Massillon Defense Stifles St. Edward, Tigers Win 15-13

After edging St. Edward (4-1) a year ago on a last-second touchdown, this time, Massillon (5-0) did it with their defense as the Tigers took down the Eagles 15-13. Senior QB DaOne Owens led the way offensively for Massillon with 176 yards rushing and two scores. Filling in for an injured Casey Bullock, Thomas Csanyi went 14-29 through the air for 153 yards and two touchdowns for the Eagles.

Defense Dominates Early

Starting on their own 21, Massillon put together a solid drive to open the game, driving deep into Eagles’ territory. On 4th and goal from the five, St. Edward’s defense stood firm and forced a turnover on downs. From then on, the teams would trade punts, leaving the score tied at 0-0 after one.

Midway through the second, DaOne Owens found Jacques Carter down the right sideline for a 70-yard touchdown, but a holding penalty called the play back. Two plays later, Behlen Waugh picked off Owens to set the Eagles up on the Tigers’ 31. On the second play from scrimmage, Csayni hooked up with Brandon White for a 31-yard score, putting St. Edward up 6-0.

On the ensuing drive, Massillon put together an eight-play, 69-yard drive capped off by an 8-yard run from Owens to put the Tigers up 7-6, a score that held until halftime. Massillon out-gained St. Edward 129-19 on the ground in the first half.

Tigers Hold On Late

After the Eagles went three-and-out to start the third, the two squads would swap turnovers, a fumble by Massillon, and an interception from St. Edward. On their second possession of the half, it only took the Tigers four plays to find the end zone when Owens called his own number and took it in for a 20-yard score. After he plowed in on the two-point attempt, Massillon took a 15-6 lead midway through the third. 

As was the case all night long, both defenses were on fire, coming up with crucial stops time after time. St. Edward would make one last push with the clock running out in the fourth.

Starting their drive near midfield, the Eagles went 44 yards in 11 plays to find the end zone, Csayni’s second passing touchdown, this time to Brian Sullivan in the corner of the end zone to make it 15-13.

St. Edward needed to recover the onside kick, but Owens came up with the loose ball, and after three kneel-downs, the Tigers held on for the 15-13 upset victory, their second in as many years over the Eagles.

Keys to the Game

Massillon only threw for 50 yards in the game, but that’s because they absolutely dominated the ground game, out-gaining St. Edward 249-59. Owens led the way with 176 yards and took advantage of his offensive line’s great play, turning small gains into bigger ones.

Facing what is regarded as one of the best offensive lines in the country, the Tigers’ defense lived in the backfield and kept QB Thomas Csyani off-balance all game long. It is worth noting that starting QB Casey Bullock missed the game with an injury he suffered in last week’s contest. Not taking away from the Massillon performance, but missing a key player like Bullock would hurt any team in the state.

Next Week

The loss is St. Edward’s first of the season, and they’ll look to get back in the win column next Saturday when they host River Rouge (MI), who is looking for their first win.

Sure to rise in everyone’s upcoming Week 6 rankings, Massillon will look to continue their winning ways next Friday when they host unbeaten Middletown (DE).

Top Performers

St. Edward Eagles

Thomas Csyani: 14-29 153 yards 2 TD 1 INT

Brian Sullivan: 5 catches 58 yards 1 TD

Kyan Mason: 6 catches 54 yards

Brandon White: 13 carries 40 yards

Massillon Tigers

DaOne Owens: 8-11 50 yards 1 INT    26 carries 176 yards 2 TD

Kyler Wiggins: 5 carries 40 yards

Braylyn Toles: 5 catches 30 yards

Dorian Pringle: 10 tackles 3.5 TFL 2 sacks

Scoring Summary

2nd Quarter

St. Edward 5:33- Thomas Csyani to Brandon White, 31 yards (kick blocked)

Massillon 3:05- DaOne Owens, 8-yard run (kick good)

3rd Quarter

Massillon 6:03- DaOne Owens, 20-yard run (Owens 2pt. good)

4th Quarter

St. Edward 1:10- Thomas Csyani to Brian Sullivan, 7 yards (kick good)