A Week in Nordonia Knights Athletics
Fall sports at Nordonia High School are in full swing, and the locker rooms tell the story better than any scoreboard: this is a program riding real momentum on the gridiron while several other Knights squads grind through a rebuilding stretch in the middle of their schedules.
Football: A Statement Start, Then a Gut Check
Varsity football has been the story of the fall so far, and it’s now sitting at 3-1 heading into a big Sept. 18 home date with Hudson. The first three weeks were about establishing dominance; week four, on the road at Highland, was about finding out what this team is made of when it doesn’t go their way.
- Aug. 21 vs. St. Vincent-St. Mary: Nordonia 49, St. Vincent-St. Mary 7 — a statement blowout to open the year.
- Aug. 28 vs. East: Nordonia 46, East 12 — the offense stayed hot in week two.
- Sept. 4 vs. Villa Angela-St. Joseph: Nordonia 41, Villa Angela-St. Joseph 39 — a shootout that came down to the wire and tested the Knights’ composure.
- Sept. 11 @ Highland: Highland 23, Nordonia 21 — the Knights’ first loss of the season, on the road against a Highland squad coach Mike Gibbons has built into a perennial playoff contender. Both teams came in unbeaten, and it was billed as an early tone-setter in the Division II, Region 5 playoff race. A two-point margin means this one came down to the last possession — the kind of game that stings in the moment but tells a first-year coaching staff exactly where the roster still needs to grow.
That’s the emotional arc of this fall so far: three blowout-or-thriller wins to open the year, then a gut-check road loss to a genuinely good program. First-year head coach Scott Barwidi — nearly two decades an assistant before taking over this season — carried a perfect record into Highland, and how the locker room responds to its first loss against Hudson this Friday will say a lot about the ceiling on this group. Senior quarterback Steven Fakult has been one of the best in Greater Akron through the air (284 yards, four touchdowns against VASJ alone), and he has no shortage of options to throw to — Dominick Jackson, Karsen Fisher, Collin Atha, Brock Barwidi, and Jamiere Davis have all been weapons at receiver, while Fisher doubles as an anchor on defense at linebacker. Other players of the game across the season have included Jackson Neal, Grant Kaminski, Steven Fakult, and Trent Foster. The freshman squad has also had a tougher road early, sitting at 0-1 ahead of its own Sept. 17 game against Hudson.
Volleyball: A Program Trending Up
Girls volleyball has quietly built one of the better records in the building. The varsity sits at 6-3, with matches this week against Revere (Sept. 15) and Barberton (Sept. 17). The JV team is right there too at 4-3, while the freshman squad (1-2) is still finding its footing — exactly the kind of pipeline picture a coaching staff wants to see: varsity winning now, JV competitive, freshmen learning.
Inside the gym, that 6-3 mark reflects a team that’s figured out how to win the matches it’s supposed to win and stay in the ones it isn’t. With Revere and Barberton both on deck in the same week, it’s a big stretch for the Knights to build separation in the standings before October.
Boys Soccer: Grinding Through a Tough Stretch
Boys soccer has had a harder road, sitting at 2-4 varsity with the JV squad at 1-4-1. A home match against Copley (2-5-1) on Sept. 15 is a real opportunity to get back over .500 in recent form against a team with a similar record. This is the kind of team that, from the inside, is likely leaning hard on practice reps this week — the record says the results haven’t come yet, but the schedule says there’s a very winnable game right in front of them.
Girls Soccer: The Quiet Bright Spot
Girls soccer has been steadier, sitting at 3-2-2 and hosting Copley’s girls squad (1-6-1 on the year) Sept. 16. On paper, that’s a favorable matchup and a chance for the Knights to push toward a winning record heading into the back half of the season.
Cross Country & Golf: Building Toward Championship Season
Both programs are mid-season, logging meets and matches that build toward league and district championship races in October. Nordonia’s cross country teams (boys and girls) and golf squads don’t generate the same play-by-play buzz as the score-driven sports, but for these athletes this stretch of September is about shaving seconds and strokes — the unglamorous work that decides who’s peaking at the right time.
The Big Picture
Walk the Nordonia campus this week and the energy is obvious: football is 3-1 and looking to answer its first loss against a Hudson team it’s chasing in the conference standings, volleyball is quietly one of the best teams in the building at 6-3, and the soccer programs — one thriving, one searching — both have statement opportunities against Copley in the next 48 hours. For a program with this many teams in season at once, that’s a fall worth watching.
Records and results current as of Sept. 13, 2026, via MaxPreps and Nordonia Athletics.
1. What is Nordonia football’s record heading into the Hudson game?
Nordonia is 3-1 after dropping its first game of the season, 23-21 at Highland on Sept. 11, and hosts Hudson on Sept. 18.
2. Who is Nordonia’s starting quarterback this season?
Senior Steven Fakult has led the offense through the air, including a 284-yard, four-touchdown performance against Villa Angela-St. Joseph.
3. How is Nordonia volleyball performing this fall?
The varsity team is 6-3 with matches against Revere on Sept. 15 and Barberton on Sept. 17, while JV sits at 4-3 and freshman at 1-2.
4. What are the records for Nordonia’s boys and girls soccer teams?
Boys soccer is 2-4 varsity and 1-4-1 JV, while girls soccer is 3-2-2, with both teams facing Copley in mid-September.
5. Who is Nordonia’s head football coach?
Scott Barwidi is in his first season as head coach after nearly two decades as an assistant.
See related article with photos by Mila Rose Photos Nordonia Football Falls to Highland 23-21 Despite Fourth Quarter Rally
