For the second time in three years, the Cards lost to the Cavaliers for the title.

By TOM WILLIAMS

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

MASSILLON — After watching his unbeaten Mooney High football team get outscored 21-6 in the fourth quarter, Coach P.J. Fecko sensed momentum was back on the Cardinals’ sideline and another Division IV state crown was in reach.

When tight end Mike Gemma caught a 6-yard scoring strike with 21 seconds to go in Saturday’s wild finish, the Cardinals trailed Coldwater 28-27 but were an extra-point away from overtime. Fecko didn’t hesitate in sending his kicking unit onto the field at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

Cavaliers defensive lineman Kurt Schlarman became the hero of the game when he broke through the Mooney line to block Ed Reese’s kick, preserving Coldwater’s one-point lead and giving them their second Division IV state title in three seasons.

Both championship victories came against Mooney, which is ranked No. 8 in the nation by USA Today and the winner of two of the past three state championships.

“Obviously, you read history backwards,” Fecko said after Mooney’s first loss in two years. “He may have missed two all year, his numbers were in the high 50s.

“They got a push inside and we didn’t do a great job inside of holding those guys out,” Fecko said.

Coldwater coach John Reed, whose Cavaliers lost the 2000 Div. IV state title game to Ursuline, called Fecko’s decision to play for the tie “the right one.”

Mooney going for two “was certainly in our thoughts, but I know if we would have had to make that decision we would have done the same thing,” Reed said.

“When you play that hard for that long, I don’t want to put it on a two-point play,” Reed said. “With two-point plays, the average success is 37 percent. That’s not very high and I don’t want to take that chance.

“I’m sure they felt that if they could get us into overtime, they could again dominate from the 20 physically,” Reed said.

Reed was referring to the rushing dominance the Cardinals (14-1) enjoyed as they jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.

Powered by the legs of senior tailback Brandon Beachum and some timely accurate tosses by quarterback Tim Marlowe, the Cardinals had the Cavaliers (14-1) on the ropes in the first 12 minutes.

Mooney needed nine plays to march 52 yards on the first possession, with Beachum gaining 17 yards to the Coldwater 1 on a fourth-and-8 play. Senior fullback Mike Zordich, another Penn State recruit, punched the ball in for a 7-0 lead.

The Cavaliers drove to the Mooney 13, but quarterback Cory Klenke’s fourth-down pass fell incomplete in the end zone. The Cardinals responded with an 87-yard drive sparked by Marlowe’s arm.

After Zordich gained 30 yards on Marlowe’s first completion, Gemma hauled in another toss for a 32-yard gain. Right before the quarter expired, Gemma caught a 24-yard scoring strike for a two touchdown edge.

Six penalties by the Cardinals in the second quarter kept the Cavaliers in striking range at halftime.

“We never gave up coming out at half,” said Ryan Grier who triggered the Cavaliers’ comeback with an 80-yard touchdown reception on a double reverse early in the fourth quarter.

Reed’s staff dug into their bag of tricks for the improbable fourth-quarter rally. Their second touchdown came on an 80-yard pass off a double reverse. They set up the tying score with a lateral pass to backup quarterback Keith Wenning who tossed to running back Tony Harlamert for a 35-yard gain.

“We came here to win,” Reed said. “We live on the other side of Ohio and we really don’t know about the ‘Mooney mystique,’ ” Reed said. “We were confident that we would play them tough.”

Coldwater won despite being outrushed 297 yards to 53. Beachum, a Penn State recruit, gained 191 of them on 34 carries. Marlowe rushed 17 times for 92 yards and completed 5-of-6 passes for 135 yards.

williams@vindy.com