XAVIER-22; FORDHAM PREP-21
EPIC FINISH!!!
The 102nd edition of the Turkey Bowl will not soon be forgotten!!!
In a game that featured four lead changes during the 4th quarter; it would be a 19-yard field goal on the last snap of the morning from the leg of senior specialist, Theo Sheridan-Vitale that proved to be the difference-maker as the visiting 2025 AA-1 Champion Knights stole the 22-21 triumph against the archnemesis Rams of Fordham Prep!!
Trailing 21-19 with just over 3:00 (3:07) remaining in regulation; the traditional/vaunted Xavier run attack gave way to an air raid as field general, Peter Heaney, would connect on 4-of-6 of throws, including a 21-yard hook-up to Ace Jernstedt on 4th &5, multiple pitch-and-catches to Michael Schechner (23 and 11 yards respectively), and a 14-yard exchange to Liam Averill (to the FP 5) to march the Manhattanites 83 yards to set up the dramatic conclusion!!
Win/loss records (Xavier entering at 10-2; Fordham Prep at 3-8) being thrown out the window when these two programs collide; to the credit of both Coaches—DeFalco and Deane’s charges—there was no quit from either sideline on November 27th; and every time we thought we had seen a death blow landed; there would be an emphatic response…
The Knights clinging to a 12-7 advantage when the final stanza commenced; a 54-yard screen pass from Colin Ballantyne to Lake Chiesi to the opposing 1-yard line set up a Tyler Williams’ TD run on the ensuing snap to give the “horns” their first lead of the day, 15-12 (Alessandro Sanchez hauled in the 2pt conversion pass), with 7:17 left in the 4Q…
Xavier’s answer coming just about 2:00 later, it was Heaney peeling runs of 15 and 9 yards respectively to advance the ball to his own 44 before Elijah Stewart exploded for a 56-yard trek to the promised land for his ninth rushing score of the fall to put his school back in front, 19-15 (5:13 remaining)…
The back-and-forth flipping of the scoreboard continuing on the ensuing FP possession; aided by a 15-yard personal foul penalty that moved the pigskin to the XR 45; it was Junior RB, Luke McKay notching runs of 10 yards (to the Knight 35) and 23 yards (to the house) to make it a 21-19 contest (PAT attempt was mishandled)
With all these points being piled up in the last 12:00 of action; you might think that the defenses were not sharp in the 2nd half….
Nothing could be further from the truth as the “D” personnel for each unit took turns shutting down the other for the entirety of the 3rd quarter and the early stages of the 4th…
In this regard, the Rams’ contingent especially stood tall and stout as on two separate occasions prior to the fireworks, they’d halt potential game-clinching series from the Knights…
A shanked punt (induced by a QB hurry from XR’s James Halpin, Kenneth Swanson, and Sebastian Myers on 3rd down) resulting in the Knights taking control on the FP 35; a Nicholas Monaco stuff on 4th & 4th yielded a T.O.D. on the Ram 25…
Shortly after, an INT (pick-6 that was negated by a penalty on the return) courtesy of Brian Caulfield, gave Xavier the ball back inside the FP red zone; but this time, it was Kevin Cameron registering a strip sack on his own 20 (recovered by David Agyemang on the 31) preventing any damage from being inflicted!
While not as high-scoring, there was no shortage of highlight moments during the 1st half either; as Heaney struck for his 18th and 19th TD runs of 2025 when he called his own number on runs of 7 (2:55 to go in 1st quarter) and 38 yards (2nd quarter; complemented by two previous 12-yard runs + a 15-yard facemask penalty) to propel Xavier to a 12-0 cushion…
Fordham Prep got on the board and cut the deficit to 12-7 with 3:30 to go before the break when a 31-yard screen pass to McKay moved them to the XR 4; and then on the next snap, Ballantyne hit Sanchez at the pylon for the TD!
Heaney and company almost retaliated in the waning moments before the intermission as his 22-yard run was complemented by a Justin Landberg 30-yard misdirection sprint to get as close as the Ram 23…
To the credit of Matthew Schaller and [Tyler] Williams; they each made clutch stops to stall the march and eventually yield a turnover on downs in the final 10 ticks to keep it a 12-7 affair!!!
By virtue of the Thursday triumph, Xavier has now prevailed in the Turkey Bowl in back-to-back years (after losing four straight) to improve their resume in the rivalry to 43-55-4!
