YOUNGSTOWN – There is only one blemish on the Ursuline football team’s schedule – an opening-night loss to Walsh Jesuit, one of the top teams in the state.

In that game, the Fighting Irish surrendered 37 points. But they learned from it, and the Irish defense has been on a roll ever since.

The Irish have surrendered more than 14 points in only one other game, a 24-17 win over Villa Angela-St. Joseph on Oct. 11. Over the last 11 games, they have given up an average of 7.1 points per game.

“We feed off each other. Linebackers, D-ends, we all play together,” said outside linebacker Drake Campbell, who has tallied 72 tackles and 19 tackles for loss so far. “We’re a tight-knit group of guys. We just want to win together and play with each other.”

It starts up front with the defensive line and linebackers. The speed and athleticism of the defensive front put opponents on their heels throughout the season.

Despite dropping the first game, the loss to Walsh Jesuit was a good measuring stick for Ursuline. The next week, they held Bishop Hartley to 10 points, and they followed with a storm-shortened 27-0 shutout of Farrell across the Pennsylvania line.

“After that game, the next game we played we just teed off on Bishop Hartle,” said defensive end Rashad Harris, who has 48 tackles as a sophomore. “We all had amazing games, and then the Farrell game got cut short. … We all had good games.”

Ursuline has playoff experience, something its next foe lacks.

Gilmour Academy will play in its first regional championship tonight when they take on the Fighting Irish at Portage Community Bank Stadium in Ravenna.

Similar to the Irish, the Lancers enter with a 12-1 record. Their only loss came to a shared opponent, Villa Angela-St. Joseph. The Lancers fell to VASJ 48-14 on Oct. 25.

The Lancers have been powered by their offense all season, averaging 40.4 points per game. The offense has a high-profile tight end recruit in Ohio State commit Brody Lennon.

“We know it’s our game to take over,” said defensive end AJ Snyder, who enters today with 68 tackles and 24 tackles for loss. “No pressure to it. We do it every week, but we need to keep doing our thing.

The Fighting Irish are in a familiar spot. They were in the regional championship last season, but they fell to Chardon. Another deep playoff run – specifically a state championship run – has been the driving force behind the team this season.

And when the ball kicks off tonight at Ravenna, the Irish will lean once again on their defensive front with the season on the line.

“I can speak for the whole team, we want this bad,” said linebacker Karter Rudzik, who has 87 tackles and a team-high eight sacks. “And after this, it’s the big one.”