22 August, 2010
Walsingham Never Says Die in Kickoff Classic
Posted by Anonymous WA Football Fan
The season opened up in grand fashion for the Walsingham Academy football team. As participants in the annual Foxhill Kickoff Classic in Hampton, VA your TROJANS traveled south to test their mettle against a well-established program. The Junior Varsity squad ushered in the season by sparring off against last year’s champions, the Foxhill Redskins. A packed TROJAN sideline was clad in red, family and friends had their game voices dialed up and Walsingham "tent-city" was erected as the crowd settled in to root on their TROJANs.
Trevor Caccetta opened to the day with a strong boot and the 2010 TROJAN season was underway. Foxhill opened with a mix of runs and passes on their first series. After settling down, the TROJAN defense applied the clamps as defensive tackle Bruce Jackson brought the QB down for an 8-yard loss. On 3rd and long, the Foxhill signal caller was under heavy pressure by linebacker Luke Lejeune and defensive tackle Tom Nanartowich and was flushed from the pocket. He was eventually forced out of bounds by linebacker Duncan Hamra and cornerback Tommy Neville. On 4
th down, a fake punt by the Redskins was thwarted by a converging TROJAN defense.
The TROJAN offense took the field under the leadership of junior quarterback Michael Shield. After three runs yielded little gain, the Redskins defense jumped offside setting up 4th and short. In a gutsy call by first year coach Donovan Waefler, the TROJAN offense stayed on the field. Hamra was stopped short on fourth down and defense was back on the field for the start of the 2nd quarter.
The TROJAN defense once again held after key tackles by Hamra and pass defense by Neville on two deep balls. When the TROJAN offense took the field Coach Waefler and Shield went to work. Operating out of the shotgun and displaying his arm for the first time, Shield rolled right and connected with junior tight end Brian Werzner for and 11 yard pass to move the chains. On the 2nd play of the drive Hamra took a counter over the right side and galloped through a monster hole created by right tackle Nanartowich and tight end Werzner. Following lead blocker Lejeune, Hamra raced down the field. With one man left to beat, Lejeune threw a devastating block that sent the free safety into orbit – Hamra took it the distance for a 65 yard touchdown run and 6-0 lead! Shield then floated a pass into the arms of running back Matt Renzo for a 1 point after touchdown, extending the lead to 7-0. The TROJAN defense again proved stout holding the Redskins to little gains on 1st and 2nd down. On 3rd and long linebacker Austin Slyter batted down the pass, forcing the Redskins to punt. With less than 2 minutes left in the half, Coach Waefler continued his aggressive play-calling. Shield once again rolled right and found Werzner on the sideline for a 5-yard gain. After an incompletion, Hamra barreled over the right side for a first down run. However, the run was nullified by a holding call setting up 3rd and long. Shield dropped back to pass and sent the ball deep downfield. His pass was intercepted by the free safety who weaved his into the end zone for a touchdown as time expired for the half. The Redskin’s conversion failed and the TROJANs led 7-6 after two quarters of play.
The 2nd half kickoff was fielded by up-back Slyter who rumbled for 15 yards setting up the TROJAN offense with good field position. However, the offense was unable to find its rhythm and went three and out. The defense once again held, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Lejeune and returned the ball to the offense at mid-field. After runs by Renzo and Lejeune over right tackle Alex Brondyke and guard Mark Cavasos the 3rd quarter came to a close with the score remaining 7-6 in favor of the TROJANs.
The 4th quarter opened with a bang. Once again operating out of the gun, Shield looked to his right and found wide receiver Austin Slyter on a corner route. The junior gun-slinger lofted a pretty ball to the outside and Slyter pulled it in. Slyter then broke 2 tackles and outraced the defense for a 56 yard touchdown reception. The point after touchdown failed, making the lead 13-6 TROJANs.
After another long kickoff by Caccetta, the Redskins mounted a solid return to their 30 yard line and began taking to the air. The 1st down pass was well defended by cornerback Michael Maglieri. On 2nd down Redskin quarterback Kallele Patterson dropped back but was crushed by Lejeune who came free on a linebacker blitz, setting up 3rd and long. On the 3rd do wn Foxhill continued to work the long ball. A beautifully thrown rainbow ball by Patterson found its way into the outstretched arms of wide receiver Dalton Brown who split two defenders and took it into the end zone. Foxhill made good on the point after touchdown, knotting the score up at 13-13.
Walsingham was set to receive the ball only to be surprised by an onside kick by Foxhill. Defensive tackle Alexander Christie recovered for the TROJANs who then went to work on offense. A laser by Shield fell into the arms of Slyter for what seemed to be a big play. However, Slyter was hit hard by the free safety and ball squirted away forcing the TROJANs to punt. A gorgeous kick by Hamra was downed at the 8 yard line by Neville, backing the Redskins up against the wall. The TROJAN defense remained strong recording multiple tackles for a loss. Coach Waefler continued to call time outs to stop the clock in effort to make something happen. On the final play of the game the Redskin running back carried over the right hand side. A swarming TROJAN defense gang tackled the ball carrier, delivering a combined game changing blow. The ball popped into the air, only to be grabbed by linebacker Hamra who raced into the end zone as the gun sounded for the game winning TOUCHDOWN!!
Walsingham Academy TROJANs – 19
Foxhill Redskins - 13
Issue #: 1-10
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