It was a situation all too familiar for St. Rita this season.
A single play Friday night in Montini’s 38-7 Catholic League crossover win over the Mustangs seemed to make the difference in Lombard.
Trailing by three touchdowns and facing a fourth-and-goal at the Montini 4 with less than a minute remaining in the first half, St. Rita quarterback Connor Kelly drilled a pass into the numbers of receiver Kurt Zeigler at the goal line that appeared to bring the Mustangs to within 21-7.
Instead, linebacker Christian Pirog drilled Zeigler out of bounds just inches from the goal line with 52 seconds remaining. Just short for St. Rita (1-2). Just enough for Montini (3-0).
“I don’t want to take anything away from them, they played well and didn’t make mistakes,” St. Rita coach Todd Kuska said. “And when we made mistakes, they capitalized.
“We were six inches short here, a tipped ball there, it’s the way this season has been going for us. We’ve just got to turn it around. We’re one thing away every single play on offense and defense. We need to get better and play better together. Hopefully that begins tomorrow and we move forward.”
Four turnovers, two in the first half, put St. Rita in a hole.
On the Mustangs’ third play of the game, running back Brandon Williams (25 carries, 76 yards) was quickly tied up in the backfield by Montini’s Jake Kapp, who stripped the ball and ran 10 yards for the game’s first touchdown. On Montini’s next possession the Broncos moved 71 yards in seven plays with quarterback Justin Blake hitting a Dylan Maher for a 14-0 lead.
St. Rita moved to the Montini 32 on its next possession, but a bad handoff between Williams and Kelly was recovered by Montini’s Luke Sheppard at the 30. After 14 plays and a late-hit penalty on fourth-and-3, the Broncos went up 21-0 on Prince Walker’s 1-yard TD plunge.
One of the few bright spots for Rita came as a result of a bad punt snap with the Mustangs recovering at the Montini 9 early in the fourth. On fourth and goal, Kelly scored from the 1 to break the shutout
But Montini scored on the next series, with Michael Cooney booting a 23-yard field goal. Reed Taylor put the game away when he returned a Kelly interception 78 yards for a score.
Will Smith Jr. ended the scoring with a 50-yard TD run in the game’s final minute.
St. Laurence 41, St. Ignatius 20: Fayezon Smart had TD sprints of 61 and 40 yards for St. Laurence (2-1, 1-0 Catholic White).
Reavis 48, Evergreen Park 21: Isiah Apulche threw three TD passes and also contributed a scoring run (5) to vault Reavis (3-0, 1-0 SSC Red). Evergreen Park fell to 2-1, 1-1.
Sandburg 38, Bolingbrook 20: Avery Verble caught a TD pass and Mike Murphy scored on a fumble return to lift Sandburg (2-1, 1-0 SWSC Blue).
Aurora Central Catholic 41, Chicago Christian 14: Luke Rattler scored on a 67-yard run for Chicago Christian (1-2).
Marist 45, St. Viator 28: Brendan Skalitzky tossed six touchdowns to power Marist (2-1, 1-0 ESCC).
De La Salle 27, Fenwick 20: Ronald Seals reached the end zone on an 80-yard kickoff return and 24-yard reception to spur De La Salle (1-2, 1-0 Catholic Green).
Eisenhower 42, Shepard 6: Kenny Scott’s 50-yard fumble return for a score ignited Eisenhower (2-1, 1-0 SSC Red). Shepard dropped to 1-2, 0-1.
Rich East 23, Vocational 12: Camren Alexander ran for three TDs to boost Rich East (1-2).
Marian Central 56, Marian Catholic 16: Christian Simmons provided a 76-yard TD run for Marian Catholic (1-2, 0-1 ESCC).
Oak Lawn 20, Argo 0: Lewis Radosevich had two TD runs (1, 13) to lead Oak Lawn (1-2, 1-0 SSC Red). Argo is 0-3, 0-1.
Kaneland 42, Rich Central 36: Deshawn Jones scored on a 90-yard punt return to aid Rich Central (2-1).
Boys Soccer
Lincoln-Way North 1, Herscher 1: Isaac Cahue scored for Lincoln-Way North (5-2-1).
Women’s Cross Country
Olivet Nazarene Midwest Classic: Runner-up Ellie Willging (18:34.47) led St. Xavier (64) to a third-place finish in the eight-team meet.
Women’s Soccer
St. Francis 2, Bethel (Ind.) 1: Kathia Arrendondo’s goal in the 70th minute propelled St. Francis (3-1).
Trinity Christian 12, Marygrove (Mich.) 0: Skye Bryant and Brooklyn Celebron (2 goal apiece) led Trinity Christian (4-1).
Lewis 1, Indianapolis 0: Mackenzie Fuller (goal) starred for Lewis (3-1, 1-0 GLVC).
Women’s Volleyball
Flyer Festival: Elizabeth Hyland (21 kills) and Abby Becker (44 assists) guided host Lewis (5-1), which beat Ohio Dominican 25-18, 25-14, 25-21 and Rollins (Fla.) 25-18, 19-25, 25-9, 28-26.
Phil English is a freelance writer for the Daily Southtown. Josh Krockey, a freelance writer, also contributed to this report.
