WARREN — A bevy of offensive backs and a strong defense led Cardinal Mooney to a 52-14 win over Cleveland Benedictine Friday night.
"We had a lot of different guys touch the ball," Mooney P.J. Fecko said. "That keeps the defense off balance."
Eight backs gained 374 yards on 52 carries for Mooney (6-0). The victory ended a string of five consecutive victories for Benedictine (1-5) over the Cardinals.
Leading Mooney's offensive charge was quarterback Dan McCarthy, who gained 140 yards on 13 carries, including a 3-yard touchdown run. Mooney also scored a touchdown on the only pass McCarthy completed, a 25-yard toss to Ryan Babyak.
Two other keys to Mooney's offensive efforts were running backs Michael Zordich, who gained 90 yards on eight carries, and Brandon Beachum, who gained 84 yards on 13 carries. Zordich scored two touchdowns, on runs of 23 and 33 yards, while Beachum dashed 12 yards into the end zone.
Mooney scored first, marching 72 yards into Benedictine's end zone in the first quarter. The drive was capped by Jamelle Bowers' 3-yard plunge into the end zone, but the extra point kick failed.
Bengals led 7-6
But Benedictine came back quickly, scoring on a 14-play drive that covered 77 yards. Bengals quarterback Najee Goode ended the drive with a 1-yard drive across the goal line. Josh Steigerwald kicked the extra point to give Benedictine a 7-6 lead.
That was the only lead Benedictine would hold all night.
Mooney scored a second touchdown in the first quarter and two more in the second quarter to take a 25-7 lead into the locker room at halftime.
"We were fortunate enough to jump out and grab the lead," Fecko said. "And we were fortunate to come up with some stops" of the Benedictine offense.
The rout continues
Mooney took the second-half kickoff and marched 51 yards in seven plays, scoring when Zordich dashed 23 yards into the end zone.
After holding Benedictine without a first down, and sacking Goode, Mooney launched another successful scoring drive, scoring on Babyak's 25-yard catch.
Benedictine found the end zone again in the fourth quarter. The drive was keyed by running back Anthony Urbania's 53-yard jaunt. Urbania also carried the ball into the end zone, scoring on a 1-yard run.
But after Urbania ended his team's long scoring drought, Mooney scored two more fourth-quarter touchdowns. Second-team quarterback Jonathon Zyznar scored on a 4-yard run and the scoring ended when safety Lou Salreno intercepted a Benedictine pass and dashed 37 yards into the end zone.
Leading the Bengals
Urbania, a junior, was the key to the Bengals' offensive efforts, gaining 186 yards on 30 carries. The other offensive bright spot for Benedictine was running back Romel Dismuke, a sophomore who gained 63 yards on six carries.
Despite the big scoring margin, Fecko said after the game, "We're still not where we need to be."
Mooney entered the game in first place in the Division IV, Region 13 OHSAA computer ratings, and seems headed into the playoffs.
While admitting he was proud that his team avoided turnovers Friday night, Fecko insisted, "We've got a number of things we need to work on."
Source: Vindy.com