Both teams are unbeaten and playing in regional finals this weekend.
Top-seeded Piqua (12-0) faces No. 7 Cincinnati Winton Woods (10-3) at 7 p.m. Friday at Northmont High School in Division II, Region 8. Third-seeded Preble Shawnee (13-0) meets No. 5 Versailles at 7 p.m. Saturday at Trotwood-Madison High School in Division V, Region 20. Win and it’s on to the state semifinals.
That Piqua is in this position is not a surprise. The Indians were 6-0 in last year’s shortened regular season and returned a major portion of that team, six of whom earned first-team all-Southwest District honors. They rolled through the Miami Valley League and have come from behind to win their last two playoff games.
“We’re just all one group,” said running back and defensive back Jasiah Medley, the Division II offensive player of the year in the Southwest District. “I don’t really see anyone over another as a standout. Yeah, we have guys, but we’re just all one group playing together the whole time.”
Junior linebacker Sam Schmeising, one of the all-district first-teamers, said, “Nobody has a big ego on the team – nobody. Nobody’s on social media talking. We keep to ourselves, and I think that’s huge with everybody having a humble mindset.”
Winton Woods has won six straight and has scored over 40 points twice in the playoffs. The Warriors have made three final four appearances, most recently in 2018 and as runner-up in 2017.
“They’re an excellent football team, an excellent program and they’ve really caught fire in the last four or five weeks,” Nees said.
Winton Woods features 5-7 running back Tyrek Spikes, who rushed for 170 yards last week against Cincinnati La Salle. But there’s a new concern in the Warriors’ backfield. Junior KC Spears rushed for 228 yards on eight carries last week to more than double his season total.
The Indians trailed Cincinnati Withrow at halftime two weeks ago and Edgewood in the fourth quarter last week before Medley made long game-changing runs.
“If it’s a close game I hope we can stand up like the last couple games when we’ve been challenged,” Nees said.
Preble Shawnee rallied last week, too, from a 21-14 deficit and broke a fourth-quarter tie to defeat Cincinnati Roger Bacon 35-28. For a program that had never won more than seven games and never made the playoffs, except for last year when everyone made it, that victory set off a small-town celebration.
“I think every fire truck from Camden, West Elkton and Gratis was waiting at the county line when we came home and escorted us back to the school,” Arrows coach Dave Maddox said. “The kids are loving it.”
Leading the historic season has been lineman-turned-running back Hunter Crockett. He rushed for 1,389 yards, scored 26 touchdowns and was named the Division V offensive player of the year in the Southwest District.
“I knew that we would go undefeated in the league that we’re in,” Crockett said. “I am kind of surprised that we made it this far in the playoffs, but I knew we could do it if we tried hard and put in a lot of effort, which we did.”
The challenge is tradition-rich Versailles. The Tigers play in the powerful Midwest Athletic Conference and have won six state championships, the last coming in 2003.
“It’s all new to us, but we’ve just got to stay focused and keep our mind right,” Maddox said. “It keeps getting harder and harder to keep guys focused just because there starts to be more noise on the outside coming in.”
The Tigers are led by Division V Southwest defensive player of the year Carson Bey at linebacker and two-way lineman Taran Tyo (6-foot-4, 300 pounds), who is committed to Ball State. Jack Osborne leads a deep group of running backs.
“They look big and tough and physical up front,” Maddox said. “They’re disciplined and well-coached.”
In other regional finals:
Hamilton Badin (12-0) has looked like a team headed to state all season, but the Rams must get past third-seeded Bellbrook (11-2) and running back Seth Borondy in Division III, Region 12 at 7 p.m. Friday at Trotwood.
Borondy, first-team all-Southwest District, has rushed for 2,613 yards, averages 201 yards a game and has surpassed 200 yards seven times, including a high of 356.
The MAC is highly represented as usual.
In addition to Versailles, seven-time and defending state champion Coldwater (11-2) faces Harrod Allen East (10-3) in Division VI, Region 24 at 7 p.m. Saturday in Sidney.
In Division VII, Region 28, 11-time champion Marion Local (13-0) faces MAC rival St. Henry (10-3), a six-time champion, at 7 p.m. Friday in Wapakoneta.
In Division IV, Region 16, Clinton-Massie (11-1) is in familiar territory against Cincinnati McNicholas (11-1). Clinton-Massie is a two-time champion and looking for its fifth trip to the state semifinals since 2011.
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