By Brandon Mauk
The Holy Cross defense continues to play like one of the best in the league, but the Knights can’t seem to get their offense going enough to complement it.
A series of mistakes in the second quarter put Holy Cross in a hole too large to climb out of in an eventual 21-7 loss to St. Peter’s in CHSFL Class AAA play last Saturday at Bayside Athletic Complex. Holy Cross, which saw its leading receiver and quarterback from last year transfer before the season, managed just 157 total yards of offense and turned the ball over twice.
“[In] this league, you don’t get a lot of opportunities, and when you get them, you have to take advantage,” Holy Cross head coach Tim Smith said. “This league is all about pouncing on your opponent. When you get them down, you keep them down.”
Holy Cross (1-4) fell behind 14-0 in the second quarter after quarterback Joseph Fellin threw two interceptions. That continued the struggle the Knights have had getting out to quick starts this season. So far, they have scored just 21 first-half points—all of them in their lone win against Chaminade last week.
“We’ve got to come out with more fire,” Fellin said. “We’ve got to stop making stupid mistakes, that’s all.”
Ryan Thatcher was a dual threat for the Eagles, as he collected the first interception and then scored as a fullback on third and goal at the 1-yard line on the ensuing possession.
After a series of punts, Holy Cross threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown by Roger Montalvo to close out the first half. It is certainly not what Holy Cross wanted coming off its first win.
“They came out very aggressive and took it to us and they were getting off the ball quicker than we were,” Smith said. “So it put us in a position where we were reacting instead of dictating the pace.”
His team turned to its defense to get back into the game. Holy Cross forced a fumble on the opening kickoff of the second half and punched in the touchdown on a reception by Dylan McCutchen on third and goal at the 8-yard line. That brought the score to 14-7, narrowing the gap for the Knights.
But Holy Cross was unable to build on the momentum of their opening drive of the second half, as St. Peter’s defense stifled them, forcing them to punt or turn the ball over on downs each time after the touchdown.
St. Peter’s (4-1) iced the game in the middle of the fourth quarter on a 20-yard touchdown reception to tight end A.J. Mistler on fourth down.
Despite another loss, Holy Cross remains positive. It has the rest of the regular season to improve before the playoffs.
“The thing about this team is that we never get too low,” Holy Cross linebacker and running back Jeremiah Nelson said. “We’re having a rough season so far, but we always come back with high energy and high expectations.”
