Pittsburgh, PA - The Avonworth Antelopes smoked the North Catholic Trojans 42-21 on Friday night, the 13
th at Avonworth High School. If Friday the 13
th film series had a movie about a football game, this would have been it; North Catholic's play was enough to give people nightmares.
Some Background: 4A North Catholic entered this contest 4-3 on the year with a 3-1 record in section play. The Trojans were coming off an impressive come-from-behind victory over the Hampton Talbots the previous week, in which they trailed 10-7 at halftime and won 28-16, scoring 21 consecutive points to earn the win. Jack Fennell was excellent on the ground, and Kaden Sarvar was rock solid through the air in his first start of the year under center. Jason Siket, the starting quarterback for the previous six games, moved to wide receiver and led the team in receiving yards. Unfortunately, the senior suffered a foot injury that kept him off the practice field this week and caused him to be inactive for the game against Avonworth. In addition, center Oliver Gibson was sidelined for this week's game after suffering an injury in the Hampton game, which allowed a new-look offensive line a chance to impress with their new snaps. Despite those injuries and their impact on both sides of the ball, the matchups between these clubs favor North Catholic. They were great in the second half against Hampton, which gave hope for a similar performance in this game against the Lopes. The defense for the Trojans has been playing excellent for the Trojans this season. Its only area of weakness is the secondary. It has had holes in it all season long, and without Siket, who also plays safety, in the lineup, there was cause to be concerned, even if Avonworth hadn't had a dominant passing offense up to this point this season. The calling card of this defense is its ability to shut down the opposing offense's running attacks. That has been consistent all season. The expectation was that North Catholic would not only shut down their running game but force enough punts that the Trojans' offense would take the team the rest of the way, handing Avonworth their first loss of the year.
The 3A Avonworth Antelopes entered this matchup 7-0 on the year. This year, they have thoroughly dominated teams, including 4A Central Valley 28-20. They aren't a stranger to a big moment against any team, as evidenced by their sheer will to win. They have beaten teams by playing great defense, making key passes, and running the ball down the defense's throat. They have 1400 yards on the ground going into this game, along with 20 touchdowns. That's even without their star senior running back Brandon Biagiarelli, who has played just four games this season and would sit out against the Trojans. The passing game is controlled by sophomore quarterback Carson Bellinger, who has a 58% completion percentage, with 980 yards in passing with 15 touchdowns and a 109.1 QBR. Not too shabby. The defense holds up their end of the battle, generating 14 turnovers while allowing just 12.6 points per game on average.
Beaver gave them a run for their money in their previous game, but the Lopes battled their way back and won 33-28, maintaining their unblemished record. The game against North Catholic is also Senior Night for Avonworth's 45 seniors split between their marching band, cheer team, and football team, adding to the already tense rivalry between the two schools. Here's what the rivalry's next chapter holds.
The Game: North Catholic started with the ball at their 20-yard line and was aided by a pre-snap penalty by Avonworth, which brought them to the 25-yard line. From there, Sarvar got a 1st down with his legs, carrying the ball to the 36. Then suddenly, lightning struck! Jack Fennell took the handoff and hit the jets, going down the far sideline for pay dirt and the 64-yard touchdown (7-0 NC). Avonworth responded with a 9-play 65-yard drive, which was capped off by a 14-yard touchdown pass from Bellinger to senior wideout Andrew Kuban (7-7). The next three consecutive drives were all three-and-out punts, giving Avonworth the ball at their own 35 with 2:07 to go in quarter 1. What followed was a drive that would make Matt Canada blush. It was a 12-play, 65-yard drive that took 6:18 off the clock. The Trojans defense brought the Lopes to 4th and 4 from the North Catholic 20, but they converted on a 7-yard pass and catch to Kuban, who then put the cherry on top with the 10-yard touchdown 3 plays later. The air was let out of the Trojans' balloon, particularly their offense's balloon, and they needed an answer. They got one, but it was off a 90-yard kickoff return touchdown for Jack Fennell, who had more guys following him than Taylor Swift on singles night. It was an incredible display of athleticism, and it all knotted us up at 14. There was still 7:15 remaining in the 1st half, and Avonworth's offense continued to produce, in this case, against an exhausted North Catholic defense. The Trojans forced a 3rd and 16 from the Avonworth 30 and preceded to allow a 35-yard completion to Kuban for the first down. They capped off the drive 3 plays later with a 33-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Cooper Scharding (21-14 AV). The Trojans had a 3 and out on their next drive and gave the ball back to the Lopes at their 28-yard line with 2:33 remaining. Avonworth executed a perfect set of plays that quickly carved up the North Catholic defense. Just 2:08 later, the Lopes were up 28-14. That score took us into halftime, with the Trojans being doubled up on the board and Avonworth getting the ball after halftime.
