Week #7 (October 21st-23rd, 2022) Article by Matt Diano
Charlie Battaglia (Sr.); LB – Chaminade Flyers
In a clash of defending Metro
Catholic champions (Chaminade in AA-1; Holy Trinity in AA-2) that featured a returning NYCHSFL Defensive Player of the Year (Jameer Reeder), three reigning All-Catholic selections (all on the Trinity sideline), multiple NCAA Division I commits and/or prospects, as well as a pair of on-going winning streaks (HT-19, CHS-3), it was the 6-foot, 220-pound senior LB in the #49 jersey [Battaglia] that showed himself to be the best player on the field on Saturday October 22nd!!
Pegged as a defensive affair where points would absolutely be at a premium, the contest itself lived up to its billing/reputation as the two Long Island programs that entered averaging a combined tally of 57.6 managed to muster just 17 in the Flyers’ 10-7 matinee triumph on visiting soil!!!
And through no sheer coincidence, it was the team’s “emotional leader” (as hailed by Coach Dolan) that would be the one at the heart of the play that set up the difference-making score!!!
The battle still scoreless as we approached the final 3:00 of the opening quarter, it was Battaglia intercepting his second pass of the day (he picked off each of the first two throw attempts from opposing QB, Rocco Rainone) inside enemy territory that served as the precursor to junior PK, Timothy Tomlinson, drilling a 28-yarder, that gave the Crimson & Gold a 3-0 advantage with 2:25 remaining in the 1st!
While the deuce INTs (totaling 30 yards in returns, stood out as the signature milestones, in truth, what landed Battaglia his debut on the POTW list (long overdue) was simply the steadiness and completeness of his body of work!
His finest overall effort as a Flyer in our opinion, even in the areas/categories where he did not establish new personal-highs, he challenged his previous benchmarks, as he amassed 13 total stops (5 solo), and recorded 2 TFLs raise his 2022 fall stat sheet to 62 (2nd on the team) and 10 (2nd)…His 3 interceptions in his swan song place him at the top of the totem pole!!!
Battaglia has now registered double-digit tackle efforts eight times in his tenure (3rd time this season; career-finest of 17 in week #1 vs. St. Anthony’s) and was credited with his seventh multiple TFL display (3rd time in 2022; high of 3 against Paramus Catholic) of his stay in Mineola!
Of equal, if not greater, importance was the way that the captain succeeded in elevating everyone around him to perform at their finest…As a collective unit, the Chaminade “D” was able to hold the host Titans to their lowest output of the season (well below the 37.3/per game), while limiting them to just 102 yards of total offense (64 on the ground, 38 in the air) and generating multiple turnovers (Junior, Seamus Miller, also earned an interception)
Special shoutout is extended to another 12th grade LB, Benjamin Mann, who also was worthy of Player of the Week distinction after setting a new career-best of 11 stops, while tying his mark of 2 TFLs…He tacked on a sack for good measure to round out his superb appearance!!!
Unlike “Encanto”, we do talk about [Pat] Bruno in Mineola….The Senior WR hauled in a 38-yard TD reception from week #6 POTW honoree, Matthew Dieguez (14-for-23, 175 pounds, 1TD toss) in the 3rd quarter for what was the game-winning strike…Bruno finishes the afternoon with 3 grabs for 76 yards and the one touchdown!
RJ Pacheco (So.); RB – Moore Catholic Mavericks
Mr. Richard Pacheco Jr; you have been formally and officially invited to the POTW party!!!
A year removed from earning a citation among “Diano’s Best of the Rest” during the semifinal round of the AA-1 playoffs (after registering the first century-mark performance of his career; 140 yards on 21 carries), in that write-up last November, we predicted that the 6’1, 175-pounder was destined to make 100-yard efforts on the ground the norm during his next three scholastic seasons…He has since repeatedly proven our prognostication to be valid!!!
Tormenting the Terriers of St. Francis Prep for a second consecutive occasion (the Fresh Meadows based school were on the receiving end of the aforementioned semifinal loss that bestowed fame onto Pacheco) in the Mavs’ 32-10 victory last Saturday night, the 10th grader out of Staten Island emerged with the first multiple-score display of his two-year tenure wearing the MC colors when three of his 13 total carries (172) landed him in the promised land, thus making him single-handedly responsible for more than half (56%) of Moore Catholic’s points harvest!!
Doing all of his damage late in the 1st, 2nd, and 4th quarters, the first of Pacheco’s trio of TD runs came with 4:08 remaining in the opening stanza (MC up 7-0) when he took a draw up the middle, cut to the right and then cruised down the SFP sidelines to finish off the 39-yard pilgrimage that helped double the lead to 14-0…
Approximately 12 minutes later (4:06 to go in the half), the sophomore sensation further provided insurance (20-0) when he plunged across the goal line from 1-yard away…During this same series, he’d also register his only reception of the evening, catching a 19-yard screen pass that advanced the ball close to midfield!
The “w” never really in doubt (MC leading 26-10), as punctuation/exclamation to his night of stardom, Pacheco crossed the last “T” on his hat trick in the last 2:30 of duration when reminiscent of his touchdown from the 1st quarter, he started up, broke to the outside (in front of the opposing bench), and then busted out some razzle dazzle footwork (high steps and such) en route to the 49-yard crowd-pleaser that accounted for the final tally!!!
One of two Mavericks to rush for 150+ yards during week #7 (Senior All-State QB, John Michalski; 156 yards on 13 carries; 11-of-13 in the air for an additional 178 yards + 1 TD throw), Pacheco has now reached or exceeded 100 yards on the ground in four of eight appearances in 2022 (career-high of 204 versus St. Peter’s on September 3rd)…His cumulative body of work—683 yards/4 touchdown runs both rank 2nd on the team (behind Michalski’s 863 & 8) heading into the regular season finale!!!