Stewart, who played admirably on both sides of the line of scrimmage was named as the Most Valuable Player recipient!
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CARDINAL HAYES-38; MOUNT ST. MICHAEL ACADEMY-7
AND THE STREAKS LIVES IN….12 IN A ROW FOR THE CARDINALS!!!
Entering today’s Turkey Bowl as the owners of a 1-8 record (many narrow losses); it goes without saying that Cardinal Hayes was looking for a reason to be thankful; and they found that rationale through the stellar performances on both sides of the ball en route to the 38-7 victory in the battle Bronx supremacy against the host Mountaineers of Mount St. Michael Academy!!
Scoring on all six of their true possessions (not including the end of the 1st half when the mercy clock did not provide them with ample time with which to work); the Maroon & Gold looked like a well-oiled machine in all facets….
Breaking the ice with 7:23 remaining in the 1st quarter was sophomore sensation, Khalid Hodges, who after converting on 4th down earlier in the march, put the drive to bed when he punched in on a 4-yarder to give Hayes the 6-0 edge…
First-year field general/junior QB, Kyle Mercorelli, also proved invaluable on the opening possession, as he’d tally a 17-yard run followed by a 20-yard connection to Saleh Atariwa to move the ball inside the Mount red zone…
A three-and-out forced by the defense resulting in a punt to the Hayes 41; it did not take Kymonni Valentine long to get his name in the box score as he detonated for a 52-yard run to glory to quick double the cushion to 12-0 (4:45 to go in the stanza)…
A mishandle on the ensuing kickoff by the Mountaineers allowing Jaden Dehere to scoop up the free ball on the MSM 32; Mercorelli hit Adonis Cottes for a 15-yard hook-up to the opposing 4-yard line and then took it the rest of the way on a keeper to up the margin the 20-0 (2:12 left in 1Q)…
Prior to the aforementioned short TD scramble from the Elizabeth, NJ resident [Mercorelli]; Hedges almost had his second score of the morning as he cruised to the house from a distance of 19 yards away; but a penalty wiped out the sequence…
The hosts from Murdock Avenue “mounting” (slight pun intended) their best chance at points during the opening 24 minutes of play early in the 2nd quarter (8:50 before halftime); they’d advance as close as the Cardinals’ 30; but ultimately had the 47-yard field goal attempt block by the middle of the Hayes DL to remain scoreless…
Feeding off of the buzz of the big defensive stand; the Hayesmen did not hesitate to extend the score to 26-0 as less than 1:00 after the unsuccessful kick try; it was Erik Drobnak hauling in a leaping 34-yard reception from Mercorelli (to the MSM 30) as a precursor to the latter’s 2nd TD trek of the day on the next snap!
The situation going from bad to tragic for Mount St. Michael; the penultimate possession of the 1st half was short-lived as Hayes’ freshman DL, Justin Flowers, shot up the middle with a pass rush, thus causing an errant pass that was picked off by Malachi Lassiter….
The verdict seemingly no longer in doubt; Coach CJ O’Neil began to get some of his other personnel some touches prior to the intermission; and no one capitalized more off of this opportunity than 11th grader, Johnnye Booker, who darted 45 yards on a QB draw to the MSM 16 and then later cashed-in on a 9-yard keeper (32-0; 3:17 prior to the break)!!
Feet still firmly on the pedal at the start of the 2nd half despite the one-sided scoreboard; carries for 15 and 9 yards by Valentine (to the Mount 31) set up later runs of 10 (jet sweep) and 5 yards (TD) courtesy of Justice Baldwin to round out the scoring (38-0) for the Cardinals with 5:33 remaining in the 3Q!
Keeping up the fight and demonstrating their spirit; with 9:50 to go in regulation, the Mountaineers showcased some immense creativity when Drew Diaz transformed a double-reverse into a 55-yard house call to prevent the shutout!!!
Hayes’ senior, Semaj Lowe, had the “play of the day” as he displayed his rockets on an 80-yard jet sweep to paydirt; but the touchdown unfortunately was erased by a penalty!
Not going unnoticed or under-appreciated on “D” for Hayes were the likes of Andrew Gill, Jeremiah Jackson, Jahve Tucker, and/or Mohamed Gaye (also put Hayes in position to score one final bonus TD late in the 4th behind two big grabs); all of whom brought the heat on the pass rush, completely stuffed the MSM ground attack, or were lockdown with their cover skills!