WEST CHESTER, Ohio — Lakota West senior quarterback Sam Wiles celebrated the Firebirds’ final home game of the regular season in style last week, just 24 hours after his 18th game.^This birthday.

“Senior night was unreal,” Wiles said. “You always dream of being a senior, but when it actually happens, it’s like, ‘Oh wow,’ it comes so fast. You have to take advantage of everything that comes. “It’s a great night.”

Wiles was 8-of-9 passing for 77 yards and a touchdown in Lakota West’s 42-24 win over visiting Lakota East. He had 26 carries for 199 yards and two touchdowns.

This performance earned Wiles WCPO 9’s Gold Star High School Athlete of the Week. Wiles became the ninth person to receive this award this season.

“This means everything,” Wiles said. “Especially after a big week against East, of course. It’s all thanks to my guys on the field. My O-line, my offense, my wide receivers, my tight ends, my running backs. I love all those guys and I wouldn’t be here without them.”

Wiles threw for 1,162 yards and 14 touchdowns for the Firebirds (8-1), who play at Mason (5-4) on Friday night. He also rushed for 782 yards and nine touchdowns.

But our game against rival Lakota East will definitely be unforgettable. This was Lakota West’s sixth straight win over its district rival.

Wiles kicked a 29-yard field goal with 9:05 left in the first quarter, helping Lakota West take a 7-0 lead.

“If you think about it, it was probably the best game he ever played,” Lakota West coach Tom Bolden said. “So there’s no better way to do it against your big rival.”

Lakota West has an opportunity to share in the Greater Miami Conference championship with a win at Mason on Friday night. If Princeton (7-2) and Lakota West win their respective games, the two programs will share the GMC title.

The Firebirds have an unofficial home playoff berth and could clinch the No. 2 seed in Division I, Region 4 with a win, according to playoff prediction analysts. Joe Eitel. Lakota West is calling for the fifth consecutive time regional final appearance next month.

But the Firebirds’ concern is to successfully complete the regular season this week.

“We especially want to beat Mason there,” Wiles said. “This will be their senior night, so the atmosphere will be huge. As we showed last week, we can also play in chaos. And we want to finish the season successfully. Especially for my senior season. Most of these guys are here; “We want to finish this with a bang, so we’re coming out here and we want the two home games to be in the playoffs.”

Wiles said he appreciates any opportunity to compete in a Firebirds uniform on Friday nights. He has been competing on the same team as seniors since his junior year.

“Knowing that I’m playing with my brothers makes me love this game more and more,” Wiles said.

He also learned a great deal about the starting quarterback position as a freshman through Bolden and his son Mitch Bolden, a 2023 Lakota West graduate who now competes at Army West Point.

“He just came to the Army and did some great things for them this week,” Wiles said. “It was great to be behind him. And Coach Bolden has forgotten more about football than I know, so he’s a great guy to learn from.”

Tom Bolden said Wiles continues to improve each week.

“The offense is a big Q-run (quarterback run) type offense,” Tom Bolden said. “We like to get a numbers advantage by running our point guard and playing our option game. He did a great job with this. “He runs really hard. He has a great blend of low body strength and balance; only courage and toughness. He reads our option execution topics well. It was really special for us. “He also elevated his passing game and that helped him take it to the next level.”

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