Vito PEnza

Team: Ursuline

Player fact: Penza ran for 176 yards and three touchdowns in a 23-14 win over the Massillon Tigers. The senior QB ran the ball 27 times.

Big win: “It was a great win. We knew Massillon was going to come down with a lot of energy, great fan base. But we were focused and knew we had a great chance to win. We knew we had to play really well and we did.”

Carrying the load: “My legs are probably better than my arms. I think all of our coaches can agree with that. Our offense played a heck of a game, especially our running backs.”

Athmosphere around the team: “We took those doubters into believers. When you don’t have a good season last year you have a lot of people doubting you. But when you have big wins like that, it gets the atmosphere great. It’s good to see a lot of the fans and community surrounding us.”

Tough schedule: “It prepares us for later in the season especially. We like the competition every week.”

Colin Sweeney

Team: Lisbon

Player fact: The defensive back had two interceptions and a kick return for a touchdown in the Blue Devils’ 41-14 win over Columbiana.

Two interceptions: “The first interception was an overthrow that we had them completly covered. The second one was off of a tip and I just went all out for it and it paid off. Our defense is what’s going to lead to our offense.”

Great start: “Its been a very long time. It’s cool to see like the whole town into it. ”

Making big plays: “It felt good because it was on TV so it was a big game and Columbiana is a good team and we hadn’t beat them in a long time.

Important factor this season: “Just staying together. If something bad happens, we come together at halftime of games and say, ‘Hey, we need to pick this up and get this win.’”

Team goals: “Go 9-1 and win the league [Inter-Tri County League]. That hasn’t happened in a while.”