Princeton rolled to a 38-14 victory over Fairfield on Friday, Oct. 23, completing a perfect 10-0 regular season and clinching the outright Greater Miami Conference (GMC) championship.
The Vikings secured the No. 1 seed in OHSAA Division I, Region 4, WLWT reported. Princeton earns a first-round playoff bye and will host a second-round game.
Quarterback Key'Sean Torbert drove the offense with 263 total yards and three touchdowns. He completed 16 of 28 passes for 203 yards and two scores, adding 60 rushing yards and another touchdown on the ground. Running back Jordan Hall pounded out 120 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.
Princeton led 31-14 at halftime and shut out Fairfield in the second half. Zion Maddox sealed the win with a 42-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter.
The Vikings set the tone early, jumping ahead 17-0 in the first quarter. Hall broke free for a 15-yard touchdown run. Key'Sean Torbert connected with Monsanna Torbert on a 41-yard scoring strike. Kicker Maurice Holloway added a 21-yard field goal.
Fairfield answered with 14 straight points. Cleon "CJ" Plummer hauled in a 25-yard touchdown reception, and Axsel Rogers punched in a one-yard scoring run to cut the deficit to 17-14.
Princeton scored twice more before halftime. Key'Sean Torbert ran in a 10-yard touchdown and then hit David Fields for a 10-yard scoring pass.
Charles Newton Jr. led the defense with nine tackles. Jaylen Mercer, a Kentucky commit, added seven tackles, a sack and two tackles for loss. Princeton outgained Fairfield 394-163 and held the Indians to 70 rushing yards.
Monsanna Torbert, a Michigan commit, finished with three catches for 96 yards.
The win caps a season in which Princeton opened by beating then-top-ranked Moeller and survived six turnovers to edge then-No. 3 Lakota West 27-24 on Sept. 18, as we reported Oct. 20. Head coach Andre Parker told TriStateFootball.com after that September win, "You have to be a special team to do that."
In coverage published in July, Kam Mercer, Jaylen's younger brother and a Princeton basketball standout, told WCPO, "I think this is the year I honestly say make or break … They have a really good senior class."
Fairfield finished 5-5. Princeton will face the winner of No. 8 Lebanon–No. 9 Middletown on Friday, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m.
