Football Turns the Tide

Photo+courtesy+of+Fenwick+Football+on+twitter

Photo courtesy of Fenwick Football on twitter

Head Coach Gene Nudo opened up his seventh season with Fenwick against Chicago’s Kenwood Academy on Friday, August 24th. Friar Nation came out in full force for the humid and wet evening match up. Fenwick fought hard until the last second but ended up falling to Kenwood by a final score of 20 to 9.

Junior quarterback, Danny Cronin said that a mixture of inexperienced players and pregame jitters was to blame for the result, but noted that the team has become much better now. Nonetheless he remarked that “this game could come back to bite us in the butt come playoff time.”

The following week the Friars returned for a rematch against CCL rival Saint Ignatius. None of the Friars have forgotten that cold night in the November of 2017 when the Friars were defeated by the Wolfpack in a game with prep bowl championship implications.

The team has used this defeat as motivation to power through the 2018 season. Sadly the Friars were defeated by the Wolfpack by a final score of 34 to 0.

The boys looked to rebound after a string of losses against CCL powerhouse Brother Rice on Friday, September 7th. The Friars valiantly hung around with the crusaders for a while but ultimately lost with a final score of 35 to 3.

Junior cornerback and wide receiver, Solomon Singleton spoke of the massive amount of preparation the whole team put into this matchup. When I asked Singleton about his thoughts on the remainder of the season he prophetically responded that “when you’re at the bottom, there’s only one way to go: up.” The Friars will definitely keep this thought in mind as they continue their season.

Still looking for their first victory, Fenwick traveled to the south side for a day time brawl against CCL opponent, Leo. After quarterback Danny Cronin was injured mid game, Nazareth transfer quarterback and holder Rian O’Connor stepped up and led the Friars to an 18 to 6 victory over Leo.

After the game, I spoke with Senior long snapper and special teamer Charlie Sullivan on the result. Sullivan spoke on the resolve of the team through a tough first month with a lack of guys and an increase of players being used on both sides of the ball.

Sullivan also praised his fellow special teamer and backup quarterback for his successes, saying, “Rian came ready to go. He’s been focused everyday in practice, and that clearly showed as he buckled down and came threw for us.”

The boys returned home for their homecoming match up against CCL competitor Saint Laurence. After a long evening of back and forward offensives, the Friars managed to close the gap in the score. In the end Friar nation pulled through and won the homecoming game with a surprisingly stride in the last quarter. It was a wild night for the folks in the stands, and the student section was cheering on their team through it all.

Their win breaks a streak of losses and turns their record in the right direction. With this win under their belt, the Friars are sure to continue giving their all and bringing home victories.