Playoffs coming into focus for ten teams

Ten News-Herald area football teams, each of which has its own drive and motivation to win, are gearing up.

Ten News-Herald area football teams are headed to postseason play, each of which have their own drive and motivation to win.

Few, if any, of the area teams will have more motivation in Week 11 than the Perry Pirates.

A year ago, the Pirates’ dream of playing for a Division IV state championship were wrecked by a 42-33 loss to Girard in a Region 13 semifinal game.

So when the first-round pairings for the 2019 playoffs were announced on Nov. 3, the Pirates were more than happy to see that they’d be facing Girard again, this time on Nov. 9 at Perry’s Alumni Stadium.

“Yeah, the guys are really excited to play this game,” Rosati said. “They were hoping to get Girard, and it ended up falling that way. They’re really excited.”

Perry (10-0) is the top seed in Division IV, Region 13, while Girard (6-4) is the No. 8 seed.

The Pirates were the top seed in Region 13 last year, too, but were bounced from tournament play earlier than they wanted on a day when the game originally scheduled to be played at Ashtabula Lakeside was moved to Niles because of heavy snow in Ashtabula County.

“We couldn’t stop their quarterback, Mark Waid, and they really couldn’t stop us, either,” Rosati said.

Waid has since graduated and now plays at Youngstown State.

A year later, the Pirates have no problem admitting

that their playoff opener on Nov. 9 is one of atonement.

“We’re looking very forward to playing this game,” Rosati said.

Aside from Perry, the third-ranked Division IV team in Ohio in the latest Associated Press poll, other area teams headed for postseason play are Mentor, Euclid, Mayfield, Benedictine, South, Kenston, Chardon, Kirtland and Beachwood.

In other first-round matchups:

• Mentor (10-0) will host Cleveland Heights (9-1) on Nov. 8, to kick off the final playoff run by Cardinals coach Steve Trivisonno, who will step down at the end of the season.

Mentor finished as the

top seed in Division I, Region 1, while Cleveland Heights is the No. 8 seed.

• Euclid (8-2) will host Massillon Jackson (8-2) on Nov. 8 to give the Panthers their fifth straight playoffqualifying season under Coach Jeff Rotsky.

Euclid is the No. 3 seed in Division I, Region, while Massillon Jackson is the No. 6.

• Mayfield (10-0) will see a familiar face in Week 11 as the Wildcats host Western Reserve Conference rival South (6-4) on Nov. 8.

The Wildcats are the second seed in Division II, Region 5, while the Rebels are seventh. Mayfield defeated South, 37-13, in a regularseason game on Oct. 11.

• Benedictine (9-1) will host Brecksville-Broadview Heights (7-3) in a Division II, Region 6 opener on Nov. 8.

The Bengals finished fourth in their region, while the Bees are fifth.

• Defending Division III state champion Kenston (82) will travel to New Philadelphia (9-1) in a Region 13 opener on Nov. 8.

The Bombers, with losses to playoff-qualifying Chardon and Mayfield, got the No. 8 seed in Region 13, while New Philadelphia is the top seed.

• Chardon (8-2) will be just up the road from Kenston on Nov. 8 when the Hilltoppers play Dover (73) on Nov. 8 in a Division

III, Region 13 opener.

Chardon is the No. 6 seed, while Dover is the No. 3 seed. Dover defeated the region’s top seed, New Philadelphia, in the regular-season finale on Nov. 1.

• Kirtland (10-0) will begin its trek on a Division V state championship run on Nov. 9 when the Hornets host Magnolia Sandy Valley (9-1).

The Hornets are the reigning Division VI state champions, but moved up to Division V, Region 17 this year. They are the region’s top seed, while Sandy Valley is No. 8.

• Beachwood (8-2) will hit the road for its playoff opener on Nov. 9, traveling to Oak Harbor (10-0).

The Bison are the No. 8 seed in Division V, Region 18, while Oak Harbor is the top seed.

While 10 area teams qualified for the playoffs, a handful of others missed out by a narrow margin.

Among those just missing out were West Geauga (5-5, and ninth in Division IV, Region 13), Chagrin Falls (5-5, and 10th in Division IV, Region 13), and Newbury (7-3 and 10th in Division VII, Region 25).

Newbury’s near-miss was the most difficult, in that it would have been the Black Knights’ first playoff appearance in program history. Newbury will close its doors this year and merge with West Geauga starting next school year.