Ursuline 11092007

Gallery

The Irish beat
Waynedale, 29-6,
and will play
South Range next.

By JOE SCALZO

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

CANTON —  He’d helped pave the way for a 100-yard rusher on offense, collected two sacks on defense and his team finished the night with a tidy 23-point victory in the Division V regional semifinals, but the first thing Ursuline junior Danny Baco wanted to talk about was his opponent, Apple Creek Waynedale.

“We wore them down with our size, but that’s a tough team to play,” said Baco following Ursuline’s 29-6 win on Friday at Canton Central Catholic. “They’re a tough-nosed football team.”

And, for the first half, the Golden Bears (9-3) gave the Irish all they could handle. But giving up 30 and 40 pounds at some line positions proved to be too much to overcome as Ursuline outscored Waynedale 16-0 in the second half. Junior running back Darrell Mason, who’s drawn considerable Division I interest, led the Irish (10-2) with 100 yards on 21 carries and three touchdowns, setting up a regional final battle with South Range next Friday.

“This is what I expected,” said Waynedale coach Matt Zuercher. “We knew our kids would play hard.

“We just ran into a wall that was too big tonight.”

Following a 43-0 win over Bedford Chanel last week, many felt the Irish would roll past Waynedale. It didn’t happen. Ursuline quarterback Lamar McQueen fumbled on the Irish’s second and third possessions but the Golden Bears were only able to turn those turnovers into three points thanks to solid play from the Irish defense.

After holding the Bears on downs after the second fumble, the Irish gave Waynedale a steady dose of Mason — mixing in a 41-yard pass play from McQueen to Jamel Turner for good measure — to drive 75 yards in eight plays, giving Ursuline a 6-3 lead.

After Waynedale tied the score at 6, the Irish mounted a scoring drive just before halftime, scoring with 22 seconds left on a 1-yard run by Mason.

Then Ursuline’s defense took over, holding Waynedale to 91 yards in the second half while forcing two turnovers.

The six points were the fewest Waynedale scored all season.

“We definitely take pride in our defense every year,” said Baco. “Coach [Larry] Kempe works us hard in practice every week. To hold them to six points was great.”

Junior Thad Nofsinger led the Bears with 79 yards on 15 carries, while junior Travis Suppes completed 9-of-24 passes for 91 yards and one interception, which Ursuline sophomore DeAndre Harris caught on the second-to-last play of the game.

Sophomore Allen Jones played well in relief of Mason, who injured his shoulder and played hurt the second half. Jones had 48 yards on 10 carries with a touchdown, while McQueen added 37 on seven carries. McQueen also completed 4-of-7 passes for 96 yards.

“Our guys kept wearing them down,” said Ursuline coach Dan Reardon. “We tell the guys, if you keep chopping wood, eventually the tree will fall.”

Reardon said he hadn’t studied film of South Range, aside from watching some late plays on television a few times after games. But he’s looking forward to the game, not just because it matches up two local teams, but because the well-traveled Irish will have something close to a home game.

“It’s a fun match-up,” said Reardon. “[Coach Dan] Yeagley does an outstanding job and he has a great football team. It’s great for the area.”

Added Baco, “It seems like we’ve been on a collision course for a couple weeks. I know I’m going to play as hard as I can to get these seniors where they belong, which is Massillon [for the state final] in Week 15.”

scalzo@vindy.com