Nordonia is moving on. The No. 3 Knights beat No. 6 Eastlake North 37-21 on Friday night, Nov. 6, in a Division II, Region 5 regional quarterfinal in Macedonia, riding three touchdown passes from Steven Fakult to Dominick Jackson and two interceptions by Jamiere Davis to reach next week’s regional semifinal. The final score was listed identically by the Akron Beacon Journal and the Columbus Dispatch scoreboard.
According to the Akron Beacon Journal’s recap, all three of Fakult’s touchdown passes went to Jackson, who finished with five catches for about 125 yards. The Beacon Journal reported that Braden Myers and Collin Atha each added a rushing touchdown for Nordonia, Jackson Neal kicked a 31-yard field goal and two extra points, and Brock Barwidi caught a two-point conversion pass from Fakult. Grant Kaminski added four catches for 44 yards, the Beacon Journal reported.
The quarter-by-quarter line published by the Beacon Journal tells the shape of the night: Nordonia led 13-7 after one quarter and 19-7 at halftime, then pushed the margin out in an 11-point third quarter before North was held scoreless in the fourth. Ohio Varsity’s recap likewise noted that North trailed 19-7 at halftime and scored twice in the third quarter to stay within reach before Nordonia closed the door.
North did not go quietly. Ohio Varsity reported that Kadyn Young ran for 121 yards and a touchdown for the Rangers and Javion Whaley added 84 rushing yards and a touchdown. North arrived in Macedonia a week after beating Brush 41-0 for the first playoff victory in program history, Ohio Varsity reported, and the Rangers’ season ends at 10-2.
For Nordonia, the win is the latest step in one of Ohio’s most consistent big-school runs. The Beacon Journal noted this is the Knights’ 21st playoff appearance, with state runner-up finishes in 2002 and 2014 on the program’s resume. Nordonia improves to 10-1, a record confirmed by both the Beacon Journal and Ohio Varsity.
The reward is the region’s hardest road test. The Beacon Journal reported that Nordonia now travels to No. 2 Walsh Jesuit for the Region 5 semifinal on Friday, Nov. 13, and that the matchup is a rematch of a 2025 second-round game Walsh Jesuit won 49-18. The Beacon Journal also noted Walsh Jesuit holds a 15-1 edge in the series, with Nordonia’s lone win a 13-7 victory on Sept. 7, 1990.
Region 5’s other semifinal pieces fell into place the same night. Highland, Nordonia’s Suburban League rival, also advanced Friday — Highland’s defense swarmed Brecksville in a 31-7 win — keeping two Summit and Medina county programs alive in the same region.
What we know — and what we’re still waiting on
Confirmed: the 37-21 final, the Division II Region 5 quarterfinal round and the No. 3-over-No. 6 seeding result, all listed by the Beacon Journal, the Columbus Dispatch, Ohio Varsity, the Zanesville Times Recorder and the Mansfield News Journal. Confirmed by the Beacon Journal and Ohio Varsity together: Jackson’s three touchdown catches, Davis’s two interceptions, and the 10-1 and 10-2 records. Still waiting on: a single agreed passing line for Fakult — the Beacon Journal and Ohio Varsity published different completion and yardage totals while agreeing on the three touchdowns, so NewsForce247 is not publishing a specific yardage figure — and the OHSAA’s official semifinal site and ticket details for Nov. 13.
What happens next is straightforward and steep: Nordonia plays at Walsh Jesuit at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13, per the Beacon Journal’s Week 13 preview, with a berth in the Region 5 final on the line. The winner of that game faces the Highland side of the bracket’s survivor the following week.
For North, the offseason begins with a milestone season to build on — 10 wins and the program’s first playoff victory, per Ohio Varsity. For Nordonia, a program that has knocked on the door in 2002 and 2014 gets one more week to chase the ending those teams missed, starting with the opponent that ended its run a year ago.
The semifinal also closes a loop on Nordonia’s season. The Knights’ only loss came in the regular season, and the Beacon Journal’s Week 13 preview lists Walsh Jesuit at 8-2 entering the semifinal — a record built against one of the state’s toughest Division II schedules. Nordonia will need Jackson’s big-play threat and a defense that, per the Beacon Journal’s recap, produced takeaways in bunches Friday, starting with Davis’s two interceptions and a pass rush that kept North’s quarterbacks unsettled after halftime.
Photo: SilentMatt Psychedelic, CC BY-SA 4.0