By Steve ruman

sports@vindy.com

WARREN

Early Saturday morning, the Warren John F. Kennedy High football team received some good news.

Because of the way the games played out on Friday night, the Eagles had officially clinched a home playoff game. They are currently ranked fourth in Division VII, Region 25.

However, the celebration was short-lived.

Saturday evening, the Eagles (8-1) dropped their first game of the year, losing to Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph 14-10 at Mollenkopf Stadium.

JFK entered the contest with the only undefeated record in the Mahoning Valley. The loss means that for the second year in a row, no area school will finish the regular season with a perfect mark. At least one Valley team had logged an undefeated regular-season for 17 straight years before the streak was snapped in 2015.

Kennedy’s shot at perfection ended thanks to a pair of big fourth quarter plays by the Vikings offense. Quarterback Aubrey Shabazz connected with Danny McGarry on a 25-yard pass to the end zone on the first play of the fourth quarter to give St. Joe’s its first points and a 7-3 advantage. After Kennedy regained the lead on a Danny McCartney 25-yard touchdown run, Shabazz hooked up with McGarry on a screen pass which turned into a 70 yard game-winning score.

“This was our playoff game for us,” said VASJ coach John Stoney, whose 4-5 Vikings are eliminated from the post-season. “This was our playoffs, we wanted to rise to the occasion and win against an extremely good opponent.”

The Vikings did just that thanks to a change at quarterback in the second half.

McGarry started the game under center, and completed just 2 of 8 passes for 12 yards. However, following the break Shabazz took the snaps, and McGarry was placed as a wideout.

The move proved to be the game-changer.

With just 1:14 remaining in the contest, VASJ faced a third-and-25 at its own 30. Shabazz connected with McGarry, who broke several tackles near the line of scrimmage, then made a number of moves downfield to bust loose for the 70-yard score.

“I can’t wait to see [McGarry’s] touchdown on film,” Storey said. “It looked like he got faster as he ran. He made one heck of a play.”

JFK coach Jeff Bayuk was left wishing that VASJ had never made the switch at quarterback.

“One thing we didn’t want to see was [McGarry] as a receiver,” Bayuk said. “When he was at quarterback, we had eleven guys that could watch him. As a receiver, it’s tougher to keep track of him.

“If I told you how many times this week we practiced that touchdown play they ran you would be amazed. But you just can’t simulate (McGarry’s) talent.”

Kennedy scored the first points of the game in the early part of the second quarter on a Justin Bofenkamp 25-yard field goal. The 3-0 advantage held up until the fourth period when the first Shabazz-to-McGarry touchdown gave the Vikings a 7-3 lead.

Kennedy responded with a six-play drive, capped by McCartney’s 25-yard run with 2:26 left. However, the Vikings needed just five plays to regain the lead for good.

“We played a great game defensively, but you can’t give up big plays, and we didn’t help ourselves offensively tonight,” Bayuk said. “Most of all, I am really disappointed in our lack of discipline on the field.”