LAKEWOOD, OHIO - The Saint Ignatius Wildcats (1-6) took on their cross-town rivals this past week, the Saint Edward Eagles (6-1). The Eagles entered the game with a 5-1 record and a lone loss to a Division II powerhouse in the Massillon Washington Tigers (4-3). The Wildcats were coming off a disappointing loss to Benedictine by a final score of 16-14.
With the Wildcats having won the toss and deferred, the Eagles would start with the football. Their first offensive drive was successful, as they marched downfield on three plays for 59 yards, capped off by a 31-yard Jonny Evanchick to Zack Hackleman connection for an early Eagle score.
The Wildcats' offense started hot and put together a long drive that eventually went for a score despite an Eagle defense pick-six being called back on the first play from scrimmage. The Wildcats strung together 11 plays for 79 yards, highlighted by a Jake Bobinski nine-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game at seven with 6:17 left in the first.
The Eagles continued their offensive success on their second drive. This time, they favored the run game as a quick minute and 27-second drive ended in a 15-yard Brandon White touchdown to give Saint Edward a 14-7 lead with just 4:42 left to play in the opening quarter.
The Wildcats continued the back-and-forth first quarter. This time, they started with great field position thanks to a Billy Cole return and then took eight plays to march 40 yards to pay dirt. Owen Colwell got in for his third touchdown of the year, tying the game right back up at 14. The quarter would end tied 14-14.
The second quarter saw the Eagles pull ahead as they outscored the Cats 17-3. The Eagles' first second-quarter score was a 13-yard Will Lavelle field goal after the Wildcats made a goal-line stand and forced St. Edward to trot on the field goal unit. The Eagles would score more again that quarter on another Hackleman receiving touchdown, this time for 32 yards, giving the Eagles a 24-14 lead with 4:57 to go before half.
The Wildcats responded with three points of their own on a Griffin Roberts' second made field goal of the year from 37 yards away, following the two teams trading fumbles on back-to-back plays. The Cats cut the Eagle lead to one score with 2:41 left in the first half. It was 24-17 Eagles.
The Eagles capitalized yet again, this time in a two-minute drill style. On one play, Brandon White continued his dominant performance, rushing 80 yards all the way to the end zone, giving the Eagles a 31-17 lead that they carried into halftime.
Out of the half, the Wildcats were set to receive. Billy Cole had trouble fielding the kick, and he downed himself at the four-yard line, setting the Wildcats back. The Cats struggled to get their offense going and were forced to punt. On the punt, JT Hummer kicked it off the side of his foot and only set the Eagles back 20 yards, as the Eagles took over from the 19-yard line.
The Eagles capitalized on the Wildcats' mistake with only four plays. White collected his third touchdown of the night, extending the Eagles' lead to 38-17 with only five minutes elapsed in the half.
The Eagles would score on their next drive through the air as Hackleman also collected his third touchdown on a beautifully thrown ball from Evanchick that went 22 yards. The Eagles now led 45-17 with 4:32 remaining in the third.
The Wildcats' offense would refind its footing midway through the fourth quarter on a nine-play, 62-yard touchdown drive, during which Dane Donovan rushed for one yard to score, making it 45-24 in favor of the Eagles.
The Wildcats would score once more in the game as Jacob Mikin checked in at quarterback and delivered consecutive strikes to his receivers in Trey Haddad and Luke Simms to get the Cats in Eagle territory. With four seconds left in the game, Mikin found Simms open in the back corner of the end zone for a late touchdown.
The game finished with a final score of 45-31 as the Eagles took the lead in the all-time series with a 33-32-1 record. The game marked St. Edward's ninth straight win over the Wildcats, the longest streak in the historic rivalry. The Cats will be back in action on Friday as they travel to Cincinnati to take on Matt Ponatoski and the Archbishop Moeller Crusaders (5-2).
