LIBERTY TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Junior KC Spears rushed for 228 yards on eight carries and scored five touchdowns as Winton Woods defeated La Salle 42-25 in a Division II, Region 8 semifinal Friday night at Lakota East.

"KC is a phenomenal player," Winton Woods coach Chad Murphy said. "He is just so versatile. He plays quarterback, wide receiver, running back, punter and holder on point-after attempts."

Spears had a 94-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. He had an 83-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. He also caught a pass, punted, and returned punts Friday night.

Winton Woods (10-3) advances to play Piqua (12-0) in the Division II, Region 8 final Nov. 19 at a neutral location to be announced Sunday.

Friday night was the second straight upset in the regional tournament for Winton Woods.

Last week, Winton Woods, the No. 7 seed, defeated No. 1 seed and previously undefeated Kings 31-21 Nov. 5. This time, Winton Woods defeated No. 6 La Salle.

Winton Woods is making its sixth regional final appearance in program history, according to the Winton Woods athletic department.

"I'm so happy for them," Murphy said. "I liked the fact that we just kept the pedal to the metal."

Winton Woods had 399 yards of total offense including 341 yards rushing. The Winton Woods defense limited La Salle to just 87 yards rushing.

Winton Woods senior Tyrek Spikes had 21 carries for 104 yards.

"He's just a phenomenal young man," Murphy said earlier this week. "He's a phenomenal player. Just dynamic as they get."

Defensively, senior defensive lineman Jay'ron Gibson had eight tackles. Senior linebacker Jeremiah Anderson had seven tackles while senior defensive back Quentin Jenkins Jr. had six tackles.

Junior defensive backs Jermaine Mathews and Cameron Calhoun each had interceptions.

"Our defense has been so solid, so consistent most of the year," Murphy told WCPO earlier this week. "Offensively I've felt like we've really come along here the last few weeks probably mid-season. I just felt like we've put it all together finally and I feel like when we're hitting on all cylinders we're a pretty good football team."

Friday night was a rematch of a Week 2 game that La Salle won at home 21-7 Aug. 27. La Salle won the 2020 regional final matchup over Winton Woods.

GREEN TOWNSHIP, Ohio — La Salle junior kicker Mason Luensman made four field goals as the host Lancers defeated Winton Woods 21-7 Friday night.

Luensman made field goals from 38, 34, 30 and 36 yards to help lead the Lancers.

"He did a fantastic job," La Salle coach Pat McLaughlin said. "The operation from snap to hold to kick was good. Protection was good. Anytime you have a weapon when you kick the ball, anytime you get inside the 20, it's awesome. He did a great job tonight."

La Salle earned a 13-0 halftime lead and went ahead 18-0 when senior linebacker Tristen Wolf made a tackle for a safety late in the third quarter.

The kickoff was delayed due to inclement weather like many Greater Cincinnati high school football games Friday. The game didn't conclude until well after 11 p.m.

La Salle earned three interceptions, including a pick-six by senior defensive back Gage Howard late in the second quarter.

Senior defensive end JJ Ruffin had a game-high 10 tackles (six solo). Senior linebacker Chase Stein had nine tackles.

"We're finding a way to win," McLaughlin said. "They battled. They play hard. We played a ton of kids tonight. I told them I'm proud of just how hard they played."

La Salle (2-0) is scheduled to play IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) Sept. 3. That will be the third consecutive home game for La Salle.

"We want to bring the best teams in here," McLaughlin said.

"I think we got one of the best teams in the last 25 years in Colerain Week 1. We got one of the best teams in Kentucky. We got one of the best teams in Division II this week. We got one of the best teams in the country (with IMG Academy) and then you have our league. Our kids are going to be excited. We're going to have a good week of practice and we'll go out there like we did tonight and play hard from start to finish."

IMG Academy is scheduled to play Bishop Sycamore (Ohio) Saturday afternoon.

IMG Academy, ranked No. 2 nationally by MaxPreps, was declared the 2020 national champion by MaxPreps and USA Today.