The playoff edition of the Holy War belonged to St. Edward. The No. 1-seeded Eagles beat No. 8-seeded rival St. Ignatius 38-19 on Friday, Nov. 6, in a Division I, Region 1 regional quarterfinal at First Federal Lakewood Stadium, according to the game recap published by Kee On Sports and the statewide scoreboards published by The Columbus Dispatch and the Mansfield News Journal.
It was the Wildcats who struck first, and fast. After forcing an Eagles fumble on the game’s opening series, St. Ignatius needed one play to cash in — Dane Donovan hit Trey Haddad over the middle from 35 yards out, and the Wildcats led 7-0 with 9:35 left in the first quarter, Kee On Sports reported.
St. Edward answered with 17 straight points. A muffed punt handed the Eagles the ball at the Ignatius 45, setting up a 34-yard Dallas Nixon field goal, and after an Ignatius 51-yard field-goal try hit the crossbar, Langston Lucas drove the Eagles in front — first on a short touchdown run for a 10-7 lead with 10:42 left in the second quarter, then, one play into the next possession, on a 61-yard touchdown strike to Maxwell Jemison that made it 17-7, Kee On Sports reported.
The Eagles’ defense kept the door shut before halftime. Donovan was knocked out of the game, backup Jacob Mikin was intercepted on his first series, and Landon Lehmer’s goal-line interception with 47 seconds left in the half snuffed out a promising Wildcats drive and sent St. Edward to the locker room up 17-7, Kee On Sports reported.
Lucas put the game away in the third quarter. A 36-yard Ronnie Neal run and a 24-yard Lucas completion to Joe Moore moved the Eagles inside the Ignatius 10, and back-to-back Lucas runs stretched the lead to 24-7 with 7:36 left in the third, Kee On Sports reported. Lucas finished with 158 rushing yards on 14 carries and three touchdowns, Moore caught six passes for 104 yards, and Jemison added three catches for 81 yards and the long score.
Lehmer was the defensive star of the night, intercepting two different Wildcats passers to stop promising drives, Kee On Sports reported. The teams combined for 26 points in a wild fourth quarter, long after the outcome was decided, to settle the 38-19 final, and St. Ignatius closes its season at 6-6.
St. Edward advances to host Hudson in a Division I, Region 1 semifinal on Friday, Nov. 13 — the Explorers routed Jackson 44-14 in their quarterfinal. The regional final follows on Nov. 20, with the state semifinals on Nov. 27 and the Division I championship game at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton during the Dec. 3-5 finals weekend.
Photo: Thedundies, CC BY
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