By Grant Davis
Mid-Indiana Conference Manager
INDIANAPOLIS – Heritage Christian quarterback Jackson Kirtley hit all nine of his second-half passes – including two for touchdowns in a comeback third quarter – Nov. 28, leading the fifth-ranked Eagles to a 17-14 win over No. 4 Cass in the Class 2A state championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium.
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Kirtley, a 6’0”, 175-pound junior, also hit his first six passes of the game as he finished 18 of 27 for 218 yards with one interception. His main target was 6’3”, 200-pound wide receiver senior Morgan Cook, who caught seven passes for 150 yards and whose 10-yard TD reception late in the third quarter brought the Eagles (14-1) all the way back from a 7-3 halftime deficit into a commanding 17-7 lead.
Cass (13-2) fought back with a 31-yard touchdown pass from 5’11”, 187-pound junior QB Damon Foreman (5 of 15 for 82 yards but sacked four times) to 6’0”, 172-pound senior halfback Kyle Moore midway through the fourth quarter, but the ground-based Kings could not mount two late aerial-based scoring drives.
“We got beat by an outstanding football team,” said 23rd-year Cass coach Scott Mannering. “They took it to us – their defense was outstanding, they covered our pass routes, and they made up ground on our misdirection plays that weren’t that good against them.
“Everybody talks about their spread offense, but defensively they are a very good football team.”
It was the second straight championship appearance for Heritage Christian, which fell 21-6 to Fort Wayne Luers in last year’s 2A title game. Not bad for a school that’s only been playing football for seven seasons.
“To think we’re indoors, on turf, playing a state championship game is unbelievable,” said HC coach Ron Qualls. “At our place, we had a little practice patch when we started seven years ago that wasn’t wide enough to even practice on. To be standing here as champions is truly indescribable.”
The game looked bleak for Cass with 6:09 to play and the Kings trailing 17-7, but the Cass offense came to life for a late rally.
A banged-up Foreman led the Kings on an 80-yard drive in just a minute and a half to pull them within three. Foreman was 3 for 4 for 62 yards on the drive, which was capped off by the pass to Moore just over the head of the lanky Cook for the Kings’ second score of the night.
The Cass defense held the Eagles on the next possession for one last chance at a miracle ending. But the HC defense proved too much as Foreman was forced to scramble for his life on several occasions.
Cass converted on its first fourth-down play with a pass-interference call. But the drive’s second fourth-down play saw the football flutter to the Lucas Oil Stadium turf harmlessly, and the Kings’ hopes for a first state championship were over.
“Given the size Lewis Cass puts on the field – their line outweighs us 65 pounds a man – our speed had to do it for us tonight,” Qualls said. “Last year’s game was a speed game (against Fort Wayne) Luers, but Cass has size and is so physical.
“We knew we’d have to play with discipline, and that’s one thing our guys have is self-discipline. Couple that with some speed, we played pretty well.”
Heritage Christian’s defense was the difference in this game as Cass was held to a season-low 146 yards rushing and just 228 total yards. Senior Sean Ward’s 26-yard run in the first quarter would be the longest of the night, but the 5’8”, 151-pound halfback was injured on that run left the game with an apparent concussion.
Senior Colton Zeck, the Kings’ 5’9”, 167-pound tailback coming off a fantastic semistate game of four touchdowns and nearly 200 yards rushing, was limited to only 57 yards on 17 carries.
Heritage Christian took the opening drive of the game and quickly marched to the Cass 19-yard line. The Kings’ defense finally held, forcing the Eagles to settle for a 36-yard field goal and 3-0 lead.
Cass’ defense came to play as well on this night. The next three possessions by the Eagles turned into punts, and the field advantage was in the Kings’ favor most of the first half.
The Kings took full advantage of that field position for their first score, though Cass had to convert two fourth-down plays during their 38-yard drive. Five-foot-10, 158-pound senior halfback Keith Lee had an eight-yard run on 4th and 7, and Foreman sneaked for one yard on 4th and inches.
The drive was capped off by Zeck’s three-yard run, and the Kings led 7-3.
Heritage Christian’s best field position of the first half came with just a few minutes left on the clock, but 6’1”, 186-pound junior linebacker Brody Edgerly secured the first-half lead with a pick of Kirtley, his seventh interception of the season.
The opening possessions for each team told the story of the second half.
Cass mustered just four yards on three plays and had to punt. The Eagles, though, connected on a 32-yard pass from Kirtley to Cook that set up 1st and goal at the Kings’ 10. The drive was sealed with Kirtley’s eight-yard strike to 5’8”, 180-pound junior running back Austin Olvey, and the Eagles regained the lead at 10-7.
HC’s next offensive possession saw them drive 65 yards and resulted in a jump ball in the right corner of the end zone between the Cook and Edgerly. Cook won the contest with a great catch, and the cushion was what turned out to be an insurmountable 10 points for Heritage Christian.
“When we needed to stop them, they executed the two scores in the second half and those were killers,” Mannering said. “We matched one of their scores, but we couldn’t get much rhythm going.
“We thought they whipped us in the first three to four minutes in the second half. Frankly, we haven’t run into a team that has played that strong against us.”
Cass’ Tolle named Mental Attitude Award winner
Following the game, the IHSAA Executive Committee named Brady Tolle of Cass as the winner of the Phil N. Eskew Mental Attitude Award in Class 2A football. The award is presented annually to a senior participant in the state finals who was nominated by his principal and coach and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership, and athletic ability.
It is named in honor of the IHSAA’s third commissioner, who served the association from 1962-76 and who helped initiate the state tournament in 1973. Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, the IHSAA’s corporate partner, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Cass High School in Tolle’s name.
Tolle played on both sides of the line for the Kings, at guard and defensive end. Brady was named to the Mid-Indiana All-Conference team as a defensive end and led the team in sacks and tackles for loss. He is also a four-year letterwinner for the Kings’ wrestling team, for whom he was a sectional champion and semistate qualifier in the 215-pound weight class in 2008.
A member of the National Honor Society and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Tolle also works with the Special Olympics program and volunteers at the Walton Food Pantry. He was a recipient of the Mary Todd Citizenship Award and was nominated for the Young Leaders of America Award.
Academically, Tolle ranks ninth in his class with a 3.6 GPA on a 4.0 scale. The son of Mark and Tammy Tolle of Galveston is undecided on his college choice but plans to pursue a career in the medical field.
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