PREP FOOTBALL JFK, Lisbon in Div. V showdown

The Eagles and Blue Devils are the area's only survivors.
VINDICATOR STAFF REPORT
The Lisbon High football team hung on to its playoff hopes despite three turnovers and a clever move to generate an unusual giveback.
Also in Division V, Warren Kennedy's high-powered offense produced 34 unanswered points to pin the first loss of the season on a good South Range team.
The news for the rest of the Valley's playoff football teams wasn't so good.
In Div. I, Warren Harding had state title hopes, but they were dashed Saturday night when Lakewood St. Edward held off a Raiders rally to win 21-13 at Fawcett Stadium in Canton.
Boosted by a second-quarter blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown, St. Edward took a 21-0 lead before Harding closed the gap to 21-13.
"We did not deserve to win this game by any stretch of the imagination. We have nobody to blame but ourselves," Harding coach Thom McDaniels said. "That performance wouldn't beat very many teams we've played this season -- if anybody."
Stung by penalties
The Raiders were hurt by 13 penalties for 85 yards and three lost fumbles, and their offense was stymied by St. Edward's defense throughout.
"If both teams play great, it's a great game. If one team plays bad, it's not a great game," McDaniels said, "and that's what we had."
In Div. III, Beaver Local came up a yard short of forcing overtime and perhaps extending its season, losing 28-21 to Steubenville.
Howland couldn't contain Copley's K.L. Smith and saw its season end in Div. II, 38-16.
Lisbon and Warren JFK are the only local teams to remain alive for a state championship. The dreams of one will end Friday when they play at Austintown Fitch's Falcon Stadium in the Region 17 title game.
The eighth-seeded Blue Devils (11-1) advanced with a 14-6 victory over Dalton (10-2) in Canton. Tailback/quarterback Jay Yorty ran for 137 yards on 18 carries and scored both Lisbon touchdowns.
Close call
The Devils dodged bullets when P.J. Zaleski picked off three passes to keep Dalton in the game.
With his team trailing 7-6 with a minute to go and no timeouts, Dalton coach Bob Ramsay told his players to allow Lisbon to score.
Yorty's second touchdown produced an eight-point lead, but gave the Bulldogs one last chance. Four pass incompletions advanced Lisbon to the regional final.
In Niles, second-seeded JFK (10-2) had no trouble with third-seeded South Range, jumping out to a 21-0 halftime lead.
Quarterback John DiFiore scored touchdowns on runs of 46 and 54 yards, and fired a 6-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Shane Golden. Anthony Ambeliotis tallied on dashes of 6 and 2 yards and Russell Accordino kicked four extra points to round out JFK's scoring.
DiFiore rushed for 106 yards on 10 carries and added 82 yards in the air on 8-for-13, with no interceptions. Anthony Elzy rushed for 78 yards on 17 attempts, while Ambeliotis had 72 yards on 12 tries.
The Lisbon/JFK winner will advance to a state semifinal game to be played Nov. 21.
Tigers, Beavers ousted
After Howland had trimmed Copley's early lead to 12-10 in Twinsburg, Copley's Smith stole a Tigers pass that set up a touchdown late in the second quarter.
"I called an ill-advised pass and that turned the complexion of the game around," Howland (10-2) coach Dick Angle said. "That's totally on me."
Copley controlled the second half for the win.
In Austintown, Beaver Local's season ended when wide receiver Jake Robinson was tackled at the Steubenville 1-yard line as the final five ticks of the clock ran out before the Beavers could line up.
Adding insult to injury was how the Beavers had rallied from a 20-7 deficit to go ahead 21-20 with 5:08 to play. Steubenville's Nate Hubbard scored the winning points from 11 yards out with 2:45 to play.
"We had too many mistakes early," Beavers coach Rich Wright said. "We had some opportunities and either had a penalty or turnover and you can't do that against a team like Big Red and win the game."