LEXINGTON — It’s just something about the uprights at Kroger Field at the University of Kentucky that are fond of Beechwood.
Voodoo? “I don’t know, maybe some voodoo,” Beechwood coach Noel Rash said.
For the third straight year, Beechwood was on the right end of a special teams play as they defeated Mayfield 14-13 for their third straight Class 2A state championship and the program’s 17th overall.
The Cardinals got within 14-13 after Zane Cartwright hit Isaac Stevenson for a 9-yard touchdown with 1:13 to play, only needing the extra point to knot the game up.
But much like 2020 when the Tigers knocked off Lexington Christian Academy in overtime on the same field, the PAT hit the upright and was unsuccessful.
“I don’t know. I don’t know what’s going on, thank God it’s going our way,” Rash said.
The uprights, on a high school field are 23-feet-four inches. On a college field, 18-feet-six inches. Just a matter of feet is what it all came down to. Special teams help the Tigers prevail once again for the third straight season. They won it in 2020 and Friday by missed kicks by the opponent, ’21 Jake Conrad hitting the game-winning field goal.
“That’s something we pride ourselves on and I think most of the programs that get to that final four stage do. Things went our way, I feel terrible for that kid. But there’s so many more plays left out there on that field, none of this comes down to one kid and one play,” Rash said.
In a game filled with storylines, not only each prestigious program with their now 29 combined state titles or a rematch from last year’s state semifinal game, but the bond between the coaches and each community that’s been formed over the years, most notably nearly a year ago when Beechwood was one of the first ones to respond with relief efforts after Mayfield was struck by one of the worst tornadoes in American history.
While the focus on Friday afternoon into a rainy early evening was on the field, a lot of the attention throughout the week pointed towards the relief efforts and the Beechwood community was recognized before the game because of it. They were honored with a special plaque prior to kickoff.
“We all got to remember that team is going home and that town isn’t fixed. I hope we all put them in our hearts. For all the stuff that they’ve been through, now you got 14 to 18-year-olds struggling in their hearts dealing with this loss. I don’t know why it happened, but it happened and here we stand,” Rash said.
After the presentation, Tigers senior Mitchell Berger was one of the captains for the coin toss. Berger, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Tigers eighth game of the season, was also there for the postgame press conference, once again as a champion.
“Watching those guys do it for me, it’s hard to swallow. But this is just awesome, being emotional with those guys after the game. It’s just amazing,” Berger said.
The Tigers overcame the adversity, much like their counterparts across the field have over the past year. Much like how they started the season without injured quarterback Clay Hayden, the last bit of adversity the Tigers had to face was when Chase Flaherty went down with an injury late in the game. Flaherty, who ran for 115 yards and what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown, needed help off.
But Alex Courtney stepped right in on the Tigers next possession, Beechwood needing one first down to close out the game, leading 14-13 with 1:11 left. On second and nine, Courtney broke one outside for 43 yards, punctuating the Tigers third straight title headed back to Fort Mitchell.
It was an evenly played game, the stat sheet near identical. Beechwood 271 yards on 49 plays, Mayfield 260 yards on 49 plays. But the third phase of the game, special teams is where the difference was made. Beechwood converting on both extra points and a 41-yard average on punts, James Cusick flipping the field multiple times in the defensive battle. Mayfield’s excruciating miss on one of their extra points and a 27.3 average on their punts did them no favors. Both missed a short field goal in the first half as well.
Clay Hayden’s seven-yard touchdown pass to Liam MacCormack got the Tigers on the board first after a scoreless first quarter.
Mayfield responded with a JuJu Starks 16-yard touchdown run in the third to knot things up at seven.
Flaherty scored on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it 14-7 Beechwood, Mayfield finally responding with 1:14 to play on Cartwright’s pass to Stevenson. The Cardinals recovered a fumble near midfield to get the scoring opportunity.
Cardinals coach Joe Morris felt confident if the game was headed to overtime, just needing to convert the extra point.
“Had confidence in these guys. It crossed my mind to go for two and try and win the game, Beechwood is a great defense. We were moving the ball and still had timeouts and what were they gonna do? Thought we had the momentum,” Morris said.
Beechwood senior lineman Austin Waddell was named the game’s MVP, the Tigers linebacker leading the way in tackles.
“It’s simple. With Austin I make the simple calls and he makes the complex calls on the field. He runs the show for us out there. You want to run against him and you want to cut back in the middle against that dude, you better strap it on. He made a difference today,” Rash said.
The title was Rash’s eighth, boasting a 8-1 record in championship games.
TIGERS 14, CARDINALS 13
MAYFIELD — 0-0-7-6 — 13
BEECHWOOD — 0-7-0-7 — 14
Scoring Plays
2nd Quarter
(B) McCormack 7-yard pass from Hayden (8:20) Kappes kick
3rd Quarter
(M) Starks 16-yard run (9:02) Suter kick
4th Quarter
(B) Flaherty 10-yard run (11:55) Kappes kick
(M) Stevenson 9-yard pass from Cartwright (1:13) Kick failed
Game Stats
Passing Yards: Mayfield 137 (Cartwright 16/23), Beechwood 116 (Hayden 7/16)
Rushing Yards: Mayfield 123 (Starks 22-104, Cartwright 3-19), Beechwood 155 (Flaherty 23-115, Courtney 2-43, Hayden 7-(minus) 3)
Receiving: Mayfield (Dabney 6-18, Stevenson 4-39, Hite 2-43, Jackson 2-25), Beechwood (Robinson 3-59, McCormack 2-23, Flaherty 1-18, Erdman 1-16)
Turnovers: Mayfield 1, Beechwood 1
Penalties: Mayfield 8-43, Beechwood 10-72
Records: Mayfield 14-1, Beechwood 14-1