FeedsSpartans upset Chiefs in regional finale game
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Canton senior running back Kiere Daniels (2) tries to get by Stevenson's Kyle Hobbins (51) during a 38-31 loss to the Spartans in a Division 1 regional final at Canton on Friday night.Canton was a part of one of the biggest upsets in high school football this season.
Unfortunately for the Chiefs, it didn’t belong to them.
The Chiefs were ready to book the buses for a trip to Spartan Stadium at Michigan State University when they led visiting Livonia Stevenson by two touchdowns with less than eight minutes left in a Division 1 regional championship on Friday night.
But it was like someone let the air out of the tires and left the
Chiefs stranded in Canton Township.
The Spartans stormed back with three unanswered tallies for a 38-31 victory and took Canton’s spot in the state semifinal bout in East Lansing on Saturday.
“It’s a game we lost,” said Canton Coach Tim Baechler. “There’s no question about it. We didn’t get beat tonight—we lost it through all of our mistakes.”
Canton took a 31-17 lead on a five-yard run by junior halfback Ron Gaudi—his fourth touchdown of the night—with 7:53 left to play before the unthinkable happened.
Stevenson senior quarterback Jacob Gudeman connected with senior running back Wade Stahl for a 26-yard score to cut into the lead, 31-24, with 6:07 left.
Three minutes later Stevenson senior defensive back Zeb Bacigal scooped up a rare Canton fumble and returned it 30 yards for a score, knotting the game at 31, with 3:17 left to play.
Canton went three and out on its next possession, handing the ball over to Stevenson with 2:19 left. Two plays later junior running back Austin White capped off the scoring with a six-yard run and 1:41 left to play.
“We were in total control,” Baechler said. “They never stopped us until we had to throw. Our turnovers killed us—especially the one they returned for a touchdown. Our kickoff team was terrible and our kickoff coverage was terrible. We have to work on that in the off season to get better.”
Gaudi was the bright spot for Canton. He rushed for 166 yards on 17 carries and scored every Canton touchdown. On top of his fourth quarter touchdown, he scored on a two-yard plunge for the only tally in the first quarter and a one-yard push to make it a 14-0 game six seconds into the second quarter. And he added another one-yarder with 2:12 left in the third to make it a 24-17 game.
“Gaudi needed that for his confidence,” Baechler said. “He had some injury problems and he came back strong and finally got his quickness back.”
Dan Stoney was a perfect 4-for-4 on extra point attempts and he booted a 24-yard field goal at 3:46 of the second to make it a 17-3 game.
Senior running back Kiere Daniels added 97 yards on the ground for Canton.
All in all, it was a good year for the offensively young Chiefs.
“I’m so proud of our seniors,” Baechler said. “They led the way all season, all summer. They were not happy with a 5-4 season the year before and we were so young on offense we over achieved a little bit this year. I’m very, very proud of these guys.”
Teams will have to watch out for Canton next year as they return eight players to the offense—five linemen—and practically their entire backfield.
“We’re very excited for next year,” Baechler said.
