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Cornerstone will play for its second-straight state championship next Thursday after the Chargers overcame early adversity to pull away from Evangel-Montgomery and give the seniors one last win on their home field. (For the Reporter/Mandy Sanders)

(Reporter Photos/Andrew Simonson)

By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

COLUMBIANA – After getting tested by the Evangel Christian Lions in their regular season meeting, the Cornerstone Christian Chargers found themselves facing adversity again as the visitors from Montgomery went blow for blow in the opening quarter.

With the game tied up at 14-14 at the end of the first, Cornerstone faced a fourth down deep in its own territory. Punter Noah Schober appeared to be ready to take the safe option and kick it away, but instead, the Chargers made the bold call of a fake punt.

The senior Schober scampered up the sideline for the first down, and that helped flip the momentum in Cornerstone’s favor for good.

That play and many others from the Chargers seniors helped them score 30 straight points and pull away for a 56-38 win in the AISA Class A semifinals on Thursday, Nov. 14, punching their ticket to their second-straight state championship in the final home game for the Class of 2025.

“These guys have worked so hard all summer long to get to this,” Cornerstone coach James Lee said. “What they’ve done to get to this is just amazing. It’s just amazing the effort they put in.”

One of those seniors, Zeke Adams, started the opening drive strong with a pair of first-down runs.

After a personal foul moved the Chargers close to the end zone, Adams stepped up and hit Seth Dillard in the end zone to go up 8-0 after the 2-point quarterback run.

However, Evangel responded after back-to-back false starts with a long quarterback run into the end zone, cutting the deficit to 8-6 with 7:59 left in the first.

Cornerstone caught a break with a short kick to the Lions 42 and capitalized shortly after.

After a first-down run from Drake Dunning, Adams got chased to the right sideline but found Schober in the back of the end zone to extend the lead to 14-6 with 5:59 left in the opening quarter.

Evangel once again fought back, this time through the air with a deep throw to the 20-yard line. The Lions then scored off another quarterback keeper to equalize the game at 14-14 with 3:54 left in the first.

The Chargers got a spark from a big 42-yard return by Schober but two plays later, a fumble on the Evangel 14 killed any momentum they had gained back.

The Lions then benefited from the second big downfield pass interference call and looked to be getting closer to taking the lead.

However, Cornerstone nearly got a pick on another pass play shortly after. The very next play, Adams read another deep ball and came away with an interception this time at his team’s 25-yard line.

The Chargers looked like they would be unable to capitalize as Evangel forced fourth down on the final play of the first quarter. That was when Schober worked his magic on the fake punt to start the second and sparked another scoring drive.

Cornerstone continued to gain yards on the ground, first off Adams before junior Jackson Moore took over inside the red zone. Moore’s initial scoring run was called back by a hold, but he scored again on the next play from 16 yards out to help take the lead to 22-14 with 7:52 left in the half.

The Lions got another pair of first downs on the ground before trying the air, but that was when the Chargers pass defense locked in for some tight coverage to force fourth down. Cornerstone then stopped the Evangel quarterback short of the line to gain to get a turnover on downs.

Two plays later, Adams broke through for the first of his trademark long touchdowns runs, putting his team up 28-14.

That trend continued on each team’s next drive as a Lions unsportsmanlike conduct killed its drive before the Chargers broke up a pass play near the goal line on third down.

That led to another turnover on downs, and Adams got to the end zone once again with a long and winding scramble. Moore’s ensuing 2-point conversion made the lead 36-14 going into the half.

Cornerstone’s momentum continued into the early moments of the third quarter as Schober grabbed an interception on Evangel’s opening drive of the half.

Adams scored off a long touchdown run two plays later, and that combined with another 2-point conversion increased the lead to 44-14.

However, the Lions immediately responded with a kickoff return touchdown to cut the deficit to 44-20.

That led to a bit of Chargers trickery on the ensuing kickoff with Schober sending a rugby-style lateral to Adams on the left sideline, and he turned on the jets for a 75-yard return touchdown of his own, putting the lead at 50-20.

Evangel’s offense did make it onto the field after that, but it quickly returned to the sidelines after numerous penalties forced a fourth-and-25 deep in the team’s own territory, leading to another turnover on downs at the 19.

Moore ran to the 4-yard line to set up Adams for his fourth rushing touchdown of the game and seventh overall, capping off Cornerstone’s scoring with the lead at 56-20 with three and a half minutes to go in the third.

The Lions returned the ensuing kickoff for another touchdown and then added two more in the fourth quarter, but the 18 points wouldn’t be enough to close the gap and the Chargers walked away with the 56-38 win to advance to the finals.

Adams rushed 23 times for 322 yards, four touchdowns and a pair of 2-point conversions. He was also 3-of-5 passing for 44 yards and two touchdowns, earned 11 tackles and an interception and added his kick return touchdown for seven total touchdowns on the night.

Moore took 11 carries for 57 yards, a touchdown and two 2-point conversions, and Dunning earned 34 yards off 10 carries. Dunning also added 10 tackles, a sack and three tackles for loss.

Schober caught a pair of passes for 30 yards and a touchdown and earned five tackles and an interception. Dillard’s lone reception went for a 14-yard touchdown, capping off 574 yards of total offense.

Malachi Adams led the defense with 12 tackles, three sacks and four tackles for loss. Mason Hoehn and Cohen Hewitt both secured 10 tackles with Hoehn earning three pass break-ups and Hewitt adding on a sack and a tackle for loss.

After the game, Lee complimented Evangel’s young sophomore signal caller and said his playmaking ability played a part in the close first quarter.

“That quarterback’s good, man,” Lee said. “He’s good. He’s all over the field. He’s fast, he’s very athletic, and he’s going to be a wonderful quarterback as he grows into it. He’s only a sophomore, so he’s going to be a really good quarterback. So, we just tried to just keep him in the pocket, and sometimes we got burned a little bit, sometimes it helped us a lot, so we kept everything in front.”

With the win, Cornerstone will play one more time this season as the team seeks its second-straight state championship on Thursday, Nov. 20 at noon at the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery in a matchup with Macon-East.

However, the game, which doubled as the Chargers’ rescheduled homecoming night, marked the end of an era for their 12 seniors as they played their final game on CCS’ home field.

With tears building in his eyes, Lee talked about how much the senior class means not just to the football program but to him as well.

“I’ve seen them grow up,” Lee said. “They’ve come so far from when they were with us, when we were playing 11-man and they were getting beat up on when they were seventh and eighth graders, and they were having to start. Now these guys are seniors, and I’m so proud of them.”

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