Dominant defense powers Solon over CPU

SOLON – There is something to be said about staying true to yourself.

And, when the foundation of four straight state championships was set in defense and special teams, those would surely come in to play when the Solon Spartans opened the postseason.

“Those are the two things that we always hung our hat here at Solon,” Solon coach Kevin Miller said. “That has allowed us to be highly successful. We don't abandon the things that made us who we are.”

The sixth-ranked Spartans dominated those two aspects, taking its first step to a fifth straight title with a 44-0 win over Center Point-Urbana Wednesday night in a Class 3A first-round playoff game at Spartan Stadium. Solon (9-1) won its eighth straight game.

Solon dominated from the opening snap, pushing the Stormin' Pointers back nine yards on its opening possession and then block a punt for a safety. They never looked back or let up.

“That was a great defensive effort,” Miller said. “We put a premium on our defense, especially this time of year.

”I believe championships are won on the defensive side of the ball.”

The Spartans were relentless on defense shutting down the CPU rushing attack, allowing just 45 yards and forcing five turnovers. CPU completed just one pass for no gain.

Actually, Solon linebacker Andy Klouda caught more CPU passes than the Stormin' Pointers. The Spartan senior picked off a pair of passes for Solon. The first set up a four-yard touchdown run by Cody Fritz, increasing Solon's lead to 16-0 with less than a minute left in the first quarter.

“Just read our keys and react,” Klouda said. “That's what we work on every week. We work on the fundamentals.

“The line did a really good job of making pressure and when the defensive backs and the linebackers are doing their job it's an all-around really good defense.”

Fritz powered Solon on the ground. He amassed 75 yards, including three touchdowns. He capped a seven-play, 56-yard drive with a 20-yard TD to make it 23-0 in the second. He added a five-yard TD run on Solon's first offensive series in the second half, which came on the heels of holding CPU on downs.

“Our line does a great job blocking and opening up holes,” Fritz said. “I can't give the line enough credit. They do everything they need to do. I wouldn't be anywhere without those guys.”

The line also provided a lane for Austin Dall's 15-yard  run for Solon's first touchdown of the game and a 9-0 lead with less than five minutes to play in the first. It also gave quarterback J.J. Hanus enough time to find Austin Holub for a 20-yard TD in the third for a 37-0 lead and a continuous clock for almost the last 19 minutes.

The Spartans defense added a fumble return by Paul Pisarik with six seconds remaining. The special teams recovered two fumbles on punt and kickoff returns in the second half.

Solon has won four straight state titles, capturing the 3A championship last year after three consecutive 2A crowns from 2007-09. The team has developed and has made strides after a lopsided loss to Class 2A defending state champion Iowa City Regina in Week 2. Miller said this is the time to play their best.

“I feel like we've been improving all season,” Fritz said. “We started peaking at the right time. We still have a lot of room to improve still, but we're definitely in the right direction.”

Center Point-Urbana (4-6) had a great run to reach the playoffs. The Stormin' Pointers won four straight games to reach the playoffs after opening the season 0-5. Brandon Roseberry finished with 35 yards to lead CPU, giving him 986 this season.

"I'm proud of the kids. We had a nice little run," CPU Coach Dan Burke said. "We kept preaching all week that we don't want to be here. We can't be happy to just be here. We have to do something when we get here. I don't think we did. Against a tough team you can't make the mistakes we did."

The Stormin' Pointers leading receiver Josh Jirak was carried off the field on a board during the opening series after landing hard trying to catch a pass. Burke said he had some neck pain and had nausea, believing he may have had a concussion.

Solon will face Union (8-2) in the second round.

TEAM STATISTICS

CP-U

Solon

First downs

2

14

Rushes-yards

29 - 45

37 - 96

Passing yards

113

Comp-Att-Int

1 - 11 - 2

9 - 17 - 2

Total yards

45

209

Fumbles-lost

6 - 3

3 - 0

Punts-average

4 - 31.3

2 - 32.0

Penalties-yards

2 - 20

4 - 30

Rushing:

 CP-U –

Brandon Roseberry 25-35 ,

Ryan Wilkin 2-24 ,

Ryan Liercke 1-0 ,

Team 1--14

 Solon –

Cody Fritz 14-75 ,

Austin Dall 3-30 ,

J.J. Hanus 3-21 ,

Jordan Wymer 1-3 ,

Tim Lance 7-2 ,

Kiefer Stone 2--1 ,

Andy Klouda 3--6 ,

Tyler Shaffer 1--6 ,

Austin Miller 3--22

Passing:

 CP-U –

Wilkin 1-11-2-0

 Solon –

Hanus 9-17-2-113

Receiving:

 CP-U –

Dustin Smith 1-0

 Solon –

Colton Dall 5-48 ,

Austin Holub 2-54 ,

Klouda 2-11

CP-U

–

Solon

16

7

14

7

–

44

SOL - Team safety, blocked punt out of end zone

SOL - A. Dall 15 run (Josh Proehl kick)

SOL - Fritz 4 run (Proehl kick)

SOL - Fritz 20 run (Proehl kick)

SOL - Fritz 5 run (Proehl kick)

SOL - Holub 16 pass from Hanus (Proehl kick)

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SOL - Paul Pisarik 3 fumble return (Proehl kick)