For pictures from the game, click here.
The Irish sailed past
Beaver Local, 28-0, for their seventh win.
By CHUCK HOUSTEAU
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
YOUNGSTOWN — It wouldn't have been surprising if the Ursuline High football team had come out flat against Beaver Local Thursday night at Stambaugh Stadium.
The Irish were working on a short week and facing a team with just one victory.
The Irish (7-1) also couldn't be faulted if they just might be looking ahead to next week's matchup with archrival Cardinal Mooney.
"We talked about it a lot early in the week [about staying focused]," Ursuline Irish coach Dan Reardon said. "But we went out and our kids had a very good week of practice."
That strong work week translated into an efficient 28-0 win over Beaver Local (1-7).
Defensively, Ursuline's performance was dominating for the most part.
The Irish held the Beavers to just 50 yards rushing and 185 yards of total offense.
Beaver Local threatened to score just once before halftime after a 64-yard halfback pass caught the Irish by surprise and gave the Beavers great field position at the Ursuline 16.
That drive fizzled when Ursuline's Nick McGahagan intercepted Beaver Local quarterback Shawn Mercer in the endzone with 58 seconds remaining before the half.
"I thought our defense played great," Reardon said. "I'll take a shutout any day of the week."
The Irish got great defensive efforts from McGahagan, senior Ross Revella and sophomore Jamel Turner.
Turner harassed Beaver Local ballcarriers in the backfield the whole game and came up with several big plays behind the line of scrimmage for Ursuline.
"I just try to go to the ball," Turner said. "The coaches prepared us well and we were able to do our jobs on the field."
Beaver Local coach Rich Wright, whose team has faced outstanding opponents all year, said he wasn't surprised by the talent of Ursuline.
"That's a good football team," Wright said. "They are about as good as some of the teams we've faced like Steubenville and Chardon."
Offensively, the Irish had their ups and downs.
"We were a little inconsistent," Reardon said. "That's something we're going to have to work on for next week."
Junior tailback Darrell Mason wasn't inconsistent as he scored three touchdowns and rushed for 144 yards on 18 carries after coming back from an injury earlier in the year.
Reardon said that Mason is 100 percent healthy heading into the Mooney contest.
Mason got the Irish on the board in the first quarter when he scored on a 5-yard run to cap a 47-yard drive.
Mike Metzinger kicked the first of his four extra points to give Ursuline a 7-0 lead.
Ursuline scored in the second quarter following a 39-yard punt return by Dale Peterman.
Mason then scored his second TD on a 15-yard run to give the Irish a 14-0 lead.
In the third quarter, Ursuline scored on a spectacular 46-yard scoring pass from LaMar McQueen to a wide-open Revella down the middle of the field.
McQueen was 5-14 passing for 73 yards. The senior quarterback also rushed for 48 yards.
The Irish scored their final tally on a 5-yard run by Mason with 7:08 left in the game.
Ursuline rolled up 291 yards of offense and 14 first downs.
"Our kids are excited about the chance to play Mooney," Reardon said. "The potential was there for us to overlook Beaver Local, but they didn't do it. [The players] handled it the right way."
Friday, October 12, 2007
For pictures from the game, click here.
The Irish sailed past
Beaver Local, 28-0, for their seventh win.
By CHUCK HOUSTEAU
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
YOUNGSTOWN — It wouldn't have been surprising if the Ursuline High football team had come out flat against Beaver Local Thursday night at Stambaugh Stadium.
The Irish were working on a short week and facing a team with just one victory.
The Irish (7-1) also couldn't be faulted if they just might be looking ahead to next week's matchup with archrival Cardinal Mooney.
"We talked about it a lot early in the week [about staying focused]," Ursuline Irish coach Dan Reardon said. "But we went out and our kids had a very good week of practice."
That strong work week translated into an efficient 28-0 win over Beaver Local (1-7).
Defensively, Ursuline's performance was dominating for the most part.
The Irish held the Beavers to just 50 yards rushing and 185 yards of total offense.
Beaver Local threatened to score just once before halftime after a 64-yard halfback pass caught the Irish by surprise and gave the Beavers great field position at the Ursuline 16.
That drive fizzled when Ursuline's Nick McGahagan intercepted Beaver Local quarterback Shawn Mercer in the endzone with 58 seconds remaining before the half.
"I thought our defense played great," Reardon said. "I'll take a shutout any day of the week."
The Irish got great defensive efforts from McGahagan, senior Ross Revella and sophomore Jamel Turner.
Turner harassed Beaver Local ballcarriers in the backfield the whole game and came up with several big plays behind the line of scrimmage for Ursuline.
"I just try to go to the ball," Turner said. "The coaches prepared us well and we were able to do our jobs on the field."
Beaver Local coach Rich Wright, whose team has faced outstanding opponents all year, said he wasn't surprised by the talent of Ursuline.
"That's a good football team," Wright said. "They are about as good as some of the teams we've faced like Steubenville and Chardon."
Offensively, the Irish had their ups and downs.
"We were a little inconsistent," Reardon said. "That's something we're going to have to work on for next week."
Junior tailback Darrell Mason wasn't inconsistent as he scored three touchdowns and rushed for 144 yards on 18 carries after coming back from an injury earlier in the year.
Reardon said that Mason is 100 percent healthy heading into the Mooney contest.
Mason got the Irish on the board in the first quarter when he scored on a 5-yard run to cap a 47-yard drive.
Mike Metzinger kicked the first of his four extra points to give Ursuline a 7-0 lead.
Ursuline scored in the second quarter following a 39-yard punt return by Dale Peterman.
Mason then scored his second TD on a 15-yard run to give the Irish a 14-0 lead.
In the third quarter, Ursuline scored on a spectacular 46-yard scoring pass from LaMar McQueen to a wide-open Revella down the middle of the field.
McQueen was 5-14 passing for 73 yards. The senior quarterback also rushed for 48 yards.
The Irish scored their final tally on a 5-yard run by Mason with 7:08 left in the game.
Ursuline rolled up 291 yards of offense and 14 first downs.
"Our kids are excited about the chance to play Mooney," Reardon said. "The potential was there for us to overlook Beaver Local, but they didn't do it. [The players] handled it the right way."
Friday, October 12, 2007
It wouldn't have been surprising if the Ursuline High football team had come out flat against Beaver Local Thursday...
