Monroeville wins thriller for outright FC title

NORWALK — The ending scene changed. One year ago, the Monroeville football team hosted an underdog St. Paul team and got beat on the final play of the game. The Eagles were again the favorites entering Friday's regular season finale against their rivals at Contractors Stadium in Norwalk. But this time, it was Monroeville scoring with just 14 seconds left to claim a thrilling 33-28 win, as quarterback Colt Clark found Chase Horn in the left corner of the end zone. Horn made an over-the-shoulder catch and just did get a foot down in bounds for the winning points. The Eagles (8-2, 7-0) are outright Firelands Conference champions for the first time since 2002 and have also earned a first-round bye in Division VII Region 25 next week. "I looked down right when I caught the ball and I was like, 'I got it,'" Horn said. "I just had to lock in and focus on the ball and secure the catch, and the rest is history. "No matter the records, we had the better record, but we know anything can happen in this game," he added. "We were able to make one more play tonight, and it's a great feeling." The Eagles trailed 21-13 at halftime, and still trailed 21-19 after Clark connected with Ethan Pomerich on a 7-yard TD pass with 3:18 left in the third quarter. Levi Rospert intercepted the 2-point pass to keep the Flyers (5-5, 4-3) ahead by two. After a defensive stand, Pomerich then caught a 43-yard pass to the St. Paul 2-yard line. Cooper Cleary scored on the first play of the fourth quarter, and Monroeville led for the first time in the game. Cleary also added the 2-point run for a 27-21 lead. As was the case throughout the game, St. Paul was quick to answer. After quarterback Grant Kuhnle found Rospert for 18 yards on third down, he went deep up the left sideline where senior Connor Lindenberger made a leaping catch and fell into the end zone for a 49-yard TD catch. Nate Griffin's fourth PAT gave the Flyers the lead back at 28-27. Rospert then intercepted Clark two plays into the next drive at the St. Paul 33. The Flyers were using much of the clock and took nearly seven minutes of the final quarter off on the drive. However, the Eagles forced a turnover on downs when Kuhnle was incomplete on a fourth-and-9 from the Monroeville 32 with 2:48 remaining. The longest gains of the game-winning drive proved to be two defensive penalties on the Flyers. Connor Bores then ran twice in a row for 14 yards, and Clark followed with a 7-yard run and a spike to stop the clock with 19 seconds left. Clark then took a shot with Horn and found him for the game-winning score. "A little bit of playing the clock, we're pretty confident in Isaac Krueger's leg there, but we thought we could take a couple shots at it," Monroeville head coach Tylor Nester said. "The offensive line did a great job buying Colt time and he put it right on the spot and Chase pulled it in. "It's the rivalry game and we're going to get the best of each other," he added. "They smacked us in the mouth from the start, but we were able to respond, just like we did against Western and Crestivew. I was proud and excited to see our growth out of our kids in those spots." The scoring was fast and frequent from the start. The Flyers received the opening kickoff and needed just five plays to cover 66 yards. Landon Fries ripped off consecutive runs of 14 and 31 yards, then scored from the 5 two plays later. The first of three Griffin PATs in the first half made it 7-0 at the 9:45 mark. But the Eagles needed even less time on their first possession. On the second play, Clark went deep and found Horn in one-on-one coverage. Horn hauled in the pass and finished off the 71-yard pass and catch TD. Krueger's PAT tied the game at 7-7 with 9:19 left in the half. St. Paul then went 70 yards in six plays, highlighted by Nick Pocos rumbling for 48 yards on a fourth-and-1 from the St. Paul 40. Two plays later, Kuhnle found Lindenberger for a 10-yard TD pass and a 14-7 lead with 6:16 left in the first quarter. The Eagles answered in the from of a 68-yard drive that took eight plays. Clark finished it off by finding tight end Maverick Myers in the flats around the 15, and he did the rest for a 27-yard TD pass and catch. However, the extra point never got off the ground and the Flyers maintained a 14-13 lead. Once again the Flyers needed only five plays to answer. They went 58 yards as Kuhnle went over the top this time for a 36-yard TD pass to Levi Rospert for a 21-13 lead on the first play of the second quarter. The defenses finally forced some stops for the rest of the half. The Eagles turned it over on downs at the St. Paul 17 when a Clark pass to Bores was just a yard shy on a 4th-and-17 pass. St. Paul then punted on its next possession, and freshman Casey Fries intercepted Clark on the ensuing Monroeville possession. The Flyers appeared to have a fourth touchdown and a potential 28-13 lead just before halftime, but a Kuhnle 53-yard TD pass to Lindenberger was called back on a hold with under a minute left in the second quarter. "My disappointment only lies in the final score," St. Paul head coach Chris Doughty said. "We asked them to go out and play a four-quarter game against a great team and we did that tonight. Just a few plays we came up short on, but credit Monroeville for executing exactly when it needed to. "Our effort was outstanding, and I truly believed we took a big step forward tonight. We played a good game tonight, we truly did, but it just wasn't enough tonight. We are playing our best football at the end of the season, and I know our kids will come back with the right mindset next week and be ready." Kuhle was 6-of-13 passing for 115 yards and 3 TDs for St. Paul, with Rospert catching two passes for 54 yards and Lindenberger with two for 52 yards. Pocos ran 15 times for 111 yards and Landon Fries added 81 yards on 12 attempts. For Monroeville, Clark was 10-of-18 passing for 223 yards and 4 TDs, with Horn catching four passes for 100 yards and the two scores. Myers caught three passes for 60 yards and the TD. On the ground, Clark ran 13 times for 70 yards and Cleary totaled 48 yards on 10 attempts.