ELYRIA — Elyria Catholic made a habit of letting its offense dominate the action while rolling to a 9-1 record in the regular season. But it took a big play from the defense to get the Panthers started Friday night in a 28-21 victory over Huron in the first round of the Division IV football playoffs at Knights of...
ELYRIA — Elyria Catholic made a habit of letting its offense dominate the action while rolling to a 9-1 record in the regular season.
But it took a big play from the defense to get the Panthers started Friday night in a 28-21 victory over Huron in the first round of the Division IV football playoffs at Knights of Columbus Field in Elyria.
While the Panthers struggled to get their high-powered offense thawed out in the first quarter, Huron was moving the ball with its short passing game in a light, steady snow.
On a second-down play from the Panthers' 8, Jake Lawler intercepted a pass from Tigers quarterback Brian Bollenbacher that glanced off a receiver's hands. Lawler sprinted down the left sideline, getting some blocks past midfield that cleared the way for a 95-yard touchdown return.
"I saw the cornerback made a great break on the ball and it bounced into my hands," said Lawler, a junior. "I saw my teammates just running down in front of me and blocking all the way. It feels awesome."
The play seemed to kick-start the Panthers offense. Midway through the second quarter, Elyria Catholic launched a 99-yard touchdown drive. A 53-yard pass from Danny Reaser, plus a late-hit penalty, was the big play of the drive.
"We definitely needed [Lawler's play]," Reaser said. "Without that I don't think we get on the roll we did on offense. It gave us the momentum. We felt like nothing could stop us from there."
Joe Dempsey finished the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run.
"I'm obviously really proud of Jake Lawler," Elyria Catholic coach Ben Malbasa said. "I've coached him in JV basketball and varsity football. He's a kid who has a knack for making some pretty big plays in life."
The Panthers increased the lead to 20-0 on a 5-yard run by Reaser with 1:50 left in the first half.
Huron (7-4) cut the deficit to 20-14 on a late first-half score and Bollenbacher's 4-yard run early in the third quarter.
Elyria Catholic regained a two-touchdown lead on a 12-yard pass from Reaser to Conor Voreis on a fourth-and-3 play with 4:36 left in the fourth quarter.
A 22-yard pass from Bollenbacher to Jake Hillman on the last play of the third quarter cut the Panthers' lead to 28-21, but Elyria Catholic was able to thwart the Tigers' bids to tie the game in the fourth quarter.
Lawler's second interception stopped Huron on a fourth-and-6 play from the Panthers' 24, with 5:44 left in the game.
Elyria Catholic moves on to face Orrville in a second-round game at a site to be announced.
Bob Migra is a freelance writer in Westlake