DAYTON, Ohio – Two teams that didn’t win their league faced off for a chance to win a state championship in Canton next week.
It was St. Xavier outlasting Middletown in the Division I state semifinals of the Ohio High School Athletic Association football tournament Nov. 28 at Welcome Stadium. The Bombers (11-2) won 21-6 and will advance to the state final Dec. 6 in Canton against Olentangy Orange.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSt. Xavier will play for its fifth state title, first since 2020.
“This means everything for us,” said senior Jake Britt. “We knew coming in we’re prepared, we're ready, we knew we could play this Middletown team. Whoever we got to face in the state championship, we're ready for, and Coach (Steve) Specht does such a great job getting us ready for whoever we play next.”
St. Xavier's Jake Britt pulls down Middletown's Ace Cooper in the fourth quarter Nov. 28. Britt also played running back and scored two touchdowns.Middletown finishes 11-3 for the season in its first state semifinal appearance. The Middies finished second in the Greater Miami Conference but defeated league champion Princeton in Week 10.
"This is a good benchmark that this program has set in year two with this staff," said Middletown head coach Kali Jones. "We're going to continue to get better. We know what levels we have to reach to get to a state semifinal game. It's a learning curve, but I'm proud of our seniors. This will go down as the best Middletown team in history. I'm proud of them."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSt. Xavier finished third in the Greater Catholic League-South after losing to Elder and Moeller in the regular season. The Bombers avenged those losses in the playoffs before outlasting Middletown. Britt said that those two losses were a motivator, for sure.
“We knew we were better than that, and we knew we could turn it around,” he said.
“Going to a state finals, that's one in a million,” said St. Xavier senior Aden Reeder. “That makes this team legendary. We just got to pull through, for the seniors, get this dub at the end, become state champions.”
Here are some keys to the game.
Early start for St. Xavier on offense
St. Xavier quarterback Jackson Frey and the Bombers got off to a quick 14-3 start on their way to a 21-6 victory over Middletown in the Division I state semifinal on Nov. 28.The Bombers scored quickly on their first two drives of the game.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementQuarterback Jackson Frey threw for over 100 yards in those two drives. A lot of that came to Cam Taylor. They connected on passes of 28, 9 and 15 yards on the first three plays from scrimmage. Frey later threw a 10-yard TD pass to Daniel Vollmer and St. Xavier led 7-3.
Frey and Vollmer led the second touchdown drive. Frey had two more passes for double-digit gains, and ran for 27 yards into the red zone.
On fourth-and-goal from the 3, Britt took a direct snap from a wildcat formation and walked untouched into the end zone. The PAT made it 14-3.
“it was huge,” Specht said. “We thought if we could move the ball on them early, if we could get three scores on them in the first half, we felt good about that. We only got two. I don't know that we played exceptionally well offensively, but they're pretty doggone good defensively, and they took it to us there.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDifferent players stepping up for Bomber offense
Vollmer left the game late in the first quarter after aggravating a prior injury. Specht said he didn't have an update on Vollmer's status. Spencer Stegbauer and Jake Britt stepped in at running back in his absence. Britt, who starts in the secondary, had big plays on defense. He scored two of the Bombers’ three touchdowns. The second one was on fourth-and-goal from the 3, and the last gave St. X a 21-6 lead as he took a screen pass from Frey and sprinted up field to the end zone with little resistance.
Britt had two touchdowns for the year coming in.
"We knew Daniel Vollmer wasn't 100% on offense, so I knew I was going to have to step in on offense. Defensively, my plan was to do what I did all year. Our defense is so ready. Our offense is so ready, and we're excited. We're looking forward to the state championship."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementCam Taylor was St. X’s leading receiver for the year with 31 receptions but he hadn’t had more than three catches or 46 yards in a game since Week 5.
He surpassed that with three early catches for 52 yards on the Bombers’ first drive, then two double-digit gains later in the game to finish with five catches for 79 yards.
“I thought our receivers did a really nice job tonight,” Specht said. “Jackson's done a nice job of spreading the ball around to all the different receivers we have. Tonight, Cam was a designated guy that really had the most catches, but it's been somebody different every week that we've been able to count on.”
St. Xavier’s defense stepped up in the red zone
St. Xavier linebacker Aden Reeder (6) sacks Middletown Middies quarterback Jojo Ward (6) in the third quarter of the state semifinal game Nov. 28.St. Xavier’s defense bent but didn’t break in the first half.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMiddletown’s first play from scrimmage was a long pass from JoJo Ward to Ace Cooper for a 39-yard gain. The Middies drove down to the 10, but the drive stalled, and Carson Hagins kicked a 30-yard field goal.
With 8:30 to go in the half, the Middies had a prime scoring opportunity after the Bombers missed a chance for a big lead.
Frey completed a 44-yard pass to Alex McClatchey to the 6-yard line but the play was called back by a penalty. On the next play, the Bombers turned it over when Frey threw a swing pass to Spencer Stegbauer, who didn’t catch it. It was ruled a backwards pass and a live ball. C.J. Bryant got it for Middletown and returned it the 6-yard line. The Middies committed a penalty and couldn’t convert, and Hagins missed from 33 yards out.
"The first quarter was a tough one for us," coach Jones said. "We didn't execute properly. We had some mental errors. This is an elite team with Coach Specht, and you can't get down against them."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn the final drive of the half, Middletown drove from midfield to the 6-yard line. On third down, Ward missed an open receiver in the end zone, and Hagins kicked a 23-yard field goal to make it 14-6 at the half.
“Our defense stepped up big tonight,’ Specht said. “I thought we did a pretty good job of keeping everything in front of us. I thought our game plan offensively and defensively was sound. Special teams was sound, and we did what we needed to do to win a football game.”
Middletown's Ace Cooper pulls in one of his five receptions while St. X defender Brayden O'Reilly pulls him down. Cooper had 82 yards on his catches.Ward threw for 118 yards and the Bombers limited the Middies to 35 rushing yards, while collecting four sacks.
“It's really about the bond,” Reeder said. “We've been with each other for so long. We all stayed together, and that bond is what really makes us good, because we push each other, and that pushing each other makes us make big plays at the right moments.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMore: The Middies are tempered like the steel that made Middletown | Opinion
Players of the game
Jake Britt, St. Xavier: As noted, he doubled his touchdown output for the season with two of the Bombers’ three scores on the night.
Cam Taylor, St. Xavier: He had five catches for 79 yards.
Aden Reeder, St. Xavier: He was credited with two sacks but had several other pressures of Middletown QB JoJo Ward.
Griffin Lyons, St. Xavier: The defensive lineman was disruptive all night and had 1.5 sacks.
Ace Cooper, Middletown: He had five catches for 82 yards to lead the Middies offense.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: St. Xavier Bombers take on Middletown Middies in DI state semifinals
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