Late turnovers doom Newark Catholic against JFK in state semifinals

ORRVILLE ― In an old-fashioned slobberknocker of a Division VII state semifinal, Antonio Smith decided to take matters into his own hands. And feet.

The Warren John F. Kennedy junior speedster raced 62 yards for the go-ahead touchdown and set up another with a 40-yard interception return, as the Eagles forced all four Newark Catholic turnovers in the fourth quarter to finally pull away for a 21-7 win on Saturday night at Orrville Red Rider Stadium.

Top-ranked JFK (13-1) won the rubber match of the third consecutive Final 4 meeting between the teams by intercepting three passes and returning a fumble for a score — all in the final 12 minutes — after NC (11-2) rallied to tie it 7-7 and appeared to have all the momentum. But it will be the Eagles facing New Bremen (12-3), which came back to beat Lima Central Catholic, 42-34, for the state championship at 3 p,m. next Saturday in Canton's Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

"They're a heck of a football team, with their physicality, and that's where it begins is up front," NC coach Ryan Aiello said. "And their athleticism put pressure on us from the outside. Consistency is the key, and we couldn't get into any kind of rhythm on offense, either running or passing. They have a tremendous physicality to their front seven, and that's what it took to win that football game. I put that on myself. I should have had us better prepared for it."

Still, despite NC being held to a net 17 yards rushing, including just 25 yards in nine carries for Mason Hackett, the Green Wave had a chance thanks to its stout defense. Down 7-0 in the third quarter, they stuffed 6-foot-1, 205-pound quarterback Caleb Hadley for a yard gain on fourth-and-5 at the NC 24-yard line. Then, sophomore Miller Hutchison dialed up senior Grant Moore for 36, 11 and finally a 14-yard TD with 1:29 left in the third. Jose Lopez's kick squared things at 7-7.

Again, the Green Wave held on downs at their 40. But on third-and-10, Smith jumped a sideline route just inside the 50, cut back to the inside and wasn't tackled until the 9. On fourth-and-goal at the 1, Aidan Rossi was ruled to have broken the plane for a TD, even though he appeared to be short, and Sarosh Sheth's kick gave JFK the lead for good at 14-7 with 7:12 left to play.

Linebacker Ambrose Hoso intercepted Hutchison at the NC 40, but again the Green Wave held, getting a 13-yard sack. However, on fourth-and-2 from his 32, Hutchison scrambled and fought for an apparent first down, but was hit and fumbled. He looked to be down, but Marcus Komora was scooped it up and was awarded a game-clinching TD down the sidelines with just 56 seconds to play. With Hutchison sidelined with a concussion, Hackett moved to QB and hit Kyle Langenbrunner for 17 yards, but another Smith interception finally ended things.

Smith's 62-yard touchdown sprint with 2:45 left in the first quarter came after JFK twice stopped NC on downs, once at the Eagles' 40, then at the JFK 33 after Hackett broke off a 28-yard run. The Green Wave defense then held firm, with Nico Richards coming up with a 7-yard tackle for loss on third down near midfield, and Nate Willis later delivering a 12-yard sack at the NC 45.

Hutchison completed just 14-of-38 passes for 178 yards as the Green Wave totally abandoned their running game in the second half. JFK had a lot to do with that.

"They put our offensive line in tough situations with their front seven," Aiello said. But NC's defense held the Eagles' power running game, which featured numerous power-I formations and three different players taking snaps, to a net 50 yards rushing the second half. Smith finished with 121 yards on 17 tries as JFK attempted just five passes, completing two for 49 yards. But the Eagles never turned the ball over.

Moore finished his NC career with seven catches for 97 yards, adding 30 yards on a pair of nice punt returns. Hackett flipped the field with 52 and 54-yard punts and averaged 45.8 yards on his five kicks. Sophomore Cooper Fink added four receptions for 60 yards.

NC assistant coach Pat Seesholtz reminded the 22 seniors they had played in 19 playoff games.

"It's an incredible accomplishment. I can't be more proud of of them, and our younger guys," Aiello said. "Here, from the time you're an underclassmen, you buy into it, commit yourself to the game, and something good is going to happen."

"I remember playing these guys at Massillon when I was a sophomore, and tonight they made more plays than us," Moore said. "I've loved it so much, this whole experience. Not just our class, but the guys before us. There's a connection. Our camaraderie, ever since we were sophomores. There's 22 of us, and it's been something special."

Langenbrunner played his last playoff games with a stress fracture in his foot, wearing a boot when not on the field. As he left the stadium, his arm was draped around one of the many underclassmen who contributed to another NC run. He has been a varsity starter since his freshman year.

"Playoffs are the best part of football," he said. "You win or go home, and you put everything into it. This was not the goal we had in mind, but it was fun. We left it all out there. Our young guys got a lot of experience. When I was coming up through, every year we had different leaders. This year, 22 seniors provided a lot of guidance. There will be a lot of turnover, going into next season. But those who stepped up this year, will be counted on to lead the others next year."

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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Newark Catholic football falls to Warren JFK in state semifinals