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Tigers reach final four on 13th straight victory
(by Steve Novak - November 25, 2009)
Tigers reach final four on 13th straight victory
By STEVE NOVAK
It was, by most accounts, an unstated team goal back in August.
But now, after a school-record 13 straight victories and a Division IV regional championship, the Chagrin Falls football players now can say it out loud that their goal was to make the state playoffs.
With a systematic 58-28 dismantling of Peninsula Woodridge last Saturday night at Twinsburg Tiger Stadium, Chagrin Falls advances to the final four for the first time in school history.
"Back in the beginning of the season, it wasn't something we talked about," said Chagrin Falls senior quarterback Chris Trinetti. "But it was definitely in our minds as the ultimate goal."
The Tigers will play Ottawa Glandorf (11-2) at 7 p.m. Saturday at Don Paul Field at Harmon Stadium at Fremont Ross High School. The Titans advanced by downing Orrville, 21-20.
Ottawa Glandorf is a playoff-tested team. The Titans advanced to the Division IV regional final last year before finally being eliminated. They finished 8-5.
Because of graduation, the Titans only return of six starters combined offense and defense to this year's team. Quarterback Nathan Kahle passed for 1,006 yards and rushed for 707 yards in the regular season, collecting 14 touchdowns along the way.
Shortly after the Woodridge game, Chagrin Falls coach Mark Iammarino said he had not yet seen a scouting report on Ottawa Glandorf.
"Preparing for a game should be no different in the playoffs, except that there is a sense of urgency in these games," he said. "That's because at the end of these games, one team goes home. At this point, there is no quit in any of the teams still in the playoffs."
Trinetti said that he and his teammates will just try to continue to concentrate on playing as close to mistake-free football as they can.
"We'll be focusing on putting everything together, and to get as close to perfect as we can," he said. "We know that potentially, it could be our last game."
Chagrin Falls spotted Woodridge the first touchdown of the game. But then the Tigers rolled up a 30-14 by the end of the first half.
Trinetti was 9-of-11 passing for 196 yards for the game. Bobby Winkelman rushed for 104 yards, while Mark Geraci added 101 yards and Trinetti had 130 and ran for four touchdowns.
In addition to passing for 196 yards, Trinetti connected on nine of 11 passes for a pair of touchdowns through the air. He also ran for four touchdowns.
"You always have to have a running game in the playoffs, but having three runners gaining more than 100 yards was huge for us," Iammarino said.
It was the second time that Chagrin Falls defeated Woodridge. The Tigers won 32-26 in week three.
Iammarino said studying recent tapes of Woodridge's playoff games helped to establish a game plan for the second time they would face the team.
"We saw that they surprised their opponents with a very good blitz," he said. "So we were able to position our quarterback with different release points, moving up and down the line, so that they wouldn't always have the same target if they blitzed."
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