Late blocked punt keys No. 25 St. Edward's win over No. 3 St. Ignatius

PARMA, Ohio — The previous 49 matchups between St. Ignatius (Cleveland) and St. Edward (Lakewood) certainly produced a fair share of drama.

So when the two bitter rivals faced off for the 50th time on Saturday night, it was to no one's surprise that the contest became an instant prep classic.

Two late touchdowns lifted visiting and No. 25 St. Edwards to a 20-13 win over the third-ranked Wildcats before 13,000 chilly fans at Byers Field. Both teams entered 9-0 and were the top two ranked teams in Ohio.

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"I'm just so excited for these kids because they have worked so hard," said St. Edward head coach Rick Finotti. "This game is only going to make us hungrier heading into the playoffs and it's really going to give us some confidence. We just knew we had to win this game."

St. Ignatius appeared in control for most of the game, clinging to a 13-6 lead heading into the fourth quarter before things began to unravel for the Wildcats.

The Eagles pulled even when their quarterback Ryan Fallon handed the ball to running back Dwayne Aaron who flipped the ball back to Fallon on a fleaflicker play. Fallon promptly connected with wide receiver Anthony Young on a 34-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 13.

But the crushing blow came with just under six minutes remaining in regulation when Connor King blocked a St. Ignatius punt on a botched snap, allowing teammate Kenny Butler to recover the ball at the St. Ignatius 20-yard-line.

That play set up a 4-yard touchdown pass from Fallon to receiver David Dowelll, giving the Eagles a 20-13 lead that they would not relinquish.

"We never doubted that we could come back," said Fallon, who completed 16-of-31 passes for 191 yards with two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. "Going into the fourth quarter we just said ‘hey, we've got a ballgame here and we have to go make some plays.' That's what it came down to and we never gave up on each other."

The win snapped a 15-game St. Ignatius win streak, dating back to last season when the Wildcats won the Division I OHSAA state title. It also served as a measure of revenge for the Eagles, who were knocked out of the second round of the 2011 playoffs by St. Ignatius.

St. Ignatius still leads the all-time series between the schools, holding a 27-22-1 edge.

"It feels really good to be 10-0 right now," said Young, whose status was in doubt before the game due to an ankle injury but ultimately scored the game-winning touchdown. "We're going to make a huge jump in the national rankings. I love every guy on this team. We've been together for four years and we always come out hard. I wasn't even supposed to play today but I think that adrenaline rush really helped."

St. Edward won the game despite holding a lead for only 4:02 the entire game. St. Ignatius held the lead for 28:02.

The loss also postponed the chance for longtime St. Ignatius head coach Chuck Kyle to earn his 300th career victory. His Wildcats edged St. Edward in total yards gained (346 to 303) and total rushing yards (188-112) but still came up short on the scoreboard.

St. Ignatius standout running back Tim McVey led all rushers with 191 yards on 32 carries while Wildcats quarterback Mike Lamanna connected on 16-of-30 passes for 158 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

Both teams have clinched first round home games heading into the Division I state playoffs.

St. Edward plays Mayfield next Saturday while St. Ignatius takes on Austintown-Fitch (Youngstown).