UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, OH - The Cats made their return to Don Shula Stadium and John Caroll University this past Friday, this time as the road team, as they prepared to do battle with the Benedictine Bengals. Both sides were riding high after wins in their last games, though in very different fashions. Saint Ignatius (4-2) dominated John Marshall (1-5) by a final score of 60-0, while the Bengals only needed one touchdown in their 6-0 win over Lake Catholic (3-3). Benedictine had won four of their first five to start the year (4-1) heading into Friday's action, with the only blemish coming against NDCL. In addition to that, they were able to grit out a victory last year against Ignatius as well, so this was set to be an intriguing matchup, especially with a big game looming next week for Ignatius.
The Cats got off to an almost ideal start, as after forcing a three-and-out on three straight runs from Benedictine, they got on the board rather quickly, as
Jacob Mikin did something we haven't seen him do too much of this year. Mikin kept it on the option play, fooling everyone on the defense and taking it to the house for an early Saint Ignatius touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 8:25 left in the quarter.
Benedictine had a nice downfield completion from Gio Iacampo to Tramell Reese to get their offense going, but the drive stalled in Saint Ignatius territory. To add onto that, Nate Majors doinked a 30-yard field goal off the right upright, which left Benedictine empty-handed despite a solid drive. Saint Ignatius and Benedictine traded punts on their next two drives, but on their third drive, Saint Ignatius broke through as Mikin found
Billy Cole on a quick slant and Cole did the rest, taking it 85 yards to the house and making it a 13-0 game. This time around, the Cats decided to go for two, and it worked, as
Dane Donovan punched it in to make it a 15-0 ballgame. After one quarter of action, this is where the score stood.
The next Bengals' drive had some traction, but eventually stalled out around midfield and forced another Benedictine punt. Saint Ignatius then marched the football 85 yards downfield, including a big third-and-15 conversion courtesy of
Charlie Blasko and a 13-yard catch by Cole on fourth-and-four, which got the Cats down to the Benedictine five. Here, Donovan used his legs again to punch it in from five yards out, giving the Cats a 22-0 lead after the PAT with 7:40 left in the first half.
Benedictine would respond, however, aided by some penalties, and marched down to the Ignatius 13-yard line, where freshman JoJo Williams scampered up the middle for a Bengals touchdown to cut into the deficit. Majors hooked the PAT, so the score remained 22-6. Late in the half, both teams had promising drives come to a disappointing close. First, for the Cats, they worked the ball into Bengal territory before an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed them back and ended the drive, as the down and distance became insurmountable. For Benedictine, some big chunk plays got them in Ignatius territory around midfield, but a trick play pass from receiver Kai Caldwell got intercepted by
Jimmy Myers, and Benedictine was turned away from any points. At halftime, Saint Ignatius led 22-6.
The Cats got the football first in the second half and wasted no time. On a third-and-eight, Mikin connected with
Trey Haddad along the sideline, and Haddad did the rest, taking it 43 yards to the house. The Cats went for two again with Donovan and were once again successful, and Donovan powered it in and gave the Cats a 30-6 lead early in the second half. The next three drives, two for Benedictine and one for Ignatius, resulted in punts, but after a nice return by
Billy Cole, the Cats were set up on the Benedictine side of the field for their third drive of the half. It was here that
Tyler McMillon ran up the middle and into the endzone for a nine-yard score, making it a 37-6 game after the PAT late in the third, and starting the running clock as well.
The Cats added two more at the tail end of the third quarter, as a high snap on the punt led Majors into the endzone, and from there he tried to throw it but didn't get it back to the line of scrimmage, resulting in an intentional grounding penalty, and because it was in the endzone, a safety, making it 39-6 after three quarters of action.
With the running clock, the fourth quarter went by quickly, but not before the Cats added three more courtesy of a
Griffin Roberts 33-yarder, making it 42-6. This score held true til the end, as the clock hit zero and the Cats were able to officially secure a week six victory by a final score of 42-6.
Cole was the leading receiver with three receptions for 104 yards and a touchdown. He also added a 24-yard punt return and finished with 134 all-purpose yards. Mikin finished with 170 yards passing and two touchdowns. Donovan added 48 yards rushing and a touchdown, along with two successful two-point attempts.
With the win, the Cats advance to 4-2 on the year, and have won back-to-back games for the second time this year. In addition, they've won four out of their last five. The Cats will look to carry the momentum into what is their biggest game yet, as Saint Ignatius will welcome its archrival, the St. Edward Eagles (5-1), to Don Shula Stadium for a week seven clash. Kickoff will be Friday at 7 P.M., and the SIBN will have live coverage of what is sure to be a good one.
