As the fall weather rolled in Friday evening, so did the Cincinnati St. Xavier Bombers as they traveled to Louisville, Ky to take on powerhouse Louisville St. Xavier Tigers. Unlike the bus ride that got delayed due to traffic, the Bomber offense took the field with full throttle.

Junior wide receiver and Penn State commit, Liam Clifford received the opening kickoff and returned it 14 yards to the St. Xavier 19-yard line. Senior quarterback Matthew Rueve wasted no time taking control as his league leading passing offense went to work. Senior running back Kellen Newman took the first hand off and gained 9 yards. A completion to senior tight end and Northwestern commit Marshall Lang gained another 12 yards. Senior wide receiver Owen Smith was Rueve's next target and another 9 yards closer to the end zone. Another pass to Clifford and then junior wide receiver Drew Britt and the Bombers were knocking on Louisville St. X's door. Rueve to Clifford pass for 26-yards and the score, a good conversion by sophomore place kicker Mason Rohmiller and the Bombers cruised to a 7 – 0 lead. The drive took 11 plays covering 81 yards and 2:54 seconds.

The defense was not going to be outdone. The Tigers first drive started with 3 plays netting 9 yards when the Tigers went on fourth down. Senior Tiger quarterback Douglas Bodhaine snuck his way to the first down. The momentum was short lived. Third and long put the Tigers in a passing situation which had senior defensive end Hayden Bailey forcing Bodhaine with an errant throw due to his pressure.

The Bomber offense took the field with great position after the Tiger punt, that was almost blocked, and went out of bounds at the St. Xavier 45-yard line. The offense was put into a third and 25 for a holding penalty, that made the first down marker look like it was in Cincinnati. Rueve connected with Newman out of the backfield for a 28-yard catch for a first down. Another completion to Newman and then a 43-yard pass to Clifford for his second score of the night. Again, special teams converted the extra point to extend the Bombers lead to 14 – 0 at the 4:54 mark in the first quarter.
The next series did not go well for the Tigers again. After 3 plays and losing a yard, sophomore strong safety Eli Kirk got a hand on the Benne Boenheine's punt which traveled only 13-yards to the Louisville St. Xavier 37-yard line. Rueve and company were back on the field after sitting for only 1:41 seconds.

The Bombers started the drive with sophomore running back Luke Vrsansky hitting the left side of the line by a hole created by senior Nathan Uhl and sophomore Cameron Collins. His carry was the Bombers biggest run of the night for 21-yards. Rueve found Clifford two plays later and the Bombers lead swelled to 21 – 0 after the conversion. The first quarter ended with the Bombers in total command leading by 21.

Louisville St. Xavier started the second quarter down 21 and hoping for a way to keep the Bombers offense off the field. The St. Xavier defense held again and five plays later the home team was punting. The St. Xavier drive started on the 33-yard line and the offense was still in high gear. A 17-yard pass to junior wide receiver Jalen Patterson and the Bombers were 50 yards away from the endzone. A combination of run and pass and the Bombers found themselves 5 yards from the Tiger's goal. This time Rueve using a pass run option scampered into the endzone. Another perfect conversion and the lead swelled to 28 – 0.

The Louisville St. Xavier offense found some rhythm. Bodhaine used a balanced attacked in the air and on the ground to get the Tigers on the score board with a 28-yard pass to sophomore wide receiver Michael Duddy. The extra point was blocked by senior defensive back Wiles Dolle and the score shrunk to 28 – 6. Neither team could get much going in the last 3:40 seconds and the half ended with the St. Xavier from Cincinnati ahead 28 – 6 heading into the second half.

Since Louisville St. Xavier won the coin toss at the beginning of the game, they deferred and elected to receive to start the second half. The little bit of momentum the Tigers had from their score late in the first half carried over to the beginning of this second half. Senior running back Logan Davis picked up a large piece of yardage with a 28-yard scamper. A 7-play 55-yard drive was capped off by a three-yard touchdown pass to Grant Goodman and a conversion by senior kicker Jeffrey Sexton brought the score to 28 – 13. Louisville St. Xavier's defense stiffened forcing a 4-play and out. A shanked Cincinnati St. Xavier punt gave the Tigers' offense great field position. Six plays later Sexton hit a 38-yard field goal and the home team had all the momentum and hope on their senior night. The 28 – 16 score would end the quarter.

The Bomber defense forced the Tigers to punt deep in their territory. A rougher the kicker penalty in the Tiger endzone kept the drive and their hopes alive. It was all they needed to put together a nice 8 play 87-yard drive using 3:42 seconds to score and make the game 28 – 23. The Bodhaine 5-yard touchdown run had the home team fans on their feet. The Bomber offense which had been held in check since the middle of the second quarter needed some new life.

After the ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, the Bombers elected to take the ball at their own 35-yard line. Lightening would strike again with Rueve and Clifford. A 64-yard touchdown pass on the second play from scrimmage and another successful conversion, gave the visiting St. Xavier team some breathing room at 35 – 23.

The home St. Xavier team was not finished scoring. The Tigers started their last drive of the game at the 3:02 mark. Aided by two St. Xavier defensive penalties Louisville St. Xavier was able to reach the Cincinnati St. Xavier goal again, convert the extra point and close the gap to five points at 35 – 30. The onside kick was caught by senior safety Tucker Hundley and the Bombers were able to breath a sigh of relieve running out the last 30 ticks on the clock.

The 35 – 30  Bomber victory completed the regular season at 8 – 2 and earned a number one seed in Region IV OHSAA Playoffs and a home game in the first round.