Coming out of the half, the Trojans were hoping to force a punt and keep the red-hot Lopes offense off the board, but they weren't so fortunate. Avonworth launched a 10-play 75-yard drive that culminated in a 30-yard run by freshman running back Bryce Metz (35-14 AV). That was a deflating blow to North Catholic, yet they still continued to battle. Avonworth's next drive was thwarted by two sacks by outstanding junior Brady O'Hara, forcing a punt on a 4th and 30. On the Trojans' next drive, they started with a 12-yard gain by Fennell, followed by another 4-yard rush by North Catholic, the last play of the 3rd quarter. North Catholic, hoping for a better quarter than the previous two, took a shot on 2nd and 6 toward the endzone, and it was caught for the Touchdown! But wait! It was called back for holding. As if matters could not get worse for the Trojans, the next play was intercepted. That summed up the night for the North Catholic offense—one step forward, 5 steps back. Avonworth would score another touchdown, putting them up 42-14. To their credit, the North Catholic offense wasn't done fighting yet. They put together a touchdown drive in the final 3 minutes of the 4th quarter, culminating in a touchdown pass to Jack White—an impressive show of competitive fire and pride. Avonworth closed the contest with a 42-21 victory over North Catholic.
Offensive Takeaways: The Trojans' offense did not have a good showing in this game. The main problem was no consistent production from their best players. When all was said and done, the offense had 196 all-purpose yards. That will not be enough against most teams, let alone an undefeated Avonworth team. Regardless of what classification Avonworth is in, they are a good football team. Simply put, the lack of production is not good enough for playoff teams. It might work against Indiana next week, but it's not going against Mars the week after. Something that might help could be making it an emphasis to get Brady O'Hara the ball more. He didn't catch a single pass in this game despite his 6'6, 245-pound frame. He has the wheels after the catch, and he's tough to bring down once he gets motoring. If he has good coverage on him, throw him a ball that gives him a chance to reel it in, and he'll get it most of the time, without question. They should try it, even if it's not the answer. They will be good against a subpar Indiana team next week, as a better test will come when they play Mars at the end of the month.
Defensive Takeaways: North Catholic's defense was left out to drive against Avonworth as the Lopes walked, ran, and threw all over them almost all night. The defensive unit was on the field for extended periods throughout the game due to their inability to win on 3rd downs. Avonworth dominated the line of scrimmage for most of the night, except for the two instances where Brady O'Hara broke through for a pair of sacks; the Trojans' pass rush was not a factor. The secondary got lit up again by a savvy quarterback with a solid arm, who made them pay multiple times after losing their man downfield. Danny Franco and his linebacking counterpart Kaden Sarvar had another solid game, as they kept the middle of the field dry. Still, the Lopes worked the sidelines for big plays consistently. When North Catholic would give them an inch, Avonworth took a mile. The offense did the defense no favors in this game either, as the 3-and-outs for the Trojans gave the Lopes the ball often, which wore out the defense, who couldn't seem to get off the field. The bottom line is this secondary either has to get better, or the defensive line has to. One or the other, because giving up 4 passing touchdowns to a team whose bread and butter is on the ground is unacceptable, and the players will be the first ones to tell you that. Something has to give, and next week against Indiana should be a good game to bring back confidence to this group.
Moving Forward: This is a great game to learn from for North Catholic. They are a team that is better than what they showed in this matchup. Look for them to come out fast and furious on Senior Night against Indiana this Friday, the 20th, at Lt. JC Stone Field at 7 o'clock. If you cannot make it in person to support the Trojans, please join us on the North Catholic Sports Network for our live broadcast of the game. Have a great week, and Let's Go, Trojans!
*The North Catholic Special Teams unit played remarkably well against Avonworth. Jack Fennell and Gavin Kamody were extraordinary on the returns of kickoffs and punts. That extends to all the guys in front of them who did an excellent job blocking for them. Austin Gaetano was exceptional. They have been genuinely superb this season so far, but this is a great game to highlight their achievements, especially since they were North Catholic's best unit all night, and certainly their most consistent this year.
