The Kirtland Hornets Football team wasted no time showing that the defending Division VI state champion is ready for another run.
The Hornets scored four touchdowns in the opening quarter, built a 44-point halftime lead, and overwhelmed Cincinnati Taft on both sides of the football in a 51-6 season-opening victory Saturday at Ridgewood High School in West Lafayette.
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Kirtland rushed for 250 yards, completed all four of its passes and held Taft to minus-3 rushing yards. The Hornets finished with a 320-53 advantage in total offense and a 17-3 edge in first downs.
“We took care of business from the first snap to the last,” said Kirtland senior Lucci Cantini. “It showed how important the weight room is.”
Zander Perko ignited the rout by scoring on runs of 4 and 3 yards. He needed only six carries to accumulate a game-high 98 rushing yards and also caught a 12-yard pass.
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“I think we were able to have so much success early because we came out with a lot of energy and executed what we practiced all week,” Perko said. “The offensive line blocked really well, and we were able to take advantage of the opportunities we had.”
Tommy Caimi added a 1-yard touchdown run before Ben Loncar connected with Mario Lorber for a 3-yard score that extended Kirtland’s lead to 27-0 before the end of the first quarter.
“It was really important for us to establish our physical style right away,” Perko said. “We wanted to set the tone from the first snap and play aggressively. We had been waiting all summer for this, and we came out with a lot of Week 1 energy.”
The Hornets never allowed Taft an opportunity to recover.
Caimi scored his second touchdown on a 4-yard run early in the second quarter. Matt Rus then broke loose for a 60-yard touchdown, and Marko Valentic closed the half with a 22-yard field goal that sent Kirtland into the break with a 44-0 advantage.
Rus finished with 75 yards on three carries, while Caimi rushed for 28 yards and two touchdowns on five attempts. Caimi also returned two punts for 52 yards.
“The offensive line did a great job opening holes and getting to the second level,” Perko said. “The other guys also did their jobs blocking downfield and opening gaps, which gave me the space I needed to make plays.”
Cantini, a four-year starter who plays on the offensive line and at middle linebacker, helped the Hornets control the line of scrimmage throughout the night. Kirtland averaged 8.6 yards per rushing attempt, while Taft averaged minus-0.2 yards on its 20 carries.
Cantini also recorded one of Kirtland’s two sacks.
“My main goal is to remind the other guys, ‘Next play,’” Cantini said. “You can’t control the past, but the future matters, so that next-play mindset is everything.”
Kirtland’s defensive front consistently disrupted Taft’s offense and forced its quarterback into difficult situations. The Senators completed only one of nine passes and threw two interceptions. That lone completion accounted for their only touchdown, a 56-yard pass in the third quarter after the Hornets had built a 51-0 lead.
“The offensive line obviously impressed me a lot tonight,” Lorber said. “They were crisp and made very few mistakes. I also thought the defensive line was great. They stuffed almost every running play and forced the quarterback to make difficult throws.”
Lorber made an impact on both sides of the ball. In addition to his touchdown reception, he intercepted a Taft pass and returned it 58 yards.
“We didn’t watch much film on Taft, but I’m pretty familiar with route combinations,” Lorber said. “I was covering the outside receiver, and when I saw him and the middle receiver break inside, I assumed No. 3 would come back outside. He ended up running a wheel route, and thanks to our defensive line getting home, it wasn’t a great ball. I was able to jump it and return it for a big gain.”
Jacob Brandal also intercepted a pass and returned it 16 yards, while Carter Luzar joined Cantini in recording a sack. Taft committed four fumbles and lost one, giving Kirtland three takeaways.
“Our grit on defense is something we always take pride in,” Lorber said. “We have a fantastic offensive line, and those same guys play the same way on the defensive line. That gave us opportunities in coverage because we knew the defensive line and linebackers would stop the run.”
Kirtland added its final touchdown in the third quarter when Griffin Gabriel completed a 40-yard pass to Rylan Martinez. Gabriel and Loncar combined to finish 4-of-4 passing for 70 yards and two touchdowns.
Valentic converted all six of his extra-point attempts in addition to his field goal.
Lorber enjoyed having the opportunity to contribute offensively and defensively.
“We ran a short goal-line fade, which is one of my favorite routes,” Lorber said of his touchdown. “All I have to do is shake the defender, and I’ll be open. It’s great contributing on both sides of the ball. It gives me a lot more responsibility, but it’s amazing playing both ways.”
