Announcement
In the first round of the playoffs it was another thriller between the Canton Lions and Plymouth Canton Steelers. The two teams tied 0-0 in the last game of the regular season. The Canton Lions prevailed 22-16 in a nail biter this week. The Lions jumped ahead 14-0 with two touchdowns by Kevin Buford and an extra point kick by Ian Green. The Steelers changed momentum near the end of the half by scoring on a 22 yard touchdown pass with 12 seconds left in the half, making the score 14-8. The Steelers opened the second half by recovering an on side kick and scoring a few plays later. The extra point kick gave the Steelers a 16-14 lead. Defense then took over for both teams and neither team could move the ball. Midway through the fourth quarter the Lions forced a Steelers punt. Buford caught the ball on one bounce and raced to the Steelers 20 yard line. Clay Behrman then did most of the damage before taking the ball over from the one. Green again added an extra point giving the Lions the lead 22-16. The excitement wasn't over yet. The Steelers received the kickoff and marched to the Lions 15 yard line before turning it over on downs. The Lions then tried to run out the clock but was unsuccessful, forcing them to punt. The Steelers blocked the punt and took over possession on the Lions 25 yard line. On 4th down and 15, Marcus Houston intercepted a pass to seal the victory for the Lions. The Lions received strong play from Kyle Dexter, William Askew, DJ McMillian and Josh Peterson. The Lions (7-1-1) will now play the Dearborn Heights Redskins (9-0) in the Super Bowl, who beat the Lions earlier in the year, 13-12.
The Canton Lions JV Squad blasted its way into the Super bowl by defeating the Lakes Area Hawks in a "shoot-out" (54-40). Offensively, a single game touchdown record was set by Malcolm Hollingsworth scoring (7) rushing touchdowns. In addition, Jamal Eiland scored (1) touchdown on an (18) yard run. Lucas Bunting added two successful PAT kicks, and Jamal Eiland connected with Scott Gring in the air on two extra point conversions. Other offensive contributors were Dillion Farmer, Benjamin Slater, Travis McCall, Andrew Hunt, Alex Smith, Michael San Millian, Samuel Woods, Dean Underwood, and Chandler Burgos. Defensive efforts were led by Luke Denzer (two PAT kick blocks), Nathan Emminger, Collin Hall, Kyle Durham, Tyler Langer, Daniel Tidwell, Daniel Jipping, Evan Thomas, Westen Price, and Tyler Searls.
The Lions Freshmen team ended their season with a tough 13-6 loss to the Ypsilanti Braves. The Lions were able to rebound from a 13-0 deficit to cut the lead in half late in the third quarter behind strong running from Daniel Kilgore, Allante' Wheeler, and Chuckie Turfe. The Lions defense held strong for the last two quarters due to the excellent play from Shane Raymond, Jake Stropes, Forrest Hall, Dante' Pruitt, and Austin Fisher. A frantic last second pass to the end zone fell incomplete ending another successful campaign for the Freshmen team.
