By Mike McGraw
Executive Director
INDIANAPOLIS
– If you are an Indianapolis Cathedral fan, here is the good news: The fifth-ranked
Fighting Irish defeated Zionsville, 27-11, in their Class 4A Regional 7 showdown
Nov. 14. The Irish rushed for nearly 350 yards, including 184 by quarterback
Kofi Hughes, and their defense limited Zionsville to just 19 first-half yards.
Perhaps
best of all, an offense known for long, sustained drives hit on a number of big
plays in the soggy game held at Indianapolis Arlington.
Now,
here is the bad news: The Irish were penalized 12 times for a total of 110
yards, and that does not include three flags that were declined by the Eagles.
In the second half, it would be an understatement to say Cathedral’s pass
defense was less than solid.
If
Columbus East is the opponent next week, both of those sins could prove deadly.
Cathedral
had to overcome its own mistakes from the very beginning of this contest. The
Irish fumbled the opening kickoff, and Zionsville recovered at the Cathedral
21-yard line. After limiting the Eagles without a single yard on three plays,
Cathedral was whistled for pass interference on 4th and 10. The fresh set of
downs led to a 20-yard field goal for a quick 3-0 Zionsville lead.
On
their first drive of the evening, the Irish drove deep into Zionsville
territory only to be stopped on a 4th and 5 at the Eagles’ 25. Once again
Zionsville could not move, but an excellent punt pinned Cathedral at its own 15
to start the next surge.
It
didn’t last long. On the first play, Hughes went 85 yards for a touchdown, allowing
Cathedral to seize a 7-3 lead after the extra-point kick with 43 seconds left
in the opening quarter.
The
second period was all Cathedral.
Starting
from their own 20, the Irish marched 80 yards in 10 plays – all on the ground –
and scored on a seven-yard scamper by Nick Najem. Late in the quarter, Jake
Zupancic intercepted a Zionsville pass and returned it to the Eagles’ 33. The
Irish then efficiently marched to paydirt in six plays, capped by a 10-yard run
from Hughes.
After
halftime, however, Cathedral was nowhere nearly as effective offensively. The
Irish failed to move on their first possession of the third quarter, then saw
Zionsville produce its first sustained drive of the game. It culminated in a
12-yard scoring pass from Melvin Woodard to tight end Alex Lupinski.
The Eagles
were successful on a two-point conversion, and suddenly what had appeared to be
a blowout was a 21-11 game with a little over a minute left in the third
quarter. And Zionsville made things even more interesting when the Eagles
blocked a Cathedral punt early in the fourth quarter and took over at the Irish
40.
They
were stopped on downs, however, and that gave Cathedral an opportunity to
eliminate any lingering doubt. On the subsequent drive, the Irish moved 69
yards and scored on a 17-yard pass from Hughes to Tom Bemenderfer. Fittingly, the
Irish were victimized by one of their many penalties on the PAT and failed to
convert the kick, leading to the final margin.
Cathedral
will either travel to Columbus next weekend for the highly anticipated showdown
with top-ranked Columbus East or host No. 11 Jasper, depending on the outcome
of that duo’s Saturday night contest in Dubois County.
Is this the year Columbus East
gets past perennial power Cathedral?
Tell us about it on our Football message board.
