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Cincinnati Round-Up: Moeller, Kings advance

The stakes reached the highest point of the season on the high school gridiron across the Buckeye State and regional finals unfolded. The action didn’t disappoint.

DIVISION I, REGION 4

#1 MOELLER 38, #3 LAKOTA WEST 20

Moeller finished their year atop the AP Ohio Division I state rankings and they looked the part Friday as they claimed the Region 4 title in convincing fashion over Lakota West.

The Crusaders took control of the contest with a 17-point second quarter and led 24-13 at the half, before pulling away late.

Jordan Marshall paced a ground attack that overwhelmed the Firebirds’ defense most of the night. Moeller finished with 343 yards rushing on a whopping 52 carries. Marshall finished the night with 165 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 16 carries. However, he sat out the second half after sustaining an undisclosed injury. Alec Weeder filled in nicely with 17 rushes for 112 yards and a touchdown of his own in the win.

Mitch Bolden wrapped up a stellar career by throwing for 209 yards and two scores and rushing for 100 yards and another TD on 21 carries.

Moeller moves on to face Springfield next Friday night at Piqua with a trip to Canton in the OHSAA Division I title game on the line.

DIVISION II, REGION 8

#4 KINGS 46, #10 ANDERSON 42

For the first time in school history Kings are regional champions. They earned the honor with a thrilling win over their ECC rivals, Anderson, in impressive fashion.

Things were crazy right out the gate as the two teams combined for 35 points in the first quarter alone. Anderson took a 7-0 lead on the opening drive, a 34-yard TD pass from Griffin Scalf to Brodey Berg.

Kings answered right back though by following it up with a huge kick return and then a 47-yard TD pass from Will Kocher to Michael Mussari less than thirty seconds later. They went for two and converted to take the lead 8-7 and the Knights never trailed again.

Will Kocher threw for three touchdowns and ran for three more to lead the way for the Knights. The Raptors made things interesting throughout, including outsourcing Kings 14-0 in the fourth quarter, but the Knights were simply too much.

Kings will now face off next Friday against Toledo Catholic in a Division II OHSAA state semifinal matchup at Wapokenta High School.

DIVISION III, REGION 12

#3 TIPPECANOE 20, #1 BADIN 17

The Rams suffered their first loss of the season in a nail biter. Jackson Kleather nailed a 23-yard field with just over three minutes left to lift Tippecanoe to the Region 12 title.

Badin didn’t go down without a fight. Running back Cater Russo had a big night, rushing for 140 yards and a touchdown on 32 carries. Alex Ritzie completed 27-of-37 passes for 282 yards and a touchdown. Braedyn Moore led all receivers with 125 yards on 13 catches.

The Devils got outgained by 130 yards and had the ball nearly 15 minutes less than the Rams, but they won the turnover battle behind a pair of interceptions from Carson Robbins and it proved to be enough to end Badin’s magical season.

Get the complete scores from all of tonight’s action on the Underground Sports Shop Scoreboard at TriStateFootball.com/scores.

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