One more home game — Catholic Central will host one more playoff game Saturday night after winning a first-round game last Saturday. – Andrew Grimm
STEUBENVILLE — Catholic Central’s first playoff win since 2013 came in thrilling fashion as the Crusaders fought back to beat River in overtime Saturday night.
They will now seek to become the first Central team to win two playoff games in the same season since 2005, when they welcomed Corning Miller to Harding Stadium on Saturday night in the Division VII, Region 27 quarterfinals. It turns out.
“We had some ballgames this year that were tangled late, so we had some experience and luckily we were able to win some close ballgames.” Central head coach Eric Meek said. “We’re just going to keep playing and do the best we can. I’m proud of our kids.
“We had a chance to be the first Central team in 19 years to win two games in the playoffs, but nobody on our team was born at that time. Those kids did a lot of great things. They’ve accomplished that and left their mark, so winning the second game of the playoffs would be another nice feather in their cap.”
The Falcons, the region’s No. 5 seed, brought a 9-2 record to Harding Stadium. They defeated Racine Southern 27-16 in last week’s season opener.
They are 3-2 on the road with wins over Sciotoville East, Fisher Catholic and Bishop Rosecrans, and losses to Beaver Eastern and Grove City Christian. In addition to the aforementioned playoff wins, they went 6-0 on home soil with wins over Frontier, Millersport, Burn Union, Fairfield Christian, and Manchester.
“My impression of them is that they have tremendous speed and they like to play soccer.” Meek said. “Their quarterback is an impressive runner and their tailback is a big player who can do some damage. They have a great football team and from what I’ve read, this is their school’s history. They’re the best team we’ve ever seen. We’re really impressed with them on video.”
Miller averaged 33.6 points per game and allowed 14.5 points per game.
Quarterback Logan Doughty completed 60 percent of his passes, throwing for 837 yards and eight scores on seven picks, but he only averaged about eight throws per game.
They ran the ball an average of 32 times per game, leading their offense to three players: Xander Buys (1,322 yards, 19 TDs), Doughty (927 yards, 17 TDs), and Noah LeMaster (496 yards, 6 scores). The main backfield is leading the way. ).
When he actually threw, Nick Thompson had 25 receptions, 448 yards, and six touchdowns.
“This is going to be another physical slug fest, I told the kids to prepare their minds and bodies for the upcoming battle.” Meek said.
Regardless of Saturday night’s result, this game will be the last for the Crusaders’ 10 seniors at Harding Stadium, as the regional semifinals and beyond will be played at neutral sites.
“This is the last time they play at Harding Stadium. We’ve had a lot of success with them the last two years.” Meek said. “We have great seniors who have created great memories. It’s a great venue and we’re grateful to Steubenville City Schools for allowing us to use it.”People want to come to Harding Stadium That’s what I think.
“It’s about our seniors, so we want them to play as long as possible.”
Saturday night’s winner will face the winner of No. 1 Danville and No. 8 Portsmouth Notre Dame, who play tonight.
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