finished the season with 20 catches for 405 yards and six touchdowns.
Butler, a 6-0, 165-pound senior, also played both sides of the ball. He matched Cereshko's 12 interceptions.
"I didn't think other teams got a real feel how good (Cereshko) was until they saw him play," Medaglia said. ‘They watched tapes and saw scouting reports, but until they saw him play they didn't get a gist of how good he is."
Eight other county players were recognized Tuesday in D-II and III.
Highland's 6-2, 200-pound Elijah Blower was named second-team All-Ohio on offense for D-II. The senior fullback had 1,204 yards and 15 TDs.
Hornets teammate Brett Lonjak, as well as Buckeye's Travs Travers and Tyler Van Drei earned special mention.
In D-IV, Black River seniors Brett Hastings made the second team on offense, while Brian Ensign made it on defense.
Hastings, a 5-10, 165-pound fullback, finished with 1,247 yards and 22 TDs. Ensign, a 6-0, 175-pound back, had 66 tackles and five interceptions.
Also recognized for the Pirates were special mention selections Andrew Cortese and Kyle Clark.
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