Correspondent photo / Michael G. Taylor Ursuline’s Amire Brown (12) dives to block a Gilmour Academy punt during a Division III regional championship Friday in Ravenna.

RAVENNA — Last year, Ursuline walked off Ravenna’s blue turf with a bitter taste in its mouth.

The Irish got back to the regional final, only to come up short to Chardon. On Friday, Ursuline returned once again to the blue turf in search of redemption.

This time, the Irish walked off as regional champions after dismantling Gates Mills Gilmour Academy 54-0 in the Division III, Region 9 final at Portage Community Bank Stadium.

“The past several years, we’ve come up short, and it’s always a source of motivation going into the next year,” Irish head coach Dan Reardon said. “It’s ironic. We’re playing at the same location, and it wasn’t great weather last year either. So all those things are similar in a lot of ways. Obviously the outcome is dramatically different. But I’m really proud of how our kids played.”

With both teams forced to deal with cold, windy, rainy conditions, Ursuline’s ability to consistently run the ball proved to be a difference-maker.

The Irish had 49 carries for 334 yards, and were led by tailback Joe Balog, who had 19 carries for 119 yards and three touchdowns — all in the first half. Quarterback DC Ferrell also had 11 carries for 105 yards and a touchdown.

“All week, we were really emphasizing the run, particularly on the offensive side,” Reardon said. “I thought our offensive line played really well. Joe Balog had some nice, hard, physical runs, which was good to see.”

With a veteran quarterback and a talented stable of receivers, the Lancers passing attack has been their calling card on offense all season.

But the conditions, along with the Irish secondary, were able to effectively negate Gilmour’s aerial attack. Between quarterbacks Cooper Panteck and Nick Iliano, the Lancers were 3-for-13 for 19 yards through the air.

“I thought our defense played with an attitude,” Reardon said. “They have a phenomenal quarterback, and we really kept those guys in check.”

Forced to try to run the ball, the Lancers struggled against Ursuline’s front-seven, carrying the ball 22 times for just 33 rushing yards.

“We were a little more concerned coming in about their passing game, just because they’ve been so proficient with it,” Reardon said. “But the weather kind of dictated that they were going to run it a little bit more, I think, than they would have preferred to. But our kids did a great job of adjusting and defending the run.”

After a slow start in last week’s regional semifinal victory over Aurora, Ursuline was able to strike quickly against the Lancers, moving the ball down the field on the game’s opening possession, which ended with a 32-yard touchdown run by Ferrell.

Then the Irish blew things open with a 33-point second quarter.

Balog scored all three of his touchdowns during the period. After his second touchdown run, the Irish attempted and recovered an onside kick, which then led to Ferrell’s 7-yard touchdown pass to Devonte Taylor. Vinnie Fecko got in on the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run just before halftime.

“We had that huge second quarter, and just took advantage of some of their mistakes,” Reardon said. “But that said, I think we forced some of their mistakes and put some pressure on them and dictated some of that as well.”

With a running clock, Ursuline was able to add two more scores in the second half. The first was a 42-yard touchdown run by backup quarterback George Camuso, while the last came on a 41-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Dale Peterman in the fourth quarter.

The win propels the Irish back to the state semifinals for the first time since 2021, when they made it to the state championship game and finished as state runner-up. Ursuline will face Toledo Central Catholic, which beat Padua Franciscan 45-7 on Friday, next week at a site to be determined.

“I’m very happy for our kids, and our kids work so hard,” Reardon said. “Going back to our first lift during the offseason 11 months ago, I remember that first lift — watching the guys throughout the offseason, how they attacked the weight room, the conditioning, the testing, all those things. Really proud they’re going to be able to take this next step. We’re going to enjoy it tonight, and it’s great that we’re in the state semifinal. But we understand that we need to have another great week and hopefully keep this thing going.”