Ohio City - And now there is one.
The game every Freshmen Football Player at Saint Ignatius anticipates as the season progresses is just a week away.
Coach Rodney Gallaway's talented and tough-mined young Wildcats continued their winning ways on Thursday night, as they took command early and turned back the ninth-grade Ramblers from Erie (Pa.) Cathedral Prep, 19-0, in what was the final Freshmen home game of 2017 on Wasmer Field.
Riding a four-game winning streak and a record of 6-3, the Freshmen 'Cats will now focus their attention on the ninth-grade Eagles from rival St. Edward High School. The annual season finale this year will take place next Thursday (October 26th) at 6 pm in the Eagles' Brother James Everett Stadium.
"I read a saying the other day that said, 'Everybody likes to win, but winners love to prepare,'" said former Wildcats football great and current Assistant Football Coach Mark Ruddy '90 during the postgame address in the Lorain Avenue end zone on Thursday night.
Preparation was the operative word after the triumph over Cathedral Prep, as Coach Gallaway emphasized to his 'Cats that they will represent Saint Ignatius this coming week in a manner that he, the Athletic Department and the entire Administration at Cleveland's Jesuit Preparatory School have come to expect from their young athletes.
The rivalry with St. Edward will be decided on the field, not in Social Media, was another point of emphasis from Coach Gallaway.
In many ways, Thursday night's victory over a spirited, but lacking in depth Cathedral Prep team, was decided early.
On what was another prefect late October night in Cleveland, the Wildcats took the opening kickoff and, behind the field generalship of quarterback JP Tijanich and the running of standout tailback Mike Simcak, dove 60 yards in 10 plays. Capping the march was a 23-yard field goal by very promising kicker Declan Mangan with five minutes and three seconds remaining in the first quarter.
After Saint Ignatius forced the Ramblers to punt from their 9-yard line, the 'Cats were in business with a first down at midfield.
Three consecutive carries by Simcak that featured Mike's vision, strength, speed and balance, including a 23-yard burst over the left side, put the pigskin on the Cathedral Prep 15-yard line.
From there, Tijanich, off a nice fake, kept the ball and covered those 15 yards on a sprint down the sideline and into the Lorain Avenue end zone. Mangan's extra-point kick made it a 10-0 game with 1:16 remaining in the opening quarter.
Cathedral Prep, which defeated Saint Ignatius on the Freshmen level last year under a persistent rain in the atmosphere-rich city that time forgot, Erie (Pa.), rode the running and pass catching of its 5-foot-4, 130-pound running back/linebacker Paniro Johnson to a first down at the Saint Ignatius 28-yard line.
The Cats' defense, under the tutelage of Coordinator Pat Hopkins '14, responded with a determined and quick-off-the-ball play by two-way lineman Ashauni Suhak that resulted in a 3-yard loss. After a procedure penalty on the Ramblers, nose-for-the-ball defensive back Christopher Snyder intercepted a pass inside the Saint Ignatius 15-yard line and returned the ball to the Cathedral Prep 35.
From there, a diving reception by the versatile Alec LaSpina that saw Alec outfight the defender for the ball, and two authoritative runs by Simcak resulted in Mike's 2-yard touchdown effort into the scoreboard end zone of Wasmer Field. The PAT was blocked and Saint Ignatius led, 16-0, with five minutes to go before halftime.
With the Wildcats' defense continuing to make clutch athletic plays, including a pass breakup along the sideline by ever-present linebacker Drake Larson and an exceptional open-field tackle by linebacker Killian Schill, Cathedral Prep was again forced to punt from deep in its territory.
After a bad snap from center, the Ramblers' punter chased after the ball, picked it up and kicked it on the run. A gallant, but under heavy pressure effort resulted in the ball going out of bounds at the Cathedral Prep 30-yard line.
Three more second- and third-effort runs by Simcak put the ball on the Ramblers' 6-yard line, and three plays later Mangan was high and true on a 31-yard field goal with 11.4 seconds left in the first half.
Simcak finished with 147 yards rushing on 18 carries behind what was another take-charge night from veteran Coach Matt Mooney's (Class of 1985) offensive line.
Down 19-0 entering the second half, Cathedra Prep showed some grit and character by eating up all but 12.6 seconds of the third quarter on a drive that was fueled by the running and receiving skills of Johnson, the strong running of tailback Jaheim Williams and the receiving of running back Aidan Kelly.
The 'Cats' defense bent a little, but certainly didn't break. Among those helping keep the shutout in place were Suhak and linebackers Aidan Hubbard, Aidan Conway and Nick Velotta.
BACK IN ACTION: It was great to see defensive back Andrew Chime roaming Wasmer Field on Thursday night, as Andrew has recovered from a late September injury versus Glenville.
We will see you at Wasmer Field on Saturday for the 10 AM Junior Varsity football matchup with St. Xavier and of course at Byers Field in Parma's Robert M. Boulton Stadium Saturday afternoon for the 3 pm state and area headliner between the 7-1 Varsity Football 'Cats and the 8-0 St. Xavier Bombers.