The decisive opening victory provided an early glimpse of Kirtland’s potential, but Perko knows the Hornets still have plenty of work ahead of them.
“I think this performance shows that we have a lot of potential and are ready to compete at a high level,” Perko said. “We know we have high expectations, but we also know we have to keep working and improving every week. Our goal is the same every year: We want to win it all.”
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Football Stat Leaders
2026-2027Fantasy Points
FP
Tommy CaimiKirtland279.6
JJ DufourEdgewood251.7
Charlie MallettHawken235.2
Wyant DobranConneaut230.7
Luke JensenWilloughby South226.7
Oliver MillerBerkshire207.9
Nico MorelliUniversity203.1
Bo BrandehoffRiverside199.1Tanner BrandtHawken191.4Josh JensenWilloughby South184.8Complete Leaders
Rank Player School FP PASS RUSH REC 1 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 279.6 0 1,162 314 2 JJ Dufour Edgewood 251.7 2,220 709 0 3 Charlie Mallett Hawken 235.2 127 279 1,002 4 Wyant Dobran Conneaut 230.7 1,526 557 0 5 Luke Jensen Willoughby South 226.7 2,309 243 0 6 Oliver Miller Berkshire 207.9 1,290 383 0 7 Nico Morelli University 203.1 1,511 427 0 8 Bo Brandehoff Riverside 199.1 1,655 345 4 9 Tanner Brandt Hawken 191.4 2,194 36 0 10 Josh Jensen Willoughby South 184.8 33 24 931 Passing
YDSLuke JensenWilloughby South2,309JJ DufourEdgewood2,220Tanner BrandtHawken2,194
Jj MurphyLakeside1,956Bo BrandehoffRiverside1,655
Jordan UriaBeachwood1,624Wyant DobranConneaut1,526Nico MorelliUniversity1,511Oliver MillerBerkshire1,290
Dario DagostinoMayfield1,257Complete Leaders
Rank Player School CMP ATT PCT YDS Y/G TD INT LONG QB RTG 1 Luke Jensen Willoughby South 125 188 66.5% 2,309 263.0 26 3 84 148.2 2 JJ Dufour Edgewood 166 245 67.8% 2,220 232.0 21 8 64 113.6 3 Tanner Brandt Hawken 184 292 63.0% 2,194 199.5 29 8 86 107.6 4 Jj Murphy Lakeside 135 253 53.4% 1,956 213.3 14 13 88 90.2 5 Bo Brandehoff Riverside 127 217 58.5% 1,655 152.7 18 8 45 95.9 6 Jordan Uria Beachwood 107 221 48.4% 1,624 162.4 16 16 74 67.0 7 Wyant Dobran Conneaut 103 174 59.2% 1,526 0.0 21 12 0 97.2 8 Nico Morelli University 102 165 61.8% 1,511 167.9 15 4 84 112.0 9 Oliver Miller Berkshire 78 137 56.9% 1,290 143.3 16 6 70 109.4 10 Dario Dagostino Mayfield 77 115 67.0% 1,257 179.6 17 5 62 124.9 Rushing
YDS
Will HammKenston1,246Tommy CaimiKirtland1,162
Nick HessCrestwood1,072Masceo BolesLakeside1,046Michael KalistaCrestwood872Asher WilminkUniversity871Dominic BottiggiRiverside834Chris MoryCrestwood806
King MatticeNorth791
Kameran AustinHarvey761Complete Leaders
Rank Player School ATT YDS AVG Y/G LONG TD 1 Will Hamm Kenston 231 1,246 5.4 124.6 61 7 2 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 103 1,162 8.1 97.5 6 18 3 Nick Hess Crestwood 133 1,072 11.0 91.3 63 10 4 Masceo Boles Lakeside 175 1,046 6.3 113.9 80 6 5 Michael Kalista Crestwood 132 872 7.5 82.3 79 9 6 Asher Wilmink University 128 871 6.8 96.8 51 7 7 Dominic Bottiggi Riverside 132 834 6.5 78.7 75 7 8 Chris Mory Crestwood 98 806 5.7 57.0 23 7 9 King Mattice North 112 791 7.1 0.0 0 5 10 Kameran Austin Harvey 96 761 8.7 90.9 0 7 Receiving
