Cardinal Mooney Vs. Ursuline

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Ursuline wins 44-7

Team

Ursuline

Record	Div.	Conf.
1/9	Div. IV	Independents

Team

Cardinal Mooney

Record	Div.	Conf.
4/6	Div. IV	Independents

Teague leads Irish victory

By Tom Williams

williams@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Two bone-rattling tackles helped turn a tight contest between defending state champions into a blowout.

With Mooney leading 7-6 in the third quarter, the Cardinals lost defensive lineman Chris DeChellis and linebacker Pat McGlone to injuries. After Akise Teague’s 5-yard touchdown put Ursuline ahead for good, the Irish tacked on four touchdowns in the fourth quarter for a 44-7 victory on Friday at Stambaugh Stadium.

“Sometimes it’s hard to refocus, especially when it happens a second time,” Mooney coach P.J. Fecko said of the injuries and long delays. “The momentum really deflated from there.”

Mooney coaches said they expect DeChellis and McGlone to be OK. Both were taken off the field on stretchers.

Teague, who rushed 16 times for 184 yards, put the hit on McGlone.

“I felt bad, I didn’t want to hurt him,” Teague said. “I was just trying to get my yardage. Maybe they were down but I doubt it — they had a great D. It was a fight to get into that end zone.”

Of the injuries, Irish lineman Pete Wearsch said, “That’s the first time I’ve ever seen anything like that — watching on TV or playing.

“It was scary and I felt real bad for those guys, they were down for quite a while,” Wearsch said. “They were a little rattled by the injuries and Akise scoring right there. It was a combination of all things.”

When play resumed, Teague scored a 5-yard touchdown to put the Irish ahead for good. Tramain Thigpen’s conversion run gave the Irish a 14-7 lead.

Mooney drove to midfield but turned the ball over on downs when a fake punt play came up a few yards short.

The Irish quickly march 50 yards with quarterback Paul Kempe scoring on an 11-yard run for a 22-7 lead with 10:47 to go.

In full desperation mode, the Cardinals went to the air and the Irish made them pay, converting two Kevin McGuire interceptions into quick touchdowns.

First, Teague returned a pickoff 38 yards for six points. Then after Thigpen stole a pass, Kempe hit Teague alone in the Cardinals secondary for a 39-yard score with 9:13 remaining.

“Ursuline is an outstanding football team,” Fecko said. “They have the ability to break it at any time.

“Teague is a guy who’s been playing really well for a long time.”

The Irish dominated the first quarter, taking the lead on the game’s second offensive play (Teague’s 50-yard touchdown) and outrushing the Cardinals 154 to minus-13).

The Division III defending state champions responded by taking charge in the second quarter.

After stopping Teague a yard short on a fourth-and-4 play at the Mooney 34, the Cardinals then ran the next 16 plays.

“We did a pretty good job of forcing turnovers and moving the ball,” Fecko said. “We ate up a lot of clock. We moved [into the red zone] but came out with no points which was disheartening.”

Jeff Podolsky’s end zone interception ended Mooney’s first real threat, but Tramain Thigpen’s fumble two plays later gave the Cardinals a second chance.

This time, McGuire capped a six-play, 35-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown run on a fourth-and 1 play to tie the game. A.J. Fox’s conversion kick put Mooney ahead, 7-6.

“We weren’t really panicking all that much,” Wearsch said of the halftime deficit. “It’s just the way football goes, you’ve got to deal with it.”

Conlan agreed.

”We came out in the second half strong,” Conlan said. “We kept our heads up even though we were down going in to [halftime].”

The Irish (9-0) are this week’s number-one team in an Associated Press poll of state Div. V schools. They also possess the top spot in the Region 17 playoff computer ratings.

“We faltered on some penalties and then a couple of sacks and come out with nothing,” Fecko said. “And we missed a long field-goal [attempt]. We didn’t do a good job of finishing.”

The Cardinals (5-3) are ranked sixth in the state poll and first in the Region 9 ratings.

“This is always the biggest game on Ursuline’s schedule,” Wearsch said. “It always will be.”

Conlan said, “We knew it was going to be a battle all four quarters. “It’s a rivalry game but I don’t want to see anybody get hurt.”