Crusaders ground and pound to 6-0
Central rushing attack leads the way in 20-0 win over Madonna
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WEIRTON -- Catholic Central head coach Eric Meek acknowledged after the game the way his team plays offense is not flashy, fancy or exciting. What it continues to be, however, is effective.
That style is the good, old-fashioned ground-and-pound, and it has resulted in the Crusaders' best start since the turn of the century and its longest winning streak in a decade.
The Crusaders ran the ball on 46 of 50 offensive snaps, compiling 241 of its 249 yards and all three of its touchdowns on the ground to grind out a 20-0 win on the road over rival Madonna at a rainy Jimmy Carey Stadium on Saturday night.
"I know our offense looks likes it's ancient, but you know what? It's working," Meek said. "My feeling early in the year was it would just be a situational type offense, but the kids have bought into it, they've executed it well and they've embraced it. They love it and it's working.
"It feels fantastic to be 6-0."
The Crusaders' 6-0 start tops the 5-0 start of the '05 team and is the longest win streak since the 2013 Central team had an 8-game streak from weeks 2-9. Central received votes in last week's Division VII Ohio AP Poll.
With the rain falling, especially in the second half, the conditions played right into the Crusaders' style and into the hands of the Central defense, which pitched its second shutout of the season and is averaging single digit points against.
"I was hoping it would rain more," Meek joked. "When I played, I used to love playing in the rain and I love it as a coach, too. Madonna is a good football team and our kids really stepped up and played hard, played gutsy for four quarters. That's what we ask them to do.
"I've said it before, this is a great place. The culture of Catholic Central High School is fantastic, it's a great group of kids with wonderful support.
"We're just extremely happy to be 6-0."
The Blue Dons, who had primarily been a team that did it's damage with explosive plays in their first three games, were limited to just 131 total yards, the longest being a 16-yard run that ended in a lost fumble in the fourth quarter.
In fact, both defenses played tough as there was just one play of more than 20 yards for either team, a 50-yard BJ Fallon run that set up a fourth quarter touchdown.
"The defense was just phenomenal once again," Meek said. "It was a fantastic effort against a good, solid football team. We were physical, we were physical on both sides of the ball, up front on both sides of the line."
Quarterback Tyler Ialenti continued his impressive season rushing the ball for 90 yards and all three Central touchdowns. He scored on runs of 5, 1 and 3 yards running behind blocks from a power formation.
Fallon finished with 122 yards on 12 carries helping Central rack up 16 first downs.
The Crusaders' scoring drives were 11, 16 and eight plays.
"We knew it was going to be a tough, physical game," Madonna head coach Troy Fetty said. "I thought we matched their physicality for the most part ... I'm really proud of my kids, they battled every play for 48 minutes. We dressed 16 kids and they all played hard for four quarters. It doesn't matter how many we dress; they're going to battle for 48 minutes. We have small numbers but giant hearts.
"We went toe-to-toe with a really good football team, coach Meek does a great job. We have nothing to hang our heads about.
"We bent and bent but didn't break on defense, we forced them to drive the ball on us and didn't give up big plays. We moved the ball at times, but just made a few too many mistakes."
After both teams went three-and-out on their opening drives, Madonna was the first team to move the ball driving nine plays and taking over five minutes off the clock, but the drive stalled and the game was scoreless through the opening quarter.
Then, the Crusaders went on their first long march, driving 11 plays in 4:36 capped by Ialenti's 5-yarder. He also ran for a two-pointer after.
The Crusader defense forced another punt, and the offense then methodically went 16 plays and drained 8:24 off the clock before Ialenti powered in on a third-and-goal from the 1 with :17 left in the half. The kick missed to make it 14-0 at halftime.
The Blue Dons defense forced a punt on the opening Central drive of the second half, then the Dons offense went on a long, slow march of its own, driving 14 plays into the red zone and taking nearly nine minutes off the clock, but it ended in a turnover on downs at the Central 12.
"We had a big drive in the third quarter, I feel like if we punch it in there, it could have been different," Fetty said.
Luca Muzzi, who led Madonna with 60 of its 93 rushing yards, had 23 of those yards on the drive but left the field with an injury before the fourth down play.
On the ensuing Central drive, Fallon broke free for the lone big play of the night taking the ball down to the 3, and Ialenti finished the job from there.
The Madonna defense forced a missed field goal and turnover on downs on Central's last two drives, but the offense lost fumbles on back-to-back drives to help Central churn away the remaining clock.
Madonna did produce 86 of its yards and six of its nine first downs in the second half.
Chase Littleton went 3 of 6 for 38 yards in the wet conditions and added 24 rushing yards. Koleton Grishkevich hauled in two passes for 27 yards.
"We turned the ball over a couple of times and that hurt and we have to do a better job of getting off the field on third down," Fetty said. "But these kids played their hearts out. We played our butts off for 48 minutes."
UP NEXT
Catholic Central: Returns home to host Carrick, Pa. on Saturday night.
Madonna: Has another tough test when it travels to once-beaten Cameron.
Catholic Central 20, Madonna 0
Central 0-14-0-6 - 20
Madonna 0-0-0-0 - 0
SCORING
FIRST
None
SECOND
C: Ialenti 5 run (Ialenti run) 10:23
C: Ialenti 1 run (kick failed) :17
THIRD
None
FOURTH
C: Ialenti 3 run (kick failed) 10:06
RUSHING: Central 46-241-3TD (Fallon 12-122; Ialenti 23-90-3TD; Pergi 5-14; Mihaylo 1-0; Rusciano 5-15); Madonna 30-93 (Grishkevich 1-2; Muzzi 18-60; Littleton 7-24; Geer 4-7)
PASSING: Central 1-4-8-0-0 (all by Ialenti); Madonna 3-6-38 (all by Littleton)
RECEIVING: Central 1-8 (Hough); Madonna 3-38 (Grishkevich 2-27)
FIRST DOWNS: Central 16; Madonna 9
PENALTIES-YARDS: Central 2-20; Madonna 3-21
FUMBLES-LOST: Central 2-0; Madonna 5-2
PUNTS: Central 2-45.5; Madonna 3-28.7