Pacheco presently holds a scholarship offer from Temple University!! But just as we did in 2021, we will make another forecast…By the time November 2023 rolls around, the quantity of NCAA DI suitors will have expanded immensely!!
Giuseppe Pennolino (Sr.); OLB/SS – Archbishop Stepinac Crusaders
With the war for the top overall seed in the AAA postseason still very much unspoken for, it need not be said that every win, every point, every turnover…Heck, every snap has taken on greater emphasis down the homestretch of the NYCHSFL regular season…
Hence, we are at that moment where a single well-timed effort is all it might take to earn you some praise and accolades!!
For the 6’1, 192-pound hybrid LB out of Highland Mills [Pennolino], it was certainly more than one contribution that garnered him this honor; however, there was a signature moment that absolutely blasted his candidacy over the top in the Crusaders’ 34-30 come-from-behind win on the road over Kellenberg Memorial on October 22nd!!!
The perennial powerhouse from White Plains, having cut the deficit to 23-20 after entering the 4th quarter trailing by 10 (23-13), gained some major momentum thanks to the gentleman in the #16 jersey when on the Firebirds ensuing drive following the Crusader TD jumped in front of a 3rd down pass attempt from KMHS senior QB, Devin Page, for an INT that set up the Red, White, and Blue offensive juggernaut on the opponent’s 30 yard line….
Several snaps later, it was junior tailback, Lorenzo Robinson (14 carries, 67 yards, 1 rushing TD; 3 receptions for 37 yards + 1 TD catch)) darting straight up the gut for the 9-yard TD run that gave the Mike O’Donnell mentored cohort their first advantage (26-23) since the early stages of the 2nd quarter (13-6)…
Complementing Pennolino’s clutch and/or potential game-altering interception was the personal-bests he set in both solo tackles (11) and cumulative stops (14)…With him flying to the ball on every sequence, the Stepinac defense was able to get the essential halts they needed during crunch time!!!
As he embarks upon the final regular season game of his scholastic career, Pennolino does so with an extremely balanced stat line that places him in the top-6 on the squad in almost every key category: 68 stops (2nd on the team), 3 TFLs (6th), 2 sacks (5th), 3 QB hurries (5th), 1 INT (3rd), and 2 forced fumbles (3rd)…
It could be argued that despite playing with a pair of All-Catholic teammates on “D” (JT Krivinskas & All-Stater, Wayne Coleman), no one has been more versatile in carving out the #1 rated “D” unit in the Triple-A division this year (17.1/game allowed) than the honor roll student-athlete (3.8 GPA) “Crab” (Zodiac birth sign)!!
Robinson, alongside junior QB, Will Currid (23-of-34 in the air for 299 yards and 2 TD throws), 11th grade RB, Jordan Osbourne (8 carries for 101 yards; 52-yard TD run), and senior wide-out, Serge Lagardere (8 grabs for 127 yards, 1 TD haul) provided the offensive boom last Saturday afternoon!
Charlie English (Sr.); RB/SS – Fordham Prep Rams
Like a golden bookend, the 5’11, 175-pound senior [English] started his swan song strong and all signs point at a fast & furious conclusion!!!
Making his second appearance this fall on the POTW list [week #1 behind a 119-yard, 2TD rushing effort in a win over Holy Cross], Fordham Prep needed every watt of energy and/or every bead of sweat they could get out of the Port Chester resident last Friday night, as they fought out of a 14-0 hole to emerge with a 27-24 victory against St. Peter’s!
Re-establishing new career-highs across the board in all major rushing categories, 20 of the Rams’ 23 total carried went to the #22 shirt, as he chewed up a net sum of 137 yards, and THREE touchdowns to deliver victory from the jaws of defeat!!!
Getting the hosts from the Bronx back into the game, English closed out the opening half by powering his way into the end zone twice in the final 6:00 (including TD #2 in the final 31 ticks) from short distance to square the contest at 14 apiece!
Even when he was not the person to culminate drive, English had his fingerprint on every single successful series, as his was his 30-yard burst (from his own 30 to the opposing 40 following a failed fake punt + run by SP) late in the 3rd quarter that foreshadowed an eventual 5-yard TD pass from Matthew Moorehead (4-for-4, 38 yards, 1 TD hurl) to Tommy Gies (5 catches for 63 yards, 1TD grab) that cut the Eagles’ 21-14 lead to 21-20 at the onset of the 4th quarter!!!
The honor roll, multi-sport (also shines on the lax field), student-athlete that will take his gridiron talents to the state of Vermont at Middlebury College, polished off both his personal trifecta, as well as the collective comeback when he took the pitch slightly to the left and then exploded through a seam up the middle for the 9-yard, game-winning score that put the Rams for the first time all night with 6:16 left in duration!!….Prior to this GW trek, it was 60-yard sprint down the sideline by sophomore, Jack McKillop (2 carries for 67 yards) that sparked the drive!
As if a 137-yard/3 TD exhibit was not impressive enough; it needs to be noted that English also was on the receiving end of a 26-yard TD throw in the 1st quarter that was negated by a penalty!
Like the consummate team captain he has been all fall, English was quite impactful on defense too, as he registered a season-best 8 stops (4 solo, 4 assists)!
The proverbial “no snaps off” workhorse will suit up for his final regular season competition in Maroon & White with a team-leading stat line of: 619 yards and 10 touchdowns (116 carries)…His 36 total tackles is good for top-3 status as further illustration that he is the motor that feeds the machine!!!