LaSalle wins third straight D-II Ohio state football title

MaxPreps Ohio Minute
60 seconds of high school highlights from around the Buckeye State.

Division II State Final: La Salle (Cincinnati) 14, Perry (Massillon) 7

BOX SCORE/STATS

WHAT WE LEARNED

1. LaSalle ties Moeller’s GCL mark for consecutive state titles: Back when Gerry Faust was in charge of the Crusaders, Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati) won three straight state titles from 1975-77. LaSalle has duplicated that run and taken a one-game lead on fellow GCL South schools St. Xavier (Cincinnati) and Elder (Cincinnati), which each have two state titles. Moeller holds a commanding lead with nine. 

2. LaSalle earned it: The Lancers worked for the hardware. After opening with a tough 23-21 win over Edgewood (Trenton) in the regional quarterfinals, LaSalle plowed through its next three playoff opponents 114-17.  They didn’t lead Perry until Tre'Sean Smith scored his second touchdown of the game with 3:46 left.

3. Ground Game: Combined the quarterbacks went 5-of-18 for 21 yards and five interceptions. The teams ran for 382 yards on 85 carries.

4. LaSalle’s defense pitched another shutout: The Lancers forced four turnovers and held Perry to 2-of-12 on third and fourth down combined. In eight quarters of state finals play, the Panthers offense failed to score a point against LaSalle.

5. Perry Proud: When this year’s senior class were freshman, the Panthers varsity finished 0-10 in head coach Keith Wakefield’s first season back. The last two years Perry is 24-6 with two trips to the state finals. Quite the turnaround.

TOP PLAYERS

* Tre’Sean Smith, sr., RB, LaSalle
Carried the ball 17 times for 124 yards and two touchdowns. Also had two tackles and an interception.

* Jarell White, sr., LB, LaSalle
A year after registering 10 tackles in the state final, White matched that (10) to take team-high honors. Added a fumble recovery and 35 yards rushing on 12 carries.

* Jarrett Mercier, sr., LB, Perry
Had a game-high 12 tackles.

* Matt Carrick, sr., OL/DL, Perry
Had eight tackles, three tackles-for-loss and a sack.

* Brody Ingle, soph., LB, LaSalle
Had nine tackles, two tackles-for-loss and a forced fumble.

* Dominick Bowman, jr., DB, Perry
Had five tackles, a forced fumble and scored a touchdown on a 17-yard interception return.

STATS/NUGGETS/NOTES

* 16 – The number of Ohio state titles the GCL South (Moeller, LaSalle, St. Xavier and Elder) owns in football.

* 4 – Turnovers Perry forced, including three interceptions.

* 7 – Point lead Perry had at halftime.

* 8 – Number of yards the game’s longest reception went for.

* 6,750 - Attendance