Football Takes Down Medina Highland in Waning Seconds of State Playoffs, 23-20
Senior PK Cole Tishler booted a 28-yard field goal with five seconds left to lift the Central Catholic football team to a 23-20 victory against Medina Highland this evening in the third round of the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Division II State Playoffs at Bellevue High School. With the thrilling post-season triumph, the Fighting Irish stretch their winning streak to 11-consecutive games and improve to 11-2 overall.
Tonight’s win will now set up a Region 6 Finals matchup vs. No. 2 seed and seventh-ranked Avon (11-2) on Friday, Nov. 19 at a site to be determined later this weekend. The Eagles defeated Olmsted Falls 49-21 in the other Region 6 semifinal on Friday.
CCHS trailed the fourth-ranked Hornets 20-6 with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation before rallying for 17 points to win on Tishler’s game-winning kick on the contest’s final play.
Offensively, junior QB Ty'Waun Clark was 12-of-22 passing for 189 yards with two TDs, and rushed 10 times for 58 yards. Junior RB Chris Edmonds carried the ball 20 times for 92 yards with one score, and senior Sam Lee hauled in five catches for a game-high 109 yards. Lee was also credited with both of Clark's TD passes, covering 4 yards in the second period and 51 yards in the fourth, respectively.
Following Lee's second-TD reception, Medina Highland moved the ball to the CCHS 28-yard line in the waning moments of regulation when a pass from Hornets QB Aaron Filips was intercepted by senior DE Dylan Fisher. A two-time first-team All-TRAC selection, Fisher returned the interception near midfield before fumbling it out of bounds at the Medina Highland 31-yard line, setting the stage for Tishler's late-game heroics.
