Crusaders take advantage of fumbling Firebirds

Todd Stumpf Special to The Plain Dealer, September 22, 2007 12:05 a.m.

Two empty trips inside the 5-yard line and five turnovers by the visiting Firebirds made things easy for Canton Central Catholic, which defeated Chanel, 19-0, in a battle of state-ranked teams at Klinefelter Field.

"We needed to protect the ball better and not turn it over," Chanel coach Dave Stupka said. "This is two weeks in a row we’ve turned the ball over multiple times. Last week we got away with it."

Last week, the Firebirds (4-1) were playing Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin. This time the opponent was a bit different. The Crusaders (5-0), ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press Division IV state poll, were Chanel’s first opponent with a winning record.

Central Catholic had a 257-96 advantage in total yards as it controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

"They were much faster than everyone we’ve played," said Chanel senior tailback Aaron Roberson, who was held to 31 yards on 16 carries, but caught four balls for 85 yards. "They were also a very a physical team."

Despite being outplayed much of the night, this was still a winnable game for the state’s No. 2 Division V team until late in the third quarter.

It was then, after Damian Hill-Fuentes and Roberson connected on a 57-yard pass to the 7-yard line, that the Firebirds found themselves deep in Crusader territory for the second time. The next four plays produced 3 yards and no points.

"It’s very frustrating," Roberson said. "It’s just hard work gone to waste."

After the stop, the Crusaders went on a game-icing 17-play, 97-yard drive that ate more than seven second-half minutes. Joey Rhoads capped the drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Rob Hoagland.

"That shows a lot of character right there," Central Catholic coach Lowell Klinefelter said of the long drive. "We put the game away."

A pair of Chanel turnovers set up first-half Crusaders touchdowns. A first-quarter fumble led to a 21-yard touchdown run by Marcello Natale. Ed Anderson’s interception near midfield set up a 3-yard TD run by Max Colaner (16 carries, 100 yards).

Despite virtually no first-half offense — 29 plays produced 26 yards — the Firebirds had a chance to make a game of things heading into halftime. Taking over at the Central Catholic 20 after a fumbled punt return, Chanel moved inside the 5 with 20 seconds left in the half. On third-and-goal, Hill-Fuentes, playing in relief of injured starter Jordan Adams, mishandled the snap. The Crusaders recovered the fumble to end the threat.

"We just didn’t convert and made a mistake," Stupka said. "That would have given us some momentum. "Against a great team like Canton Central Catholic, you have to come away with something when you get down there."

Todd Stumpf is a free-lance writer based in Stow.