Quarterfinals (November 3rd-5th, 2023)
Israel Centeno-Johnson (Sr.); RB/KR/PR – Kennedy Catholic Gaels
There is just something about playing opposite the Pilots of Cardinal Spellman High School that brings out the best in the 5’10, 150-pound fireball hailing from the Nutmeg State [Centeno-Johnson]….
Honored as a Metro Catholic Player of the Week for the second time in his three-year varsity career [both occasions coming following explosive efforts in victories over Spellman; previously week #2 of the 2022 season], the Kennedy Catholic senior was electric every time he had the pigskin in his hands, as he amassed a legendary 305 yards of total production and was directly responsible for three touchdowns in vaulting the “boys of Somers” to the 33-12 quarterfinal triumph this past Friday Night!!!
Two of his three scores coming on back-to-back kickoff returns at the conclusion of the 1st half and/or commencement of the 2nd half, Centeno-Johnson raced 75+ yards on both treks to paydirt as part of a 180-yard evening in this capacity!!
Further illustrating how dangerous he can be as a special teamer he added on an additional 52 yards as a punt returner (3 tries)!
Nominated not only as a NYCHSFL POTW, but also as a finalist for top weekly honors by LoHud, the gentleman in the #1 jersey was quite remarkable in terms of traditional offensive production to boot, as he’d average exactly 10ypc, rushing for 70 yards on 10 hand-offs, including striking for a third overall touchdown when he darted to the house from a distance of 37 yards!
The depths of his skillset immense, just for good measure, he rounded out a truly outstanding spectacle under the Friday Night lights by hauling in a 23-yard reception for his lone catch of the contest!!
Not to be overlooked is that at the onset of the regular season (Week #2), Centeno-Johnson burned CS for a 23-carry, 130-yard, 1TD showing!
It is inevitable that even more will be asked/required of the 12th grade senior in the coming week, as KC will now prepares himself to go toe-to-toe in a semifinal battle with 2022 AA-2 runners-up, Mount St. Michael Academy in hostile territory with a place in the ‘ship at stake!!
A return to Championship Weekend would mark the third time since 2018 (split the 2018 and 2019 “A” title games) that Kennedy Catholic played for the crown!
Seth Clarke (Jr.); DE/TE – Monsignor Farrell Lions
Quietly assembling a junior campaign that should warrant Triple-A Defensive Player of the Year consideration, the 6’2, 230-pounder from across the bridge (New Jersey), Clarke, showed that even in the midst of a night game, the sun can shine down on you, as he seemingly was in the right place at the right time on just about every key sequence of Farrell’s 36-0 quarterfinal shutout on November 3rd over the visiting Titans of Holy Trinity (Back-to-back Double-A Catholic League champs in 2021 and 2022)!!
An undeniable/irreplaceable component of the top-ranked defensive unit in the “AAA” classification, Clarke was the catalyst in propelling the Maroon & Gold to their second goose-egg yielding performance of the fall (24-0 over St. John the Baptist on October 8th)…
Spending as much time in the opposing backfield as he did on his own side of the line of scrimmage, the #1 shirt bolstered an already elite seasonal stat line by racking up a career-best 3 TFLs while tying his personal-high of 2 sacks…His 5 cumulative stops was second most on the squad and fell just one short of equaling the 6 he earned on three different occasions (most recently versus Canarsie during week #2)
Serving as the “cherry” in his mind-blowing outing were a pair of game-altering contributions, as he’d charge up the middle and get a mitt on the HT punt attempt, knocking the ball back to where it could be recovered on the 1-yard line to set up the QB sneak TD by Cristian Pinto (6-of-12 in the air for 141 yards and 2 TD throws; 41 yards + 1 TD on 5 carries), to make the score 14-0 with just under 3:00 remaining in the 1st quarter!
He’d then keep the shutout intact on HT’s first possession of the 3rd quarter when on 1st down inside his own 6, Clarke was the beneficiary of amazing pass coverage by two of his teammates, as he’d sprint in to register an interception in the end zone to secure the touchback with 9:02 to go in the stanza…
Upping his fall totals to 35 stops, 6 TFLs, 9 sacks, and 2 INTs by virtue of his strong body of work this past Friday, Clarke also found the energy and selflessness to make his presence felt on offense too, as he’d step in to act as a lead-blocker (from the TE position) for approximately 1/3 of snaps to assist in garnering a collective 193-yards/3TDs on land!
Up next for the “Amboy Road Den” will be a road trip to New Rochelle where the 3rd seeded Lions will attempt to punch their ticket to the finale for the second time in the last three years when they collide with Iona Prep…
In the first meeting between the two programs on September 30th, Clarke was credited with 4 tackles, 1 sack, a QB Hurry, and both forced/recovered a fumble!!
Benedetto Loria (Sr.); CB/Kicker/Punter – Xavier Knights
Making the POTW list for the first time in a varsity career that has seen him be a two-year mainstay at the CB position for the Knights’ “D”, the 6’0, 185-pound 12th grader out of Queens [Loria] played what Coach Stevens hailed as “one of his most productive evenings” in a 24-7 victory over St. Josephs by the Sea that both extended the program’s winning streak to five in a row (longest since 2015) and handed them their first AA-1 postseason dub since advancing all the way to the finals in 2018!!
