Ohio high school football playoffs Division III roundup: Aurora, Buckeye, Celina among winners in second round (11/03/2023)
The Ohio High School Athletic Association playoffs continued Friday night with 224 teams vying for a state championship across seven divisions, with 32 teams in each divisions broken into eight teams per region.
In Division III, the top four seeds - Ursuline, Toledo Central Catholic, Bishop Watterson, and Badin, all advanced to the next round with home wins.
Division III second round scoreboard
Second round games of note:
Aurora 30, Gilmour Academy 27
Quarterback Brandon Liepins scored on a 15-yard run and the Greenmen converted the 2-point conversion to take the lead for good with 10:27 left in the game.
Ben Lukasik scored a pair of touchdowns for Aurora, the No. 3 seed in Region 9. He scored on an 8-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and then returned a kick 85 yards for a score in the third quarter.
The win gives Aurora head coach Bob Mihalik win No. 200 for the Greenmen.
Buckeye 49, Norton 47
The Bucks, the No. 7 seed in Region 10, held on late to secure a win and a spot in the regional semifinals.
Buckeye led 49-35 heading into the fourth quarter, but Norton, the No. 2 seed in the region, scored a touchdown and missed a PAT and then scored again to pull within 49-47 but were unsuccessful on the 2-point conversion.
Norton had one final chance in the closing seconds, but. afield goal attempt went low and right to give the Bucks the win.
Celina 41, Trotwood-Madison 35
Celina, the No. 6 seed in Region 12, overcame a 35-21 deficit to win and advance to the regional semifinals.
Trailing by 14 heading into the second half, Celina scored a pair of touchdowns int he third quarter to tie the game heading into the fourth quarter.
And then with seven minutes left in the game, Trotwood-Madison lined up to punt and the snap sailed into the end zone, where it was recovered by Celina for a tocuhdown.
Division III playoff brackets:
Division III, Region 9
Division III, Region 10
Division III, Region 11
Division III, Region 12
>> Ohio high school football playoffs 2023: Division III brackets, top seeds, best matchups for second round <<
>> Ohio high school football playoffs Division III roundup: Rocky River, Buckeye, Chaminade Julienne among winners in first round (10/27/2023) <<
>> Division III playoff brackets, predictions, upset alerts <<
>> Statewide playoff brackets <<
-- Ryan Isley | ryan@scorebooklive.com | @sbliveoh
(Feature photo: Ursuline players CJ Leombruno (No. 1) and Tairan Davis, Jr. (No. 8) celebrate after a play during their first round playoff win over New Philadelphia on October 27, 2023. Photo credit: Jeff Harwell)
