Leeds hands Cavaliers 2nd loss
LEEDS — For John Carroll Catholic High School’s football team, Friday night’s game started badly and got worse.
The Cavaliers gave up a fumble that Leeds scooped up for a touchdown on the game’s first play from scrimmage, and never caught up with host Leeds in a 55-24 storm-delayed loss.
Even with the lopsided score, John Carroll had its chances to keep the Green Wave within sight at different times during the contest but failed to capitalize on opportunities.
After a first half played under ideal conditions, the weather played a major factor in the second half as high winds blew in during halftime. Those winds actually helped the Cavs on the opening kickoff after the break.
Kicking into the teeth of the oncoming storm, the ball held up long enough for D’Wuan Williams to scramble and recover it cleanly on the Leeds 27-yard line. But John Carroll could not make the recovery count and nearly fumbled the ball away on the very next play, finally turning the ball over on downs.
It was one of two times the Cavs drove deep into Green Wave territory, only to stall out.
“We made those young-football-team mistakes that good football teams don’t make. If we make those two scores, we’re back in the ball game,” John Carroll coach Logan Colanfrancesco said. “It’s just small things that hurt you at the worst times."
After the first-play scoop and score, the Cavs marched their hurry-up offense downfield over 11 plays, finishing with a 3-yard touchdown pass from Nicholas Sellers to Zach Elliott. The extra point was no good, though, and that’s as close as the visitors got for the rest of the game.
Leeds closed out the first quarter with a pair of touchdowns within 31 seconds, the first a 64-yard bomb from Nick Armstrong to Alphoncie Hopson, and the second on a 25-yard run by Cameron Dunklin after John Carroll fumbled the preceding kickoff away.
The game still didn’t really get out of hand, as the Cavs got two touchdowns in the second quarter on runs by Aaron Mason. They then cut the margin to 11 points just before halftime when Sellers connected with Ethan Cull on a 17-yard scoring toss with six seconds on the clock.
The game was delayed by lightning and high winds with 6:01 left in the third period. Play resumed after a break of more than an hour, but the Green Wave rolled over their opponents for the rest of the way, with Armstrong and Jakobi Hunter accounting for two touchdowns each out of the three scored. Armstrong and Hunter ran for one score each and combined for the third on a 15-yard touchdown pass.
Sellers gave way at quarterback to fellow Cavalier sophomore Jharad Johnson after absorbing a big hit on the second quarter, and then on more snaps after the rain delay
Still, John Carroll’s defense had no ready answer for Leeds’ speedy running backs and receivers. Armstrong had just six pass attempts for the night, but three were for touchdowns.
For the Cavs, Mason tallied 140 yards on 18 carries. John Carroll has opened the season with two losses, but Colanfrancesco told his team to consider those as “mulligans,” as they go into region play at Fairfield next week.
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