CANTON—With a 21-14 win over Liberty Center, Perry completed its mission to win the Division V state championship with a perfect 16-0 record.
The Pirates scored first and then scored 14 unanswered points in the second half and held the Tigers out of the end zone in the closing seconds to cap off their undefeated season.
“It’s amazing, it’s awesome,” said Perry coach Bob Gecewich. “It means a tremendous amount for that community; it’s a proud town.”
Perry received the opening kickoff and drove to the Liberty Center 12 but the Pirates failed to convert on fourth-and-two and turned the ball over to Liberty Center.
A quick three-and-out and the Tigers punted the ball back to the Pirates, who took over at the Liberty Center 42.
Walter Moses then threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Luke Sivon, who needed every millimeter of his fingertips to snag the well-thrown ball.
Perry’s defense forced another three-and-out and the Pirates quickly moved into Tiger territory, but a lost fumble ended the drive inside the 30.
A turnover often flips the momentum, but Perry’s defense once again stood tall and forced another three-and-out and the Pirates regained possession at their own 30.
After a Perry punt, Liberty Center drove 80 yards in 13 plays and capped off the drive with a Trenton Kruse 33-yard run up the gut that evened the score at 7-7 with 2:09 left in the first half.
Liberty Center opened the second half with an eight-play, 69-yard drive that resulted in a four-yard touchdown pass from Landon Amstutz to Colton Kruse that gave the Tigers a 14-7 lead with 7:54 left in the third quarter.
Now trailing, the Pirates inserted Brayden Richards at quarterback to allow him to change the game with his legs or his arm.
“I’ve gotta’ go from point A to point B to get it to point C, let’s cut a point out and those were some of the things we did,” Gecewich said. “It worked out well, and you get some of your best guys out on the field with the opportunity to touch the ball every time.”
Richards led a five-play, 80-yard scoring drive he ended with a 37-yard touchdown pass to Sivon, who recorded his second touchdown of the game that tied the score at 14-14 with 6:03 remaining in the third quarter.
Perry’s defense recorded its fourth three-and-out of the game and then Richards went right back to work in the Wildcat formation on second-and-15 from the Perry 40. He took the snap, turned the corner on the left side, and broke two tackles then outran a defender into the end zone for a 60-yard touchdown run that gave Perry a 21-14 lead with 4:07 left in the third quarter.
The Tigers drove to the Perry 21 but fumbled a handoff on fourth-and-one and lost a yard, which gave the ball back to the Pirates.
Perry then moved to the Liberty Center 38 but failed to convert a fourth-and-seven and gave the ball back to the Tigers.
A fifth Liberty Center three-and-out gave the ball back to the Pirates at their own one-yard line with 5:49 left in the season.
An 11-yard pass from Moses to Richards on first down gave the Pirates some breathing room, and then Richards ran for 19 yards to the 31. Two plays later, Moses connected with McKoon on a 43-yard pass that set Perry up at the Liberty Center 24.
Perry faced a fourth-and-two at the Tiger 16, but a penalty moved the Pirates back five yards and they failed to convert the fourth-down try and gave the ball back to Liberty Center, who needed to travel 79 yards in 3:23 to tie the game.
After 14 plays and one penalty, the Tigers faced a fourth-and-15 from the Perry 27 with 22 seconds remaining in the game.
An incompletion in the end zone gave the ball back to the Pirates, who lined up in victory formation and ended their first state title run with a kneeldown to end the game and the season.
Perry became the second Chagrin Valley Conference team to win a state title over the weekend as Kirtland knocked off Versailles to win the Division VI state championship on Friday.
“I hope that’s something that continues,” Gecewich said of the CVC earning two state titles. “I hope that we’re able to continue the momentum.”
The Pirates and Hornets matched up in a Week 3 battle earlier this season, and that victory helped Perry zero in on its title run.
“When you’re playing state-champion level programs week in and week out, the playoffs are your season off,” Gecewich said. “That’s where we need to get and that’s why Tiger (LaVerde) is never gonna’ be off the schedule. We’re gonna’ continue to play each other forever.”
Moses completed 9-of-14 passes for 219 yards and one touchdown. Richards finished with 11 carries for 124 yards and a touchdown and he was 3-of-4 passing for 61 yards and another score. He also caught two passes and recorded eight tackles. Luke Sivon hauled in seven passes for 139 yards and two scores.
Armani Chiappone led the Pirate defense with 12 tackles and McKoon finished with nine.
Cameron Palmer contributed to this story.
