St. Paul rolls to first shutout win of Eagles in 43 years

NORWALK

St. Paul senior fullback Isaac Livengood took a few last mud-soaked steps and looked around Warren Whitney Field one final time Saturday night after the Flyers 35-0 win over rival Monroeville.

Livengood and the Flyers came up just short of the program’s 14th playoff appearance. However, he helped keep another tradition intact after rushing for 148 yards and four touchdowns on 28 attempts to move over the 1,000-yard mark for the season.

Unofficially with 1,039 yards, Livengood assures the Flyers a 1,000-yard rusher for the 16th time in the previous 20 seasons.

St. Paul finishes the season 6-4 overall and 5-2 in the Firelands Conference while Monroeville closes at 2-8, 1-6. It is just the third time in 13 seasons the Flyers have missed the playoffs, finishing ninth in their region each time.

The win gives St. Paul a 30-21-1 lead in the series over it's Route 20 rivals to the west, including 11 straight wins at home in the series since 1993. The game also marks the first shutout in the series since Monroeville's 34-0 win in 1987, while it is the first shutout in St. Paul's favor since a 14-0 win in 1968.

“This senior class left their mark with their work ethic and how hard they played week in and week out,” St. Paul coach John Livengood said. “They were all leaders. What I’ll take away from this season is, I’ve been around these guys since they were real young and it’s a little more emotional ... these guys ‘get’ St. Paul football.”

Isaac Livengood opened the scoring on St. Paul’s first possession, scoring on a 10-yard run with 7:08 left in the first quarter to cap an 8-play, 62-yard scoring drive. Scottie Slauterbeck added the first of four PATs for a 7-0 lead.

After the defense forced a three-and-out, the Flyers took over at their 45 and scored in six plays as Livengood scored on an 8-yard TD run on a fourth-and-3 with 3:35 left in the opening quarter. The PAT attempt was no good for a 13-0 lead.

After Monroeville coach Dan Periat gambled and went for it on fourth-and-2 from the Eagles 13 and came up short, Livengood scored three plays later on a 5-yard TD run with 5:11 left in the half. Quarterback Danny Ross hooked up with Shawn Dankleson for the 2-point conversion and a 21-0 lead.

The Flyers added one last score just before halftime, as Livengood bulled across from three yards out with 25 seconds left in the half to cap a 12-play, 59-yard scoring drive for a 28-0 halftime lead.

St. Paul’s final score came on the opening possession of the second half as Alaric Newcomer capped a 12-play, 60-yard drive with a 2-yard TD run with 6:35 left in the third quarter that made it 35-0.

Meanwhile, it was a struggle all night for the Eagles, who finished with 81 yards of offense, including just 22 yards rushing on 19 attempts.

Meanwhile, Livengood talked about the season as a whole as the Flyers came up just short in losses to Western Reserve (7-3) and Crestview (10-0) that kept them out of the playoffs.

“I think as the season wore on we got a little healthier and got some younger kids some experience,” he said. “We played well all season. We wish we had a few things back, but I’m not disappointed in the way we played all season long. We had a little adversity to deal with, but the kids kept fighting.

“If the kids play as hard as they can, that’s all a coach can ask for.”

For St. Paul, Newcomer added 135 yards on 26 attempts while Ross was 8 of 13 passing for 113 yards, all of which came in the first half. Dankleson caught five passes for 79 yards and Joseph Hinckley added three catches for 34 yards.

For Monroeville, Ott was 11 of 20 passing for 61 yards with Austin Kramer catching four passes for 23 yards. Ricky Heck added 26 yards rushing on nine attempts.

Monroeville 0 0 0 0 — 0

St. Paul 13 15 7 0 — 35

First quarter

STP — Isaac Livengood 10 run (Scottie Slauterbeck kick)

STP — Livengood 8 run (kick failed)

Second quarter

STP — Livengood 5 run (Danny Ross to Shawn Dankleson)

STP — Livengood 3 run (Slauterbeck kick)

Third quarter

STP — Alaric Newcomer 2 run (Slauterbeck kick)

M STP

First downs 7 21

Rushes-yards 19-22 58-288

Passing yards 61 113

Att-comp-int 20-11-0 13-8-0

Penalties-yards 4-30 10-90

Fumbles-lost 1-0 1-0

Individual statistics

RUSHING — (M): Ricky Heck 9-26, Levi Anderson 4-(-1), Mitchell Ott 1-1; (STP): Isaac Livengood 29-148, Alaric Newcomer 26-135, Danny Ross 1-1, Devin Smith 2-8.

PASSING — (M): Mitchell Ott 11-20-61-0-0; (STP): Danny Ross 8-13-113-0-0

RECEIVING — (M): Austin Kramer 4-23, Colton Ott 2-17, Andrew Haughawout 1-10; (STP): Shawn Dankleson 5-79, Joseph Hinckley 3-34.