Day: November 17, 2018

After losing their fourth straight game on October 6th, Crusader’s Head Coach, Mike O’Donnell joked with his team that the way they were playing, he was planning on booking a vacation for Mid-November, because unless something changed, he’d be available…Well, now six weeks and six wins later, that respite is going to have to wait at least another week as Archbishop Stepinac will have a state title to defend following their 29-18 come-from-behind victory over Cardinal Hayes in the NYCHSFL Triple-A league finals…The triumph on Saturday night made it four of the past five years (including back-to-back seasons) that the red, white, and blue juggernaut from White Plains finished atop the downstate Catholic landscape. A tale of two halves, despite only trailing 12-6 at the break, Stepinac would get grossly outplayed during the opening 24 minutes, as defensive struggles on third and long situations would result in their high-powered offense

  By Matt Diano 22 up, 22 down…The Kellenberg class of 2019 will finish their varsity careers having never tasted defeat as they repeat as NYCHSFL “AA” champions behind a 41-6 victory over Xavier. Getting their title defense bid off on an unusual but admittedly effective foot, Kellenberg would recover the opening kick-off on a Kyle Sharkey squib on the Xavier 36-yard line…On the ensuing play, it would be senior quarterback, Matt Sluka, doing what he does best, calling his own number on a QB draw and running the entire way into the end zone for the 36-yard TD to immediately put the Firebirds ahead on the board, 7-0…The 6’3, 205-pounder’s double-A leading 21st rushing touchdown of 2018, the red-headed assassin would just be getting his afternoon started as he would add three TDs in the air and another on the ground en route to being named the Outstanding Offensive

By Matt Diano Football, much like life, is a game of adjustments…Down 12-0 at the onset of the second quarter to an opponent [Kennedy Catholic] that swept them by identical 21-7 scores during the regular season, there was plenty of reason for the defending NYCHSFL “A” Division champions, Cardinal Spellman, to doubt themselves…However, true to the “heart of a champion” spirit, the William Cawley led Pilots would not cower and they would not quit…And because of this refusal to lose attitude, they are once again kings of the Catholic football kingdom, following a 19-12 victory this morning at the Mitchel Athletic Complex. Unable to generate even a first down during the first quarter and a half of competition, things would look bleak for the school from the Bronx until the final minute of the opening half when a combination of a defensive holding call against Kennedy, a pass completion from