Mentor coach Steve Trivisonno wasn't overly concerned with the final score on Nov. 8 in the Cardinals' 49-34 first-round playoff victory against visiting Lorain.
The fact that Mentor (10-1) moved on to the next step on the ultimate goal of trying to win a state title is all that was on Trivisonno's mind as he talked about the win in the final game at the JTO for the Cardinals.
"It's on to Round 2," Trivisonno said. "We did some good things tonight against a dangerous team, and we are moving on to play a great program and it should be a lot of fun."
Mentor will play Canton Glen Oak in the second round of the Division I, Region 1 playoffs. The Eagles went on the road as the No. 12 seed and defeated Berea-Midpark, 28-14, on Nov. 8. Mentor and Canton Glen Oak will play at a site to be determined by the OHSAA on Nov. 9.
The Cardinals built a 21-6 lead at halftime and expanded the lead to 42-12 and played with a running clock before the Titans (7-4) scored a few late touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
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Mentor was dominant on the ground, rushing for 311 yards and five touchdowns against Lorain. Alex Mathews, returning from injury, ran for 140 yards and a TD. Jerrell Jackson had 120 yards rushing and two scores for the Cardinals. Eddie Daugherty caught a touchdown pass from Jake Floriea to start the scoring for Mentor in the first quarter and also ran for a TD.
Cardinals defensive back Kenny Cook had a career night with an interception and a tackle on a fourth down play early in the game that set Mentor up for a score.
"I think we need to finish the game better and play four full quarters, but I am happy with how we performed," Cook said. "I am just trying to make plays to help the team win."
Mathews and Daugherty ran for scores in a 21-point third quarter for the Cardinals to push the advantage out to 35-6. Quarterback Eddie Williamson connected with Ohio State recruit Rashod Berry three times for Lorain to keep things interesting for the Titans.
"I thought we did a lot of good things and we ran the ball pretty much at will, but we have to play a little harder and finish," Trivisonno said.
"Lorain has some guys. I thought for the most part we played very well."
