AVON, OH - The Saint Ignatius Wildcats (0-1) were back in action for week one of the football season this past Thursday evening against the Avon Eagles (1-0). The two squads last met in week one last year at Huntington Bank Field, where the Eagles defeated the Cats by a final score of 42-21. Avon would win 15 more games that year to claim the Division II State Title, the program's first.
A new season meant new roster changes for both teams. The Wildcats graduated notable players Cody Haddad '25 and Grant Washington '25. The Cats also lost talented players from the class of 2026, Will Conroy and Ryan Taylor. The Eagles graduated quarterback Nolan Good, who is now in the quarterback room at Kent State University.
Notable returners for the Wildcats include James Conrad, Owen Colwell, Jake Bobinski, Luke Simms, Nick Rivera, and many others. The Eagles return North Carolina commit Jakob Weatherspoon and four-star recruit Ryan Stolarski.
After a Wildcat home game last year, Avon now held home-field advantage at Mark Wahlberg Chevrolet Stadium, a venue the Eagles have not lost at in over 1,000 days, good for a 21-game win streak. Their previous home loss came on September 2nd, 2022, to the Glenville Tarblooders.
The season's first quarter was strong defensively from both teams, as there were four punts, two from each. Avon struck first on their third possession, marching 78 yards down the field and finishing the drive with a two-yard touchdown run by Quiante' Smith. The score was 7-0 Avon with 29 seconds left in the opening quarter.
Senior Daniel Chalhoub would get banged up in the first, and junior Dane Donovan would have to step into the game as the signal caller. After a three-and-out on his first drive, Donovan finally got the offense going in the second quarter. The offense moved 54 yards down the field on six plays, capped off by Donovan finding Trey Haddad in the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown strike, tying the game at seven with 7:30 remaining in the half.
Avon would score one more time before the half, going 58 yards downfield to score with 1:11 left in the second. Cam Wendall would get his number called on the two-yard line, where he lowered his shoulder and fought his way into the endzone, giving Avon a lead. After two quarters of play, it was 14-7 Eagles.
Despite only trailing by seven at the halftime break, plans were quickly derailed for the Wildcats. The Cats turned the ball over four times in the second half, and Avon would capitalize on these crucial mistakes.
After a terrific Colwell return to get the ball to the Wildcat 41-yard line, the Cats would turn the ball over on the first play as Avon's Vincent DeTillio recovered. The Wildcat defense forced a three-and-out, but the mistakes began to add up on the offensive side of the ball.
On second down, Donovan dropped back to pass and threw to Marcus Tekancic, but it was picked at the Wildcat 23-yard line by Weatherspoon and returned the pick to the two-yard line. Wendell would punch it in two plays later with 8:47 remaining in the third to make it 21-7.
The very next play from the Wildcat offense was fumbled and recovered by Avon's Ben Strichek. On third and nine, Blake Elder rolled out to the left to avoid the Wildcat rush and found a streaking Caden Clapham for a 34-yard touchdown. Caiden Marvin blocked the PAT, and the score would remain 27-7 in favor of the Eagles with 7:03 left to play in the third.
Despite driving the ball down 78 yards on their next possession, the Wildcat offense stalled at the Avon 22-yard line,and turned the ball over on downs, the Wildcats' fourth turnover in as many drives.
With 11:17 left in the fourth, Smith scampered 18 yards for his second score of the night, making it 34-7 for Avon.
Simms notified Donovan of a mismatch in the Avon coverage during the next possession for the Wildcats. Donovan would toss a perfect pass to Simms in the flat, and the senior would do the rest, going 46 yards for the score, cutting the Eagle lead to 34-14 with 10:44 left.
After forcing a three-and-out, the Wildcat offense got back to work, looking to make it a two-score game late in the fourth. But on a third and long, Donovan was hit while throwing, and Avon's Sammy Ulery picked the ball.
Elder put the final touches on the game with a 43-yard touchdown throw to Clapham with 4:39 remaining. Luke Spinos blocked the PAT, and the final score was 40-14.
Despite the loss, the Cats' defense showed signs of life. "I've still got so much faith in this team," says James Conrad."Defensively, I think we played well for the most part. We need to clean up a few mistakes that took the game out of our hands. Other than that, we stopped the run extremely well, and our secondary proved they can hold their own."
In week one, Avon out gained the Wildcats 351-211, as Elder threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns. Donovan would finish with 151 yards on 11-of-24 throwing. He would throw for two touchdowns, but was intercepted twice. Conrad led the Wildcats' defense with ten total tackles.
The Cats fell to 0-1 on the year, with nine straight losses dating back to week four last season. In week two, the Cats will take on the 0-1 Pickerington North Panthers at Euclid Community Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m.
