Mooney ranked No. 2 in first poll

Poland, Lakeview, East Palestine and Columbiana were also in the top 10.

STAFF REPORT

Seven area teams received enough votes to be ranked in the first Associated Press high school football poll of the 2009 season, released Monday.

The highest-ranked team is Cardinal Mooney (3-0) in Division III. The Cardinals, who defeated Elyria Catholic 49-20 last Friday, received 11 first-place votes and 133 points in statewide balloting by sports writers and broadcasters.

Mooney plays host to Warren Harding on Friday at Stambaugh Stadium.

The Raiders were not ranked despite also starting the season 2-0-1.

The Cardinals were joined in Div. III by Poland (3-0), which received 60 points, good for No. 7 in the balloting.

The Bulldogs, who opened their renovated stadium last weekend with a 41-7 victory over St. Thomas More of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, play host to Lakeview on Friday.

Lakeview (3-0) is No. 8 in the Div. IV poll with 55 points. Lakeview defeated Geneva (a Div. II school) 28-7 last Friday.

In Div. V, East Palestine (3-0) received one first-place vote and 62 points, good for sixth place. The Bulldogs defeated Steubenville Catholic Central 30-6 last Saturday and will play host to Columbiana in their Inter Tri-County League opener on Friday.

Columbiana (3-0) is ranked No. 9 in Div. VI after defeating Struthers 37-0 last weekend.

Also receiving votes but out of the top 10 are Canfield (3-0) in Div. II, Crestview (3-0) in Div. V and McDonald (3-0) in Div. VI.

The first poll leaders are Cleveland St. Ignatius in Div. I, Louisville in Div. II, Columbus Watterson in Div. III, Kettering Alter in Div. IV, Coldwater in Div. V and Delphos St. John’s in Div. VI.

Austintown Fitch, Howland, Western Reserve and Wellsville were other teams with 3-0 records who didn’t receive a mention in the poll, which will continue through the end of the regular season.

The first OHSAA computer ratings, which will determine the playoff qualifiers, will be released next week.