Colon’s quest for back-to-back football championships was thwarted as Portland St. Patrick defeated the Magi 44-34 in Saturday’s regional championship. The 2019 Division 2 runner-up Shamrocks used a great passing game and Colon turnovers to rally, taking the lead for the first time with 2:16 remaining in the game.
Both teams started sloppy with the game’s first three drives ending in fumbles. The second Magi drive allowed Colon to strike first with a two-yard touchdown run by quarterback Simon Vinson for an early 6-0 lead. St. Patrick matched early in the second with their QB Connor Cross scoring on a five-yard run.
The Magi would take the lead into the halftime break as Brandon Crawford scored on a four-yard run with 62 seconds remaining. Vinson converted the two-point rush to put the tally at 14-6 at the intermission.
Both offenses came alive in the second as each team scored touchdowns on their first three drives, putting the score at 34-30 Colon midway into the fourth quarter. With 4:49 left, the Shamrocks finally stopped Magi from converting with a turnover on downs after they fell a yard short of moving the sticks at the Colon 37-yard line.
With 2:16 to go, Cross connected with Shane Cook on an 11-yard pass for the first St. Patrick lead of the night. The two-point try failed, putting the score at 36-34. The Magi had the ball and two timeouts with the chance to answer, but they lost a fumble on the first play of the ensuing drive.
The first play of the following Shamrock drive saw Cross take off on a 46-yard touchdown run for an eight-point lead at 1:53. The two-point toss to Braxton Teachworth gave St. Patrick a two-possession lead at 44-34. Cross intercepted Vinson shortly thereafter to seal the Shamrock victory.
Cross finished 18-26 passing for 290 yards and three touchdowns, while adding 104 rush yards and three scores on the ground. Crawford led the Magi with 242 rushing yards and three scores, plus 55 receiving yards with a TD.
Colon finishes at 7-2 with the loss and graduates an impressive group of seniors: Robert Wickey, Mason Blair, Ian Eells, Brayden Ireland, LaWayne Wickey, Brandon Crawford, Nathan Wagner, Caiden Carver, Grayson Riethmiller, Michael Barkman, Isaac Cornett, Mason Paliga, and Chris Frye.
St. Patrick moves to 9-0 and secures a fourth consecutive regional title. The Shamrocks host Kinde North Huron in next week’s Division 2 semifinal. Last season, St. Patrick defeated North Huron in the regional round.
Listen back to Saturday’s broadcast here.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final | |
| Colon | 6 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 34 |
| St. Patrick | 0 | 6 | 16 | 22 | 44 |
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
CO: 2 yard run Simon Vinson, 2PT Fail (2:40)
Second Quarter
SP: 5 yard run Connor Cross, 2PT Fail (8:44)
CO: 4 yard run Brandon Crawford, 2PT run Simon Vinson (1:02)
Third Quarter
CO: 37 yard run Brandon Crwaford, 2PT Fail (11:09)
SP: 43 yard pass Shane Cook from Connor Cross, 2PT pass to Braxton Teachworth (8:17)
CO: 20 yard pass Brandon Crawford from Simon Vinson, 2PT Fail (4:01)
SP: 20 yard pass Derec Fedewa from Connor Cross, 2PT pass to Shane Cook (0:00)
Fourth Quarter
CO: 67 yard run Brandon Crawford, 2PT run Crawford (11:42)
SP: 6 yard run Connor Cross, 2PT pass to Shane Cook (7:16)
SP: 11 yard pass Shane Cook from Connor Cross, 2PT Fail (2:16)
SP: 46 yard run Connor Cross, 2PT pass to Braxton Teachworth (1:53)
Total Yards: Colon 377, St. Patrick 449
Passing: Colon 70, St. Patrick 290
Rushing: Colon 306, St. Patrick 159
Turnovers: Colon 3, St. Patrick 2
Penalties: Colon 6-42, St. Patrick 5-47
First Downs: Colon 16, St. Patrick 20
Colon Passing: Simon Vinson 3-11, 71 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
St. Patrick Passing: Connor Cross 18-26, 290 yards, 3 TD
Colon Rushing: Brandon Crawford 242, 3 TD; Simon Vinson 71, 1 TD; Kaleb Johnson -3, Mason Blair -4
St. Patrick Rushing: Connor Cross 104, 3 TD; Derec Fedewa 46, Payton Russman 10, Team -1
Colon Receiving: Brandon Crawford 2-55, 1 TD; Nathan Wagner 1-16
St. Patrick Receiving: Shane Cook 7-118, 2 TD; Derec Fedewa 4-77, 1 TD; Braxton Teachworth 5-64, Payton Russman 2-31
Colon Defense: Ian Eells 9 tck, 1 sack; Justin Wickey 9 tck, 1 FF, 1 FR; Robert Wickey 8 tck, Caiden Carver 7 tck, 2 TFL; Kaleb Johnson 7 tck, 1 TFL, 1 FR; Brandon Crawford 6 tck, 1 sack, 2 TFL; Grayson Riethmiller 6 tck, 1 TFL, 1 sack, 1 FF; LaWayne Wickey 5 tck, Mason Paliga 1 tck, Nathan Wagner 1 tck
St. Patrick Defense: Braxton Teachworth 11 tck, Chase Fitzsimmons 10 tck, Derec Fedewa 8 tck, 2 FF; Jacobe Hayes-Dunning 8 tck; Brian Kwiecinski 7 tck, 0.5 sacks, 3.5 TFL, 1 FF; Shane Cook 4 tck, Brice Cook 3 tck, 0.5 sacks, 0.5 TFL, 2 FR; Lucas Simon 2 tck, Payton Russman 1 tck, Connor Cross 1 INT
Records: St. Patrick 9-0, Colon 7-2