HIGH SCHOOL PREVIEW Weekend football

CARDINAL MOONEY (4-1)vs. CLEVELAND BENEDICTINE (5-1)
Game time: 5:45 p.m. Friday at Stambaugh StadiumLast meeting: Benedictine won 17-0 last yearNotebook: The Cardinals, ranked ninth in the Div. IV poll, welcome the defending Division III state champion to Stambaugh. Last week, senior quarterback Kyle McCarthy led Mooney to a 36-7 win at Painesville Riverside. He rushed four times for 113 yards and two touchdowns, while Nate Burney gained 107 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. The Cardinals' ground attack also benefits from Michael Rich (56 carries, 386 yards, six TDs). Benedictine defeated Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary 26-15 last week. Running back Jahmal Brown gained 138 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown. Quarterback Joe Laffey has completed 38-of-87 passes for 659 yards and eight touchdowns this season. The Bengals are ranked fourth in Div. III.Radio: WKBN-AM (570), WBBW-AM (1240).
URSULINE (5-1) vs. AKRON HOBAN (5-1)
Game time: 8 p.m. Friday at Stambaugh StadiumLast meeting: Ursuline won 25-21 last yearNotebook: The Irish, ranked 10th in Div. IV, are rolling after last week's upset victory, 37-22, over Warren Harding to take the Steel Valley Conference lead. Senior running back Alex Allen rushed for 244 yards on 33 carries and two touchdowns. He now has 1,244 yards this season. Hoban, ranked eighth in Div. III, is trying to bounce back from its first loss, 31-7 to Columbus Bishop Watterson last week. Keep an eye on Hoban senior running back Tyrell Sutton, who has committed to Northwestern. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound runner has 7,605 career yards and can become Ohio's all-time unofficial leader. Williamsburg's Jason Bainum holds the top spot with 8,216 yards. Sutton rushed for 130 yards on 22 carries and a touchdown last week to raise his season total to 1,408 yards and 16 touchdowns. He's got 33 straight 100-yard games. Hoban turned the ball over five times in the first half.Radio: WBBW-AM (1240).
WARREN HARDING (4-2)vs. CLEVELAND ST. IGNATIUS (5-1)
Game time: 7 p.m. Saturday at Bedford Bearcat StadiumLast meeting: Harding won 24-17 in the 2002 playoffsNotebook: What has happened to the Raiders, who have dropped to 12th in the Div. I poll? It appears their youth, inexperience and a rugged scheduled have contributed to their back-to-back losses to Lakewood St. Edward and Ursuline. Now comes another huge test. Quarterback Roger Matlock has completed 33-of-64 passes for 527 yards and seven touchdowns. Mario Manningham, who's committed to Michigan, has 15 catches for 360 yards and four touchdowns. Jon Richardson is the Raiders' top tailback. St. Ignatius, ranked fifth in Div. I, is coming off a 38-13 victory at Massillon last week. Junior quarterback Rudy Kirbus completed 9-of-17 passes for 239 yards and three touchdowns. He also had eight carries for 58 yards and a touchdown. Robby Parris added three catches for 100 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, linebacker Dan Dowd made 14 tackles, and defensive back Sean Kavanagh 13 tackles and two interceptions.Radio: WKBN-AM (570), WANR-AM (1570).
MINERAL RIDGE (6-0)vs. LIBERTY CENTER (5-1)
Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday at Mineral Ridge High stadiumLast meeting: First meetingNotebook: The Rams take a break from their Inter-County League schedule to welcome Liberty Center, a rural school located in northwest Ohio. Mineral Ridge stayed perfect on the season by defeating Lowellville 48-14 last week. Levi Leigh rushed for 179 yards on just nine carries and scored three touchdowns. For the season, Leigh has 768 yards on 103 carries and 11 touchdowns. Micah Hall added 13 carries for 108 yards and a touchdown. He has 624 yards on 93 carries and three touchdowns this season. The Rams are ranked eighth in Div. V. Liberty Center, ranked 19th in Div. V, has built a football tradition, winning a state title in 1997, finishing runner-up in 1993 and 1998 and qualifying for the playoffs from 1997-2001. The Tigers beat Swanton 63-0 last week. Keep an eye on running back/defensive back Curt Silveus.
HUBBARD (5-0, 3-0)vs. LABRAE (4-2, 2-1)
Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday at Hubbard High stadiumLast meeting: Hubbard won 28-0 last yearNotebook: The Eagles, ranked 16th in Div. III, got a big lift from Tony Giancola in last week's 40-21 Trumbull Athletic Conference victory over Lakeview. He had 89 yards rushing, scored four touchdowns and also recorded an interception. For the season, Giancola has 552 yards on 60 carries and five touchdowns. Hubbard quarterback Bryan Boyce has completed 26-of-45 pass attempts for 357 yards and two touchdowns. LaBrae is trying to recover from last week's 38-0 setback to Liberty in which quarterback Todd Rowan completed 9-of-20 passes for 111 yards.
COLUMBIANA (4-2, 2-1)vs. UNITED (2-4, 2-1)
Game time: 7:30 p.m. Friday at United High stadiumLast meeting: Columbiana won 23-22 last yearNotebook: This game is all about keeping pace in the Tri-County League title race. Crestview and Leetonia are 3-0, and the winner of this match-up will remain one game back of first place. Columbiana tuned up for the game by handling Sebring 48-15 last week. Beau Papania had 114 yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns. United played Crestview close before losing 17-6. Bryan Phillips was 11-of-26 passing for 220 yards and one touchdown.
Vindicator staff report