YDSCharlie MallettHawken1,002Josh JensenWilloughby South931Dae'Veon GainesLakeside864Tylar RobinsonUniversity826De'Andre SimsBeachwood732Willie GuytonEdgewood677
Logan BerwaldMentor661Jaxon MooreRiverside640Kahlil HintonKenston570Dasen MarkerBerkshire511Complete Leaders
Rank Player School REC YDS AVG Y/G LONG TD 1 Charlie Mallett Hawken 79 1,002 12.7 91.1 74 11 2 Josh Jensen Willoughby South 39 931 23.9 93.1 81 13 3 Dae'Veon Gaines Lakeside 39 864 22.2 123.4 88 6 4 Tylar Robinson University 45 826 18.4 91.8 69 9 5 De'Andre Sims Beachwood 42 732 17.4 73.2 74 8 6 Willie Guyton Edgewood 53 677 12.8 71.3 41 6 7 Logan Berwald Mentor 38 661 17.4 73.4 80 5 8 Jaxon Moore Riverside 38 640 16.8 69.3 71 7 9 Kahlil Hinton Kenston 26 570 21.9 57.0 79 6 10 Dasen Marker Berkshire 33 511 15.5 56.8 60 5 All-Purpose Yards
TOTALTommy CaimiKirtland1,607Charlie MallettHawken1,353Will HammKenston1,276Masceo BolesLakeside1,269Nick HessCrestwood1,241Chris MoryCrestwood1,170Asher WilminkUniversity1,118Dae'Veon GainesLakeside1,006Jaxon MooreRiverside973Tylar RobinsonUniversity964Complete Leaders
Rank Player School RUSH REC KR PR IR TOTAL Y/G 1 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 1,162 314 102 29 0 1,607 401.8 2 Charlie Mallett Hawken 279 1,002 48 24 0 1,353 123.0 3 Will Hamm Kenston 1,246 30 0 0 0 1,276 127.6 4 Masceo Boles Lakeside 1,046 223 0 0 0 1,269 126.9 5 Nick Hess Crestwood 1,072 39 130 0 0 1,241 177.3 6 Chris Mory Crestwood 806 134 170 60 0 1,170 195.0 7 Asher Wilmink University 871 247 0 0 0 1,118 124.2 8 Dae'Veon Gaines Lakeside 142 864 0 0 0 1,006 143.7 9 Jaxon Moore Riverside 333 640 0 0 0 973 97.3 10 Tylar Robinson University 138 826 0 0 0 964 107.1 Total Yards
TOTALJJ DufourEdgewood2,929Luke JensenWilloughby South2,552Tanner BrandtHawken2,230Wyant DobranConneaut2,083Jj MurphyLakeside2,007Bo BrandehoffRiverside2,004Nico MorelliUniversity1,938Oliver MillerBerkshire1,673Jordan UriaBeachwood1,636Tommy CaimiKirtland1,476Complete Leaders
Rank Player School RUSH PASS REC TOTAL Y/G 1 JJ Dufour Edgewood 709 2,220 0 2,929 297.3 2 Luke Jensen Willoughby South 243 2,309 0 2,552 1,174.0 3 Tanner Brandt Hawken 36 2,194 0 2,230 202.7 4 Wyant Dobran Conneaut 557 1,526 0 2,083 0.0 5 Jj Murphy Lakeside 51 1,956 0 2,007 219.6 6 Bo Brandehoff Riverside 345 1,655 4 2,004 185.3 7 Nico Morelli University 427 1,511 0 1,938 215.3 8 Oliver Miller Berkshire 383 1,290 0 1,673 185.9 9 Jordan Uria Beachwood 12 1,624 0 1,636 163.3 10 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 1,162 0 314 1,476 369.0 Scoring
PTSTommy CaimiKirtland148
Gavin MayfieldMadison96
Ivan ChuhaChardon96Josh FenickNorth86Josh JensenWilloughby South84King MatticeNorth84Zander PerkoKirtland68Marko ValenticKirtland64De'Andre SimsBeachwood60Nick HessCrestwood60Complete Leaders
Rank Player School TD 2-PT PTS KICK PTS PTS PPG 1 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 15 0 0 148 37.0 2 Gavin Mayfield Madison 0 0 0 96 48.0 2 Ivan Chuha Chardon 0 0 0 96 0.0 4 Josh Fenick North 13 0 0 86 0.0 5 Josh Jensen Willoughby South 4 0 0 84 8.4 5 King Mattice North 14 0 0 84 0.0 7 Zander Perko Kirtland 6 0 0 68 68.0 8 Marko Valentic Kirtland 6 0 64 64 16.0 9 De'Andre Sims Beachwood 0 0 0 60 6.0 9 Nick Hess Crestwood 0 0 0 60 8.6 Tackles
