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Aquinas overwhelms East
By ED PUSKAS
YOUNGSTOWN
Jim Vivo was too sick to coach on Saturday and the East High football team didn’t look much better than their coach felt.
Vivo, East’s first-year coach, was reportedly battling a 103-degree fever and was not at Rayen Stadium, where Louisville St. Thomas Aquinas controlled the Panthers from start to finish in a 37-6 victory.
Five different players scored touchdowns for the Division V Knights, who improved to 7-1 with their fifth consecutive victory.
Josiah Moore, Nick Mudd and Bryan Wilkins had rushing touchdowns as St. Thomas Aquinas gained 170 yards on the ground on 37 attempts.
Quarterback Anthony Moeglin also was effective, completing 7 of 11 passes for 120 yards. Moeglin threw touchdown passes to Alex Benedetti and Boston College-bound tight end Joel Rich.
“Our biggest issue is we just haven’t learned how to prepare,” East assistant coach Jeff Bruno said. “It’s been the problem all year. We just don’t know how to prepare and get ready to play a football game against quality people.”
East (3-5) had won two of its last three games, but starting running back Derrick Tensley was out with an injury and two defensive starters did not play for disciplinary reasons.
The game was scoreless halfway through the first quarter when a snap sailed over the head of punter Lester Bell and into the south end zone at Jack Antonucci Field. Bell had no choice but to kick the ball out of the back of the end zone for a safety at the 5:16 mark of the first quarter.
The Knights took advantage of a short field when Moore ran for a 12-yard touchdown less than a minute later to make it 9-0.
Mudd’s 1-yard run up the middle made it 16-0 just 53 seconds into the second quarter and more special-teams misery came less than two minutes later, when St. Thomas Aquinas blocked a punt for another short-field possession.
That one ended when Moeglin found Benedetti for a 21-yard touchdown pass and a 23-0 lead.
The Knights, sixth in Division V Region 17, were never threatened by the Division I Panthers.
“They’re good,” Bruno said.
Quarterback Rayfield Bell provided perhaps both of East’s offensive highlights on the Panthers’ lone scoring drive late in the second quarter.
Bell somehow got the ball to a triple-covered Jamir Humphrey for a 46-yard gain. Moments later, on fourth-and-1 from the Knights’ 2-yard line, the converted wide receiver sprinted around left end on a naked bootleg for East’s only touchdown with 2:32 left in the first half.
Wilkins led the Knights with 56 yards on 15 carries.
Melvin Land led East with 45 yards on eight carries. Rayfield Bell ran for 42 yards on 14 carries and completed 6 of 16 passes for 90 yards.