Andrew Holland passed for 208 yards and three touchdowns to lead Cleveland St. Ignatius to an Ohio record 10th state championship,
28-20 over Cincinnati Elder in Division I on Saturday night in Canton.
Holland found Connor Ryan for two TDs and started the scoring with a 21-yarder to Brendan Carozzoni at Fawcett Stadium. That helped the Wildcats (14-1) to their first title since 2001 — in a record 21st consecutive appearance in the playoffs.
St. Ignatius won 14 in a row following a season-opening 20-17 loss to Cleveland Glenville. The win gave the Wildcats an overall 55-11 playoff record.
They overcame a record-setting performance by Elder’s Mark Miller, who went
28-for-51 for 401 yards and three TDs.
Despite combining for 12 state championship-game appearances since 1988, the teams met for the first time for the title. Elder (13-1) ranked fifth in the final Associated Press regular-season poll and state champs in 2002-03, came in averaging 36 points. The No. 4 Wildcats had held nine opponents to single-digit scoring with four shutouts.
Yet it was St. Ignatius that bolted to a 21-0 lead with 8:56 left in the first half.
The Wildcats went 80 yards for their first TD, capped by Carozzoni’s catch. The tight end went up between two defenders for the grab at the 5, then bulled into the end zone.
First-team All-Ohio linebacker Scott McVey stopped Elder with an interception and Holland directed a 10-play, 76-yard drive. He connected with Ryan from 21 yards for a 14-0 lead two plays after overthrowing him on the same route.
Pat Hinkel’s 2-yard burst over left tackle made it 21-0.
Holland and Miller,
co-offensive players of the year in the division, combined for 609 yards passing. The teams amassed 726 total yards, 424 of them by Elder.
One play after an interception by Dan Fox stopped Elder at the 1, Zachary Autenreib’s pick put the Panthers back on offense at the St. Ignatius 35. Seven plays later, Miller’s arcing 9-yarder to Tim O’Connor made it 21-7. O’Connor finished with a division title-game record 15 receptions for 184 yards.
The drive cost Elder its top lineman, 275-pound Austen Bujnoch. He was helped off with a leg injury and did not return.
Then defensive back Jonathan Taylor’s third-quarter misplay cost Elder. Holland hit Ryan with a short out pass and Taylor missed the tackle. Ryan ran the final 40 yards and dove into the end zone to complete the 51-yard TD for a 28-7 lead.
Miller just kept passing. His xx attempts set a division title-game mark. He connected with Josh Jones for a 45-yard TD with 17 seconds left in the third, but the extra-point kick was blocked. Miller was hurt on his final pass and Joe Hetzer came in and tossed a
2-yard TD to O’Connor on the next play with 1:22 left.
St. Ignatius recovered the onside kick, ran out the clock, and celebrated another title.

DIVISION III

Aurora 21, Columbus Eastmoor 10

Aurora played takeaway and grabbed the ultimate grand prize.
Brendan Gallagher twice threw touchdown passes on the first play after a turnover to lead the Greenmen to their first Ohio Division III high school football championship, 21-10 over Columbus Eastmoor Academy on Saturday in Canton.
“Except for some mistakes and them scoring 14 points in 21 seconds, I thought we did all right,” said Eastmoor quarterback Malon Johnson. “We had a horrible second quarter. We beat ourselves.”
Aurora’s ball-hawking defense gave Gallagher and the Greenmen’s opportunistic offense good field position — and the senior second-team All-Ohio selection quickly capitalized.
Gallagher went 7-for-15 for 120 yards for the Greenmen (13-2), who won their last 12 games after a 1-2 start.
Eastmoor (13-2) had outscored opponents 617-97 in its 13 wins, including four straight midseason victories. The Warriors outgained Aurora in total yards, 297-191, but could not match the Greenmen’s 21-point second-quarter outburst.
“The key was the final few minutes before halftime,” Aurora coach Bob Mihalik said.
Trailing 3-0, Aurora linebacker Danny Myers recovered a fumble by Touche Hopkins at the Warriors’ 49. Gallagher passed to a wide-open Steven Yung and the 5-foot-8 tailback raced 30 yards down the left side for a 7-3 lead.
Eric Schultz bulled the final
3 yards as Gallagher guided the Greenmen on an 11-play, 79-yard drive and 14-3 lead 4:15 before halftime.
Moments later, Dee Brizzolara intercepted a pass by Eastmoor’s Johnson and returned it 25 yards to the Warriors’ 26. Gallagher capitalized quickly, finding Brizzolara in the left corner of the end zone to make it 21-3.
“Dee was kind of tired after the pick and was down tying his shoe,” Mihalik said. “I grabbed him and said, ‘You OK? Because we’re going to go up top.’ His eyes lit up and he said, ‘I’m good, coach.’ “
Eastmoor took a 3-0 lead on a 35-yard field goal by Kwesi Sample with 8:26 left in the first quarter.
The Warriors didn’t muster much consistent offense until putting together an impressive 93-yard scoring drive that took more than six minutes to complete. Johnson found Coleman for a 30-yard TD pass that made it 21-10 with 1:52 left in the third quarter.
“No one expected us to be here, so we’re proud of our accomplishment even though we’re disappointed we didn’t play our best,” Eastmoor coach Jim Miranda said after the Warriors’ first appearance in the state final. “We knew Aurora was an opportunistic team and we had to take care of the football. We didn’t and that was the story.”
Johnson finished 10-for-19 for 152 yards, but was intercepted a second time with 2:20 left when his pass bounced off Hopkins’ hands and was grabbed by Schultz to end Eastmoor’s last possession.
Aurora eliminated defending champion Sunbury Big Walnut in the semifinals last week to advance to its first championship game.

DIVISION V

Youngstown Ursuline 21, Findlay Liberty-Benton 0

Three big-play touchdowns and plenty of determined defense gave Youngstown Ursuline another state football championship.
Allen Jones scored on a 59-yard run and the Fighting Irish returned two interceptions for touchdowns to win the Division V title, 21-0 over Findlay Liberty-Benton in Massillon.
The outcome shocked Ursuline coach Dan Reardon, who expected a high-scoring matchup.
“I thought it would be a 54-52 barnburner,” Reardon said. “If anyone had said ‘shutout’ before the game, I’d have said, ‘You’re crazy.’”
Ursuline (15-0) got the first shutout in a Division V title game in 23 years, since Newark Catholic beat Delphos Jefferson, 19-0.
“Really?” Reardon said. “That’s great. Fantastic.”
Dale Peterman went 44 yards and LaVance Turnage 40 yards with picked passes in the fourth quarter at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium to put the finishing touches on the Irish’s second state crown. They also won in 2000.
Jones burst 59 yards down the right side at 10:49 of the third quarter to put Ursuline ahead 7-0. The gain nearly doubled the Fighting Irish’s total yardage in a sluggish first half.
“We made some adjustments in the running game and got Allen open,” senior lineman Dan Baco said. “Once we get him through the line, I always like his chances against a safety. Not many guys can catch Allen.”
Both teams came in unbeaten, sporting stifling defenses and high-powered attacks — but neither mustered much offense in a frustrating first half in which Ursuline managed only 37 total yards and was intercepted twice.
That wasn’t too surprising, since Liberty-Benton (14-1) came in with 10 shutouts.

 

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