LORAIN - Seneca East players Billy Diehm and Kyle Depinet answered the questions posed to them, just like after past games.
Then the word "state" was used.
Their eyes lit up.
Seneca East is on the cusp of history after its 9-1 win over Mogodore in the regional semifinals Thursday, the Tigers play today for a shot at a place the program has never been - the state semifinals.
Cuyahoga Heights stands in the way of a trip to Columbus. It defeated New Middletown Springfield, 11-0 Thursday, and enters today's 5 p.m. game at 19-4.
Diehm, who threw a complete game Thursday and likely will be in the outfield today, said he's confident.
"Play like we did today, play defense like we did," Diehm said. "Fix a few little boo-boos and we're good.
"It's really exciting," he said. "Tied for the farthest we've ever made it as a team in school history, and it's been our goal since day one. We've slowly worked towards it, it's slowly been in the back of our minds. That's our ultimate goal: state."
When asked what the Tigers needed to do against the Redskins today, Depinet kept it simple.
"Preparation's just staying focused," he said. "We can't get overly hyped up. We don't want to stop here. We can't just be satisfied with where we are. State, that is a big word, and we want to make it there. We've got to go into it like another game."
For his part, coach Frank Lamoreaux, the veteran Seneca East coach, kept his cool when talking about today's game.
"Cuyahoga Heights, good team, state ranked," Lamoreaux said of the 11th-ranked Redskins. "Two [of our] coaches [were] here for the first game (Thursday), scouted them out. "We've got a little bit of something on them."
