BULLDOGS SHOW GRIT IN COMEBACK VICTORY

BULLDOGS SHOW GRIT IN COMEBACK VICTORY

By Keno Sultan

C-Town Radio announcer and statistician 

VICTORIOUS BULLDOGS. Canton McKinley players celebrate their 28-24 win over Cleveland St. Ignatius in a Division I, Region 1 quarterfinal Friday night at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. (Keno Sultan/C-Town Radio)

CANTON--The season for Canton McKinley was on the line.

There was no debating, discussing, or negotiating the situation. 

Cleveland St. Ignatius lined up in power formation on a fourth down and needing one yard. A first down would all but end the season for the host Bulldogs. A stop and they had a chance to put the game in the hands of their offense.

McKinley's defense was able to generate a fourth down stop and senior quarterback Keaton Rode directed the McKinley offense for one final drive where he tossed a nine-yard touchdown pass to Alex Vazquez to reclaim the lead they had lost earlier in the game. St. Ignatius quarterback Joshua Papesh engineered a final rally that reached the Bulldogs 32 yard line where a Hail Mary pass floated into the end zone and for a second it seemed the Wildcats had handed the host Bulldogs a severely crushing setback.

When the pile cleared, Bulldogs receiver and defensive back Keith Quincy emerged with the football and McKinley received another 48 minute extension to their season with a heartstopping 28-24 victory over a gritty Wildcats team that was every bit as better than their 3-9 record stated.

"Never die easy. Never! It's all about heart and we always said we may be down but we're never out," exclaimed Bulldogs head coach Antonio Hall. "We just had to refocus and realign mentally. They (Ignatius) were good. We were on the ropes but we got it together and came out swinging."

Such a contest didn't look like it would need any dramatics on the Bulldogs opening quarter that started with a drive that spanned 12 plays and ended with junior tailback Nino Hill scoring on a three-yard touchdown run to introduce the scoring.

On the second St. Ignatius offensive possession, the McKinley defense struck as Papesh threw a pass but didn't see linebacker Shaukeer Hatcher, who swooped in front of the Ignatius receiver and returned the interception 60 yards for a 14-0 lead.

Both teams traded scores in the second quarter. Ignatius kicke Tommy Kilbane got the Wildcats on the scoreboard with a 27-yard field goal only to have McKinley answer back when Rode delivered a 38-yard touchdown pass to Quincy, who juggled the ball but held on for a 21-3 advantage.

Right before halftime though, the Wildcats went on a key drive that eventually got them back into the game when Papesh found receiver Cody Haddad for a 33-yard scoring pass to get them to within 11 at the intermission.

That set up a wild second half as that score was part of a 21-0 run that included two more touchdown passes by Papesh to 6'4'' target Jonathan Merimee that handed Ignatius their first lead of the contest at 24-21.

"That run was amazing. It was 21-10 at halftime and that was impressive. We got on a roll there and we fought like (heck) to get the lead and that's what you love to see as a coach," St. Ignatius first-year boss Ryan Franzinger said. "We gave a great effort. McKinley jumped out early and we got things together and made a great game of it."

Three weeks earlier, McKinley failed to stifle GlenOak on their final possession. And that was staring them in the eyes again. Only this time McKinley was on the happier end of the deal as they closed the year 4-3 at Benson Stadium and the only time McKinley will play there one more time is if they reach the Division I state championship game.

But for now, McKinley advances to a regional semifinal to take on two-time Division I state champion Lakewood St. Edward, who handed GlenOak a humiliating 35-0 defeat at press time. Two years ago, St. Edward dominated the Bulldogs 42-0 in a regional semifinal on their way to the first of two straight big school titles. Hall knows what his team will have to do in order to extend their season to the regional finals.

"St. Edward is very big, very physical team and they are well coached and very deep. We will have to play our best season by far," he said.

For St. Ignatius, their season ends but the future is very bright for their program under Franzinger, who intends to have the Wildcats being more than just a three-win team. He expects them to return to the prowess that carried them to 11 state championships and in hopes of claiming a 12th title under his watch.

"We have a lot of young kids that are coming up and our seniors did a good job with them. They were able to learn from them. We had a good team and a group of grreat young men. We are going to come back and work harder and get better," he said.

Hall has had his share of wars against Ignatius as a player. But when asked was this his biggest win against Ignatius, Hall didn't mince words out of excitement.

"It's not quite as big as the Rubber Bowl (in 1997) but definitely as a coach, you bet your (butt)," he said.

The season was on the line for Canton McKinley and there was no debate, discussion, or negotiating the situation. With one fourth down stop and a final possession, McKinley's season extended another week for another 48 minutes.

DEJECTED WILDCAT. Cleveland St. Ignatius offensive lineman Leo Rick is consoled by an assistant coach as the Wildcats season ended with a 28-24 loss to Canton McKinley in a regional quarterfinal. (Keno Sultan/C-Town Radio)

Keno Sultan can be reached at 330-445-4575 or email at KenoSultan@hotmail.com.