High school football: Aurora, Highland face each other in winner-take-all season finale

GRANGER TWP. — There was no beating around the bush. Yes, the Aurora game has been circled on the Highland football team's calendar for a while. There's no need to apologize, either, because most expected a two-team race for the Suburban League American Conference championship despite a gritty effort from Barberton. The crown will be handed out tonight at North Gateway Tire Field, where the 8-1, 6-0 Hornets will go to war with the 8-1, 6-0 Greenmen in a relatively rare winner-take-all Week 10 slobberknocker. Strap on the hard hats and steel-toed boots, because this one is going to be blue collar. "This is awesome," Highland H-back/linebacker Tommy Shondel said. "All week we've been talking about how this is our last (regular-season) home game of the season as seniors, and we've put all the work in during practice preparing for this game. "Ever since Hudson (35-21 loss) and Brunswick (35-14 win) and all those tough games we had early on, we've all been looking forward to this game in Week 10." Like Highland, Aurora doesn't have a bunch of star power but is solid across the board. The Greenmen have won seven straight since a 31-14 loss to Painesville Riverside in Week 2, including surviving the Magics 35-33 when cornerback Dylan Crasi used such an impressive backflip to intercept a fourth-down pass in the end zone that it could have been the No. 1 play on SportsCenter. What makes the Greenmen fairly unique is they're difficult to game plan against. Many of the run schemes are the same, but they'll line up in two-tight end sets out of the shotgun, go under center in the I-formation or go full spread at any time. Toss in the efficiency of veteran quarterback Brandon Liepins, who was injured when the teams played last season, and there are a lot of tweaks to be made. Rugged 6-foot-3, 225-pound Enzo Catania (108 carries, 769 yards, 12 TDs) left the Barberton game with an injury, but Highland expects him to play. Lucas Manderbach, another load at 6-2, 220, has 277 yards and three scores, while Liepins has thrown for 1,112 yards, 10 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Highland's defense starts up front, where Carson Noonan (34 tackles, 8½ for loss, 4 sacks), Logan Waddell (27, 3½, 2), Ryan Zywiec (49, 10½, 6) and Jack Capotosto (22, 8½, 5½) have dominated. Shondel (46, 9, 1½) and Jason Sambor (53, 6) have been productive at linebacker, while the secondary features All-SL American picks Matt Ciryak (6 pass breakups) and Chase Crutchley (team-high 63 tackles). "They have a really big O-line and they come to play," Shondel said. "We've got to come to play as well and show them what we're all about." The Aurora defense is a base 4-2 front with a lot of four-deep zone coverage in the back. The Greenmen feature Manderbach (10 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 18 QB pressures), Alex Brooker (11 TFLs) and Tommy Tartabini (66 tackles), while Jayce Unverfeth has four interceptions. Highland's offense is led by the big-play ability of Ciryak (16 catches, 331 yards, 5 TDs), the slot speed of Johnny Siliko (256 rushing yards, 160 receiving yards), the dual-threat abilities of Peyton Janickas (529 rushing yards, 732 passing yards) and the two-pronged rushing attack of Casey Myser (852 yards, 12 TDs) and Evan Grant (605, 9). The line of Noonan, Ben Fearn, Brodie Davis, Brady Bendau and Ben Coyne may be the best in coach Mike Gibbons' tenure, while Shondel's blocking has been critical on outside zone and counter rushes. An issue the Hornets may have to deal with is limited reps over the last three games, in which Highland beat Roosevelt (42-0), Revere (56-20) and Cuyahoga Falls (58-7) by a 156-27 aggregate score. The offense played roughly 5½ quarters combined. "When you look at their defense, they're very similar to us," Gibbons said of Aurora. "They're very fundamentally sound and swarm to the ball." There isn't a whole lot else to break down because there are so many similarities, though it's worth nothing Ciryak and Siliko have combined for six kickoff or punt return touchdowns. Both teams know whoever executes better is almost certainly going to win. "They're excited, they're ready," Gibbons said of his players. "It's going to be a great atmosphere." Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.