Canisius claims Msgr. Martin championship, will host Catholic state title game.

WEST SENECA, N.Y. — "Long live Kevon" was the rallying cry for the Canisius Crusaders on a championship run in tribute to their departed teammate.

With the mother of the late Kevon Walker supporting from the sideline, Canisius defeated St. Joe's 32-22 on Saturday at Robert J. Stransky Memorial Complex to win the Monsignor Martin Athletic Association football championship. The Crusaders, ranked first among area large schools and No. 4 in New York State in Class AA, will now host No. 1 Iona Prep next Saturday in the NYS Catholic title game.

"We've got so much momentum on our side," MVP Elijah Kimble said. "We've got God on our side. And we've got Kevon. I feel like the way we are playing right now, nobody can stop us."

Kimble, the sophomore running back with more than a dozen major college scholarship offers, rushed for close to 200 yards and four touchdowns. Amir Hernandez added 50 yards rushing and another score as Canisius opened a 26-0 lead by the middle of the second quarter and staved off St. Joe's comeback with a scoring drive late in the fourth.

"My guy Amir, we've been playing together since little league," Kimble said. "Best dynamic duo in Western New York."

Canisius' first Msgr. Martin championship in four seasons is its 10th since the league began holding playoffs in 2002.

"It feels great to bring the culture back," Kimble said. "We hadn't won since I was in fifth grade."

In the 102nd meeting in rivalry that dates back more than a century, Canisius has won 11 in a row and 21 of 22 against St. Joe's. The Crusaders have also won each of the four championship game matchups.

"We knew all week that Joe’s, the big rivalry, we had to channel our emotion and focus on winning the game," said Mason Alnutt, the UNLV football recruit who had two sacks. "Not because we don’t like Joe’s, but because we wanted to win a championship. We came out here and did our thing. We finally won the Msgr. Martin.

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Jonah Bronstein joined the WIVB squad in 2022 as a digital sports reporter. The Buffalonian has covered the Bills, Sabres, Bandits, Bisons, colleges, high schools and other notable sporting events in Western New York since 2005, for publications including The Associated Press, The Buffalo News, and Niagara Gazette. Read more of his work here.