Ohio City - The top-seeded 11-1 Wildcats, coming off their 45-22 Division I, Region 1 Semifinal victory over fourth-seeded Euclid at Bearcat Stadium last night, will face the third-seeded Mentor Cardinals, also 11-1, on Friday night in the Region 1 Final at 7:30 on Stewart Field in Bedford High School's tradition-rich Bearcat Stadium.

 Mentor advanced to face Saint Ignatius by eliminating second-seeded St. Edward, 21-13, last night on Byers Field in Parma's Robert M. Boulton Stadium.  

 Last season, Coach Chuck Kyle's record 11-time Division I State Champion Wildcats finished as the Division I State Runner-Up to Cincinnati St. Xavier. On the way to that championship game matchup with St. Xavier Saint Ignatius defeated St. Edward, 38-31, in overtime in the Region 1 Final at Bedford Bearcat Stadium.

 In 2003 at Bedford Bearcat Stadium, Saint Ignatius turned back Glenville, 24-21, in an OHSAA first-round  playoff game.

 Coach Kyle's 'Cats are 13-8 all-time versus Coach Steve Trivisonno's Cardinals, including a 41-31 triumph at Mentor in Week 2 of this season. The Cardinals, however, hold a slight edge in their OHSAA playoff meetings with Saint Ignatius, 3-2.

 The last two postseason matchups between the Wildcats and the Cardinals went to Mentor, a 57-56, Mitch Trubisky-led three overtime thriller in a Regional Final in 2012 and a 26-3 Cardinals victory in a Regional Final in 2013.

 As always, this corner will be previewing Friday night's Region 1 championship matchup early this coming week.