TOTALChris MoryCrestwood120.0James LancasterCrestwood90.0Scotty BalashWilloughby South78.0Michael KalistaCrestwood77.0Trent ChmuraWilloughby South76.0Drew PlatzChardon67.0Miles HamiltonHawken66.0Ivan ChuhaChardon59.0Thomas JonesWilloughby South59.0Alexavier CalogarRiverside54.0Complete Leaders
Rank Player School SOLO AST TOTAL TFL SACK 1 Chris Mory Crestwood 0.0 0.0 120.0 1.0 1.0 2 James Lancaster Crestwood 0.0 0.0 90.0 4.0 0.0 3 Scotty Balash Willoughby South 30.0 41.0 78.0 7.5 3.0 4 Michael Kalista Crestwood 0.0 0.0 77.0 4.0 0.0 5 Trent Chmura Willoughby South 39.0 32.0 76.0 6.5 4.0 6 Drew Platz Chardon 0.0 0.0 67.0 4.0 0.5 7 Miles Hamilton Hawken 8.0 5.0 66.0 0.0 1.0 8 Ivan Chuha Chardon 0.0 0.0 59.0 3.0 0.5 8 Thomas Jones Willoughby South 19.0 34.0 59.0 1.5 4.0 10 Alexavier Calogar Riverside 0.0 0.0 54.0 9.0 0.0 Sacks
SACKJohn MurphyNorth7.0Damarhi MorganWilloughby South6.0
Jackson ScarcellaIndependence5.0Josh FenickNorth5.0Nico MorelliUniversity5.0Ryan SuhyIndependence5.0Tylar RobinsonUniversity5.0Cortezes Dimming IIINorth4.0Thomas JonesWilloughby South4.0Trent ChmuraWilloughby South4.0Complete Leaders
Rank Player School SACK YDL HUR TACK TFL 1 John Murphy North 7.0 0.0 0.0 11.0 20.0 2 Damarhi Morgan Willoughby South 6.0 0.0 5.0 49.0 4.0 3 Jackson Scarcella Independence 5.0 5.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 3 Josh Fenick North 5.0 0.0 0.0 10.0 10.0 3 Nico Morelli University 5.0 30.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 3 Ryan Suhy Independence 5.0 110.0 44.2 9.0 0.0 3 Tylar Robinson University 5.0 30.0 0.0 4.0 13.0 8 Cortezes Dimming III North 4.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 13.0 8 Thomas Jones Willoughby South 4.0 0.0 5.0 59.0 1.5 8 Trent Chmura Willoughby South 4.0 0.0 1.0 76.0 6.5 Interceptions
INTWyant DobranConneaut8Brand BambrickNorth4Damarhi MorganWilloughby South3Ethan ChristopherWilloughby South3Javion WhaleyNorth3Luke JensenWilloughby South3Scotty BalashWilloughby South3Tommy CaimiKirtland3Alex LaschingerHawken2
Andre RansomOrange2Complete Leaders
Rank Player School INT YDS AVG LONG TD 1 Wyant Dobran Conneaut 8 0 0.0 0 0 2 Brand Bambrick North 4 0 0.0 0 0 3 Damarhi Morgan Willoughby South 3 0 0.0 0 0 3 Ethan Christopher Willoughby South 3 67 0.0 65 1 3 Javion Whaley North 3 0 0.0 0 0 3 Luke Jensen Willoughby South 3 0 0.0 0 0 3 Scotty Balash Willoughby South 3 35 28.5 28 1 3 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 3 0 0.0 0 0 9 Alex Laschinger Hawken 2 0 0.0 0 0 9 Andre Ransom Orange 2 0 0.0 0 0 Kicking
PTSMarko ValenticKirtland64Mason GumtoWilloughby South50Jacob SotoNorth37
Braylen TorrenceWickliffe26Kaya McBrideConneaut20Grady SpetzMayfield12Player #59North12
Ben EttingerChagrin Falls10Ethan DennisKenston8Owen OverfieldCrestwood8Complete Leaders
