CANTON, Ohio — The only thing that surprised Cleveland St. Ignatius coach Chuck Kyle about a record 11th Division I state championship was the ease with which the Wildcats bolted to a lead.

The opportunistic Wildcats (13-2) once again converted turnovers into points as Eric Williams passed for 297 yards and two touchdowns in a 34-13 win over Pickerington Central on Saturday night.

"We came off the field and there's cameras and reporters asking about the 11th, the 11th, the 11th," Kyle said. "I don't think that way. For me, this is one.

"We surprised ourselves a little with 20 points right away. We thought we would have to claw our way, we've being doing that a lot lately, so being up 20-0 we were excited.

"Then they totally took the momentum in the second quarter."

Quarterback Nic JensenClagg threw a 15-yard TD pass to Roger Lewis and just 1:47 later, hooked up with Sabastian Smith on a 75-yard score to make it 20-13 in favor of the Wildcats.

One week after advancing past Toledo Whitmer 17-6 with the help of five turnovers, the Wildcats scooped up two fumbles and intercepted a pass to beat the Tigers (11-3) for their first title since 2008.

"We didn't take care of the ball when we needed to," Tigers coach Jay Sharrett said. "We needed to play a near-perfect game against them."

St. Ignatius players, after missing the playoffs in 2010 for the first time in 23 years, had vowed early in the season to restore team tradition.

"We wanted to win No. 11 in 2011," senior safety Mike Svetina said. "Everybody was disappointed last year and we figured out we had to do everything we could to get back."

All-state placekicker Tim Shenk certainly did his part, converting on field goals of 31 and 43 yards in the first quarter. Running back Tim McVey contributed 107 yards on the ground, including TDs of 8 and 1 yard.

"Timmy is a tough kid," Kyle said. "He's a throwback. He's got the speed to break one, but doesn't mind putting his head down and running over somebody."

McVey's second score, midway through the third quarter, put the Wildcats up 27-13.

"We got the turnover and put it in," Kyle said. "That was huge."

Meanwhile, the Tigers couldn't get any pressure on Williams, who sat in the pocket and hit key passes to keep the Wildcats in control.

"You give him four or five seconds in the pocket, he's going to find a receiver," Sharrett said. "They've got playmakers, but their line lets them make plays.

"We're proud to have been here after starting the year 0-2. It was a rough loss, but a good season.

"Who knows, maybe we'll meet again someday."

Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

Three schools from Northeast Ohio are still alive in the OHSAA Playoffs and this weekend they will play for the state championship in their own respective divisions. On Dec. 2 and 3 Massillon’s Paul Brown Tiger Stadium and Canton’s Fawcett Stadium will host state title games in Divisions I, II, III, IV, V and VI.

The local teams still in the hunt for a State Championship are St. Ignatius in Division I, Avon in Division II and Kirtland in Division V. The Wildcats, Eagles and Hornets have all won four games in the OHSAA Playoffs to reach this point and now look to bring back state titles to Northeast Ohio with one more victory.

St. Ignatius will play Saturday night at Fawcett Stadium with kickoff set for 7:00 pm. The Wildcats will battle Pickerington Central for the Division I state crown. Avon takes the field Friday night at 7:00 pm at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. The Eagles take on Trotwood-Madison for the Division II championship. Kirtland will also play at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium in Massillon at 11:00 am on Friday. The Hornets battle Coldwater in the Division V title game.

Let’s take a closer look at the three schools representing Northeast Ohio on State Championship weekend in Stark County.

Division I           

School: St. Ignatius High School

Nickname: Wildcats

Coach: Chuck Kyle

Record: 12-2

Opponent: Pickerington Central (11-2)

How they got here: St. Ignatius earned the second-seed in Division I Region I after an 8-2 regular season, which saw them lose to Cincinnati St. Xavier and Mentor. However, as the season wore on the Wildcats seemed to get better and better. In Week 10 St. Ignatius edged out longtime rival St. Edward in the “Holy War” 20-17, locking up a first round home game for the postseason. The Wildcats defeated Youngstown Boardman 29-14 at Byers Field in the first round and followed that up with a 20-17 win over St. Edward again, this time in the Regional Semifinal at Brunswick’s Judy Kirsch Field. Head coach Chuck Kyle’s squad then throttled top-seeded Mentor 23-17 at Lakewood Stadium and last week in the State Semifinals blasted undefeated Toledo Whitmer 17-6 in Mansfield.

Outlook: Chuck Kyle is looking for State Title No. 11 and he may just get it. Defensively the Wildcats tackle well and are a fundamentally sound group that has improved each passing week. On the offensive side of the football it starts with quarterback Eric Williams and running back Tim McVey. Both seniors can move the chains consistently behind a veteran-laden offensive line.

Division II       

School: Avon High School

Nickname: Eagles Coach: Mike Elder

Record: 13-1

Opponent: Trotwood-Madison (14-0)

How they got here: For the second-straight season Avon earned the top seed in Division II Region VI, however unlike last season they were not ready for an early exit. After a Week 10 loss to Lake Catholic, the Eagles flipped the switch and began playing their best football of the season. In the first round of the OHSAA Playoffs Avon dismantled Medina Highland 45-24 and followed that win up with an impressive 49-28 comeback victory against Toledo Central Catholic in the Regional Semifinals. In the Region VI final the Eagles ended the ‘Cinderella’ run for seventh-seeded Columbian Tiffin 35-21 and last week handed Aurora a 43-20 loss in the State Semifinals at Byers Field.

Outlook: In order to win the Division II State Championship the Eagles have to knock off undefeated Trotwood-Madison, who makes their third-straight Division II title game appearance. Senior quarterback Justin O’Rourke has a plethora of wide receivers he spreads the ball out to and the minute opposing defenses cheat up to defend the pass, it’s running back Ross Douglas who can move the ball on the ground behind a veteran-laden offensive line. Defensively Avon flies to the football and are a fundamentally sound unit.

Division V       

School: Kirtland High School

Nickname: Hornets

Coach: Tiger LaVerde

Record: 14-0

Opponent: Coldwater (11-3)

How they got here: Among all of the schools qualifying for the OHSAA Playoffs in Northeast Ohio, no schools has been as dominant as Kirtland this November. The Hornets earned the top-seed in Division V Region XVII after going undefeated in the regular season. In the opening round of the postseason Kirtland throttled Columbiana 49-8, followed by an even more impressive victory in the Regional Semifinal; a 52-7 win over Sugarcreek Garaway. The next two weeks did not pose a threat either as the Hornets rocked Crestview 35-7 in the Regional Final, followed by a 42-0 win over Bucyrus Wynford in the State Semifinals.

Outlook: The Hornets are big in the trenches on both sides of the football and rarely make mistakes. Quarterback Christian Hauber is a dual-threat to both pass and run the football, while running back Damon Washington is one of the best playmakers in the state of Ohio regardless of the division. Both Hauber and Washington play defense too as you typically see with smaller schools and help lead a defensive unit that is only allowing 6.5 points per game. The Cavaliers of Coldwater seem to be in the state title game each year, so how the Hornets respond to playing in the State Championship where they have never been at 11:00 am in the morning is a big question mark.