Cuyahoga Heights took advantage of five takeaways in a 21-6 win over East Canton in a Division VII regional semifinal at Hudson on Saturday.
With the win, the Redskins improved to 10-2 on the year and advanced to the regional championship game for the fourth straight season.
“It was a very sloppy game,” Cuyahoga Heights coach Al Martin said. “They had five turnovers and we had two ourselves, so it wasn’t a really well-played game. Both teams played hard but turnovers were a big factor.”
The Redskins nearly broke the scoreless tie late in the first quarter but the Hornets picked off a pass at the goal line to prevent the score.
Nathan Glinka then recovered a fumble at the East Canton 28 and Kyle Polack capped a four-play drive with a 19-yard touchdown run to give the Redskins a 7-0 lead with 11:12 left in the first half.
Cuyahoga Heights had an opportunity to add to its lead but East Canton held on a fourth and goal inside the five to turn away the Redskins.
“We got down to the two-yard line and didn’t get in,” Martin said. “On fourth down, we probably should have kicked a field goal. That was a little bit disappointing to go into half at 7-0.”
The Redskins turned the table on the Hornets in the third quarter by holding on fourth-and-8 at their own 23.
Sam Shafer then threw a six-yard touchdown pass to Polack to push the Redskin lead to 14-0 with 2:58 left in the third quarter. The touchdown pass completed a 10-play, 77-yard drive.
“Neither team was able to put together many long drives, but that was a good one,” Martin said.
Turnovers doomed East Canton in the second half as Jason Bartosik picked off a pass near midfield and the Redskins recovered a pair of fumbles, including one inside their own five.
“We had some opportunities that we didn’t cash in on and we had a great goal-line stand in the second half,” Martin said. “Turnovers and penalties were a big thing and they hurt both teams but the fact we created five turnovers was the big difference in the game.”
East Canton finally found the end zone on a four-yard run by Nathanael Suntheimer to pull the Hornets to within 14-6 with 5:32 left in the game.
The Hornets then had an onside kick recovery negated by penalty.
Polack, who finished the night with six catches for 94 yards and two touchdowns, later picked off a pass at the Cuyahoga Heights 47 with 2:46 left in the game and DiSanzaShafer turned that into a 19-yard touchdown run to close out the scoring with 1:34 left.
“Kyle Polack had a big night for us,” Martin said. “They were trying to double cover Jason Bartosik, one of our primary targets, and that left him single covered or zone covered and he was able to take advantage of that space.”
Shafer completed 11-of-20 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown and Brayden DiSanza ran for 83 yards on 22 carries.
Cuyahoga Heights advanced to Saturday’s regional championship game against Warren JFK at Nordonia High School.
The game is a rematch of last year’s regional quarterfinals, won by Cuyahoga Heights, 40-12.
“They were coming off of a state title and had graduated a lot of people,” Martin said. “We played them in the first round and we were able to win. They have a lot of kids back and they’re well-coached and have a great tradition. It’s going to be a real good game on Saturday.”