Turning in a comprehensive effort that would have made current NFL All-Pro, Jalen Ramsay, and NFL Hall-of-Famer, Morten Andersen, very proud to have worn that same #5 jersey, Loria was a game-changer on both defense and special teams as the Manhattan based cohort limited their foes to 10 or less points for the third time in the past four attempts (pitching a shutout in the last 21:33)…
Having grown/developed into a shutdown presence that often draws the hardest assignment of the day among the personnel in the XR secondary, Loria was the main culprit in forcing Vikings’ QB, Nicholas Fiorentino, into an 8-for-20, 3 interception evening…
Thrown at (in his direction) on 20+ unique occasions, Loria surrendered only one modest 8-yard completion, while making a pair of tackles and adding a pass break-up!
His biggest single endeavor on “D” coming in the final 3:20 of the 4th quarter, Loria iced the semifinal berth when with Xavier up 24-7, he’d show himself to be a master of the tip drill, as he’d park himself under a ball that ricocheted off the hands of a SJS WR for the interception on the enemy 37 before returning it the 32….The turnover enabled the Knights to exhaust the rest of the clock to seal the “w”!!!
Putting the “special” in specialist, Loria continued to be “money” on his kick attempts, as he went 3-for-3 on PATs to improve to 26-of-28 on the year, while adding a 36-yard FG boot with 8:52 to go in the 4th quarter (to make the sure 24-7) to close out the point output for Xavier!!
His averages of 48.6 (5 KOs) and 31.7 (3 punts) made him quite adept at dictating opposing starting field position as an added bonus!!
All in all this fall, Loria has registered 21 stops and 2 interceptions on defense, while concurrently serving as one of the program’s top scoring threats as his 29 cumulative points is top-4 on the roster!!…He also has banked 15 touchbacks on kick-offs!!
A trip to Mitchel Field on the line this weekend, Loria and the Knights will stroll into Staten Island to clash with two-time returning AA-1 bridesmaids/top-seed, Moore Catholic….
The Mavs feature an especially gifted/deep WR corps; so Loria will have his hands full; but is no doubt able and up to the task!
Nick Scolaro (Jr.); CB – St. Peter’s Eagles
Talk about having a “nose for the ball” and veins of “ice water”, these were the characteristics exhibited by the 150-pound junior cornerback for the Eagles [Scolaro], as he made essential plays throughout the 48-minute affair, but was especially clutch during the final 12 minutes of regulation, as third-seeded St. Peter’s advanced to the Double semifinals for the first time since 2019 behind a 40-20 triumph over Fordham Prep on November 4th!
His signature moment coming with a little more than 7:00 to go in the 4th quarter (STP clinging to a 27-20 advantage), Scolaro delivered a backbreaker/death blow when on 2nd & 12, he’d accurately read the Rams’ passing route, jumping in and then wrestling the ball away from a FP receiver for the INT, before reversing direction and parading 8 yards to the house for the Pick-6 that doubled the cushion to 33-20!
One series earlier, it would be a pass break-up on 3rd &9 that ultimately paved the way for a turnover on downs inside the Eagle 30 (9:57 remaining in duration)!
Blanketing his assignment from start to finish, Scolaro would conclude the afternoon having accrued a career-high 5 total pass break-ups, 5 stops, and a TFL for a Blue & Gold defensive contingent that pitched a 2nd half shutout and has now allowed 20 or fewer points in seven of 10 appearances in 2023!
He’d also dart in from off the corner to deflect a PAT attempt following a FP score to send the teams into the intermission break deadlocked at 20 apiece!
One game away from making their return to Championship Saturday for the first since splitting the 2009 and 2010 “A” title contests, [Mark] DeCristoforo’s Eagles have a date with 2021 AA-2 runner-up, St. John the Baptist, in the semifinals!!
STP already owns a 19-14 victory against the Cougars this fall (Week #1); so they ought to have a slight mental edge!
Glenn Shepperd (So.); DB/LB – Moore Catholic Mavericks
There is a saying in sports that “no one is a youngster/rookie” when the postseason rolls around; and on Sunday afternoon, these words could not have been any truer in the case of the 5’10, 175-pound DB/LB hybrid [Shepperd], as his masterful effort on the defensive side of the ball was a centerpiece/cornerstone of a collective display that saw the host Mavs surrender only one short-yardage TD (2-yarder after a lost fumble) in a 28-8 quarterfinal victory over the Terriers of St. Francis Prep!
Establishing a new career-high in total tackles (12), while tying his previous best for TFLs with 2, the Staten Island resident tacked on a sack to round out what was an extraordinary demonstration of “coming of age” during the most important part of the season!!
Allowing just 90 yards of total offense and eight 1st downs during the 48-minute ordeal versus their guests from Fresh Meadows, the Moore D-Unit is 100% firing on all cylinders down the homestretch, as with the exception of allowing a big number to Triple-A #2 seed, Iona Prep, in week #8, the Red & Black hit squad have held three of their last four oppositions to single digits, including consecutive shutouts in weeks 5 and 6 versus Chaminade and St. Joe’s by the Sea…
Shepperd has especially been prominent during this period of “take no prisoners” defensive dominance, as 23 of his 64 tackles, 6 of 11 stops for losses, and all 2.5 sacks of his 2023 vitae have come in these victories over the Vikings, Flyers, and Terriers respectively!
On the cusp of making a third trip in as many years to the AA-1 finale, the top-seeded “Cattle” will need for Shepperd and company to bring A-level intensity with them to the field as they lock horns with 2022 AA-1 champs, Xavier, in a contest that could be determined by a battle of will/toughness!
Xavier likes to pound the ball on the ground; so expect for Sheppherd and his fellow DBs to be creeping into the box to serve as an extension of a powerful front-7!