Rank Player School FGM FGA FG% LONG XPM XPA XP% PTS 1 Marko Valentic Kirtland 5 2 23.0% 0 49 4 1,225.0% 64 2 Mason Gumto Willoughby South 2 2 100.0% 40 44 53 84.8% 50 3 Jacob Soto North 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 37 4 Braylen Torrence Wickliffe 0 0 0.0% 0 26 28 92.9% 26 5 Kaya McBride Conneaut 1 3 33.3% 27 17 24 70.8% 20 6 Grady Spetz Mayfield 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 12 6 Player #59 North 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 12 8 Ben Ettinger Chagrin Falls 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 10 9 Ethan Dennis Kenston 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 8 9 Owen Overfield Crestwood 0 1 0.0% 0 8 10 100.0% 8 Punting
YDSJames LancasterCrestwood1,142
Colton CrissingerPerry626Wyant DobranConneaut597Mason GumtoWilloughby South543Daniel KristoMentor501Tanner BrandtHawken473David MorseRiverside369Jaxon MooreRiverside312Braylen TorrenceWickliffe268Rocco VitantonioHawken221Complete Leaders
Rank Player School PUNTS YDS AVG Y/G IN 20 LONG 1 James Lancaster Crestwood 29 1,142 41.6 142.8 0 57 2 Colton Crissinger Perry 0 626 0.0 0.0 0 0 3 Wyant Dobran Conneaut 17 597 33.4 0.0 0 48 4 Mason Gumto Willoughby South 15 543 36.8 54.3 3 69 5 Daniel Kristo Mentor 16 501 31.3 41.0 1 0 6 Tanner Brandt Hawken 13 473 36.4 43.0 0 49 7 David Morse Riverside 12 369 30.8 50.0 4 0 8 Jaxon Moore Riverside 9 312 34.7 85.0 13 96 9 Braylen Torrence Wickliffe 6 268 44.7 0.0 0 50 10 Rocco Vitantonio Hawken 7 221 31.6 0.0 0 42 Kickoff Returns
YDSJonah TenneyConneaut274Grayson BallardConneaut262Chris MoryCrestwood170Deondre WeatherspoonConneaut137Nick HessCrestwood130Brady KaasChagrin Falls128Christian SantoneWilloughby South118Marcus GarciaConneaut117Tye BerquistCrestwood109Tommy CaimiKirtland102Complete Leaders
Rank Player School RET YDS AVG Y/G TD LONG 1 Jonah Tenney Conneaut 6 274 47.8 0.0 1 0 2 Grayson Ballard Conneaut 13 262 22.4 0.0 0 0 3 Chris Mory Crestwood 8 170 14.0 4.7 0 14 4 Deondre Weatherspoon Conneaut 7 137 22.4 0.0 1 0 5 Nick Hess Crestwood 4 130 32.5 8.7 0 62 6 Brady Kaas Chagrin Falls 7 128 18.3 12.8 0 0 7 Christian Santone Willoughby South 7 118 17.0 11.8 0 30 8 Marcus Garcia Conneaut 1 117 18.0 0.0 0 18 9 Tye Berquist Crestwood 7 109 15.2 26.3 0 20 10 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 4 102 25.5 25.5 0 0 Punt Returns
YDSChristian SantoneWilloughby South135Luis CedenoConneaut103Jayden JohnsonWickliffe87Mitch GreenbergHawken68Chris MoryCrestwood60Javion WhaleyNorth60Jonah TenneyConneaut41Alex LaschingerHawken35Anthony MockWilloughby South32Tommy CaimiKirtland29Complete Leaders
Rank Player School RET YDS AVG Y/G TD LONG 1 Christian Santone Willoughby South 9 135 15.4 13.5 0 32 2 Luis Cedeno Conneaut 6 103 17.2 0.0 1 0 3 Jayden Johnson Wickliffe 8 87 10.9 0.0 0 33 4 Mitch Greenberg Hawken 6 68 11.3 6.2 0 21 5 Chris Mory Crestwood 10 60 5.3 3.3 0 11 5 Javion Whaley North 3 60 20.0 0.0 0 0 7 Jonah Tenney Conneaut 2 41 20.5 0.0 0 0 8 Alex Laschinger Hawken 1 35 35.0 3.2 1 35 9 Anthony Mock Willoughby South 1 32 32.0 3.2 0 32 10 Tommy Caimi Kirtland 1 29 29.0 7.3 2 0
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