Novi’s Cody Walker connected with Dante Darling for a 24-yard touchdown on fourth down, and Aidan Cook’s extra point supplied the winning margin in a 7-6 victory at Wayne Memorial on Friday, Oct. 23.
The Wildcats avoided a winless season, finishing 1-8. Wayne Memorial ended 0-9.
Both teams entered the nonconference finale without a victory. Novi was coming off a 55-0 loss to Fordson, according to MaxPreps.
Wayne Memorial scored first on Dior Bryant’s 44-yard touchdown run, The Oakland Press reported. Novi stopped the Zebras’ rushing attempt on the two-point conversion, leaving the score 6-0.
Walker found Darling for the tying touchdown four minutes later. Cook, a senior, added the extra point, and neither team scored again.
Darling, a 6-foot-1 senior receiver, caught nine passes for 108 yards. Junior running back Davion Borum led Novi with 42 rushing yards.
Junior linebacker Marcio Tavolari recorded a team-high 11 tackles and forced a fumble. Senior Alex Abler also forced a fumble, according to The Oakland Press.
Entering the finale, Darling’s 584 receiving yards placed him 14th among Michigan players listed in MaxPreps’ Oct. 20 statistical tables. Walker, a senior, was 12th on the passing leaderboard with 1,369 yards, while Abler was listed 17th in total tackles with 74.
Novi did not qualify for the Division 1 playoffs, according to the MHSAA’s final pairings released Oct. 25.
