High school football playoffs I St. Xavier woins Division I state title
The Enquirer; Jeff Swinger
St. Xavier players celebrate th.eir 24-17 win against Massillon Washington in the Division I state football championship game at Fawcett Stadium in Canton.
By Tom Groeschen Enquirer staff writer
CANTON - St. Xavier coach Steve Specht, surrounded by TV cameras, was describing what it fel.t like to win the school's first state football championship here Saturday night. And then. here came the Gatorade shower. A handful of happy, blueshirted Bombers dumped the full bucket on their coach's white visor and down Specht's
St. Xavier survives late charge to beat Massillon ;,Jue jacket, as St. Xavier celebrated a 24-17 'fl."in over Massillon in the Division I title game. "We did it, guys! We did it!" a grinning Specnt said, after wheehng around to face the perpetrators near midfield. The temperature was 25 degrees and dropping, but
Specht just laughed and shook his head as 1V cameras caught the moment. The players all hugged Specht, and the joy j.st kept on coming as the &mbers' friends and pareil'l::s made their way down to the field. Digital cameras clicked away, cell phones were fired up and
working overtime, and Bomber Nation took over Canton's Fawcett Stadium. St. Xavier (15-0) won the championship on its fourth visit upstate, having had state runner-up finishes in 1992, 1998 and 2001. A crowd of 20,227 watched St. Xavier sophomore Darius Ashley rush 27 times for 153 See ST. XAVIER, Page Cll
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Two celebrations planned St. Xavier will have twc1 victory celebrations for its Division I state football championship team. Today at 7 p.m., the tean:t will be honored at the school's Berning G~rrnnasium. Family, friends, alumni and the community are welcome to attend. Monday at 2:20p.m., thert~ will be an assembly in Berning Gymnasium for the student body, faculty and staff. The team w.ill make its official presentation of the champinnship trophy to school president Fr. Walter C. Deye and princi-. pal David B. Mueller at the Monday event. - Tom Groeschen