Canfield drops to 4th in state Division III poll

Undefeated Hubbard, LaBrae, McDonald make the Top 10

Staff report

Last Friday’s upset loss to East knocked the Canfield High School football team out of the top spot in this week’s Associated Press state poll of Division III teams.

The Cardinals (7-1, 1-1 All-American Conference Red) held the number-one ranking last week, then fell to the Golden Bears, 12-7, on a last-minute touchdown.

East (6-2, 4-0) clinched the league title with that victory, snapping the Cardinals’ 18-game regular-season win streak.

In this week’s poll, Canfield dropped to four, receiving three first-place votes and 123 points. Kenston (8-0) received eight first-place votes and 201 points. Bellbrook (8-0) and Archbishop Alter (7-1) also moved ahead of the Cardinals.

Undefeated Hubbard, LaBrae and McDonald are the other Mahoning Valley teams making the Top 10.

Canfield will host Howland (1-7) on Friday, then close the season on Oct. 26 with one last game against Poland (6-2).

East showed up in the Div. IV poll, earning enough votes for 13th place. The Golden Bears are coming off wins over Poland and Canfield. Friday, they’ll hit the road to face Warren Harding (5-2).

Unbeaten Hubbard (8-0, 5-0 AAC White) moved up to number three in Div. IV. The Eagles received two first-place votes and have 155 points. St. Mary’s Memorial (8-0) has the top spot with 207 points and eight first-place votes.

Friday, Hubbard, coming off a 41-0 win over Struthers (5-3, 3-1), travels to Poland and can earn a share of the league crown with a victory.

Steubenville (7-1) is one spot behind Hubbard and received five first-place votes and 154 points.

Undefeated LaBrae (8-0, 5-0 AAC Blue) is fifth in Div. V. After defeating Brookfield, the Vikings received one first-place vote and 162 points. First-place Genoa Area (8-0) has 218 points and 12 first-place votes.

Friday, LaBrae travels to Girard (7-1, 4-0) in a battle for the AAC Blue crown.

In Div. VI, McDonald sits at eighth with 68 points. The Blue Devils (8-0, 5-0 Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference) beat Sebring 55-6 and will travel to Western Reserve (7-1, 4-1) for a first-place showdown on Friday.

Maria Stein Marion (8-0) has the top spot in Div. VI, receiving 23 first-place votes (out of 25) and 248 points.

Mogadore (7-1), which plays Valley Christian (5-3) on Saturday, is the number-five team with 98 points.