Sunday, September 29, 2013
By Greg Gulas
YOUNGSTOWN
Mark Handel rushed for 99 yards and C.J. Amill added 68 more yards, each scoring a touchdown as the Cardinal Mooney High football team defeated Mentor Lake Catholic, 17-7, Saturday at Youngtown State University’s Stambaugh Stadium.
Handel’s 69-yard run on the game’s first play gave the Cardinals a 7-0 advantage.
Handel said executing a new blocking scheme was the main reason he had an open field to the end zone.
“The offensive line blocked perfectly, opening a nice hole that I was able to get through pretty much untouched,” Handel said. “When the outside opened up, I just went with it right to the goal line.
“We play a really tough schedule and after being shut out last week by Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, we really needed this win in order to get back on the winning track.”
While the game had the makings of an offensive shootout, it quickly settled into a defensive battle. The Cardinals’ defense held the Cougars to zero rushing yards on 15 first-half attempts and 39 yards overall.
Lake Catholic knotted the game at 7-7 on a Ricky Osborne 7-yard run with 1:24 remaining in the opening frame.
“We did a really good job of being physical in the first half, but still needed to make some adjustments at halftime,” Mooney coach P.J. Fecko said. “Our guys up front did a nice job, especially in the heat.
“And in addition to both Mark [Handel] and C.J. [Amill], we were able to spread the ball out and give carries to others with fresh legs,” Fecko said. “Defensively, we were flying to the ball.
“Mark’s speed gave us the early lead, but C.J. is a hard runner as well and today he made two key first downs while getting some really tough yards on his second effort.”
Amill’s 2-yard run at 6:39 of the third quarter gave the Cardinals a 14-7 margin.
“Coach told us that we had to step it up and everyone did just that today,” Amill said. “The offensive line did their part and defensively, everyone did a phenomenal job of limiting any extra yardage.”
Zak Kennedy closed out the scoring when he connected on a 22-yard field goal midway through the final frame.
Kennedy’s score capped a 16-play, 76-yard drive that took eight minutes and 25 seconds off the clock.
Mooney (3-2) held a 28:48-19:12 time of possession advantage, running 59 plays to just 38 by the Cougars.
“We’re 1-4 and we’ve had a challenging schedule, but there are no excuses on our end,” Lake Catholic coach Mike Bell said. “We need to improve in certain areas but the encouraging part for me as coach is that our players have played hard and with plenty of fight.
“What hurt us today was after we scored our offense couldn’t complement what our defense was doing.”
Handel also added three receptions for 54 yards.
Dylan Bell completed six of 13 attempts for 65 yards for Lake Catholic.