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North Catholic Secures Playoff Birth – Fennell Scores Six Times

Tagged under: District 7, Gameday Hub, News, pfn

| October 20, 2023

Wexford: North Catholic improved to 4-1 in conference play while clinching a berth following a 42-6 victory over Indiana Friday night at J.C. Stone Field.

The Trojans avenged a 42-21 loss at Avonworth last week by scoring early and often opening up a 21-0 lead 9:29 seconds into the first quarter, ensuring the playoff-clinching victory would not be in doubt.

“The guys knew what tonight meant,” said North Catholic head coach Chris Rizzo. “We would’ve liked to have seen a more focused second half. I think the senior night was an extra shot of life for us. They came out and started well. I would like to see a stronger finish, but good things happen when you get the ball in number one’s hands.”

Jack Fennell, a Davidson recruit, scored all six touchdowns for North Catholic while rushing for a game-high 253 yards on 19 carries, including 234 in the first half – also adding a kickoff return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

“He’s a special kid,” Rizzo said. “With as special of an athlete as he is, he’s equally as special as a young man. He takes playing football extremely seriously, from his preparation to his body. This deep into the season, as much as our offense goes through him, is a testament to his care for the game.”

The Trojans opened the scoring on their second snap when Fennell scored on a 22-yard run 3:30 into the contest, following his 42-yard gain.

North Catholic then scored twice in a span of 1:16 as Fennell capped a 7-play 44-yard drive with a 2-yard run – he then ripped off a 56-yard touchdown scamper on the initial snap of their succeeding possession.

In the second stanza, for the second time in the game, the Trojans only needed a single play to find the end zone when Fennell scored from 41 yards out following an Indians punt, pushing the lead to 28-0 with 8:10 to play in the first half.

“It’s huge any time you can get those one-play drives,” Rizzo said. “It’s kind of hard, too, because you want to go back and coach that tape. You know there’s going to be a screw-up somewhere. Chances are, when you go back and look at the tape, there will be a mistake somewhere. Jack made one or two guys miss, and he’s just a special kid. It does feel good, but we want to get some of that stuff cleaned up heading into the playoffs.”

Despite turning the ball over twice on downs in the red zone in the first half – North Catholic would implement the running clock after recovering a fumble at the Indiana 15-yard line early in the third quarter when Fennell scored on an 11-yard run.

The Trojans only ran nine offensive plays in the second half after limiting the Little Indians to 90 yards of offense in the first half, with 43 coming on a Trevor Smith scramble.

“Finishing games is one thing we need to work on moving forward,” Rizzo said. “Getting teams off the field on third down, finishing games, the stuff we’ve been preaching all week and season. I would have liked to have had some playing calling on the defensive side back, but we get a new week and a new challenge.”

Indiana got on the scoreboard, eating up over 13 minutes of the game clock when Michael Zimmerman scored on a 1-yard run with 6:54 to play following an 18-play 84-yard drive.

 

Zimmerman rushed for 42 yards on 17 carries, while Trevor Smith led the Little Indians with 90 yards rushing on 15 carries while completing 9-of-19 passes for 38 yards.

Jack Fennell then capped a superb outing by returning the ensuing kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown.

North Catholic will now have a chance to take the conference title if they can defeat Mars, who will enter the game with a perfect 5-0 Section 2 record.

“They’re a talented team,” concluded Rizzo. “Very well-coached and disciplined, we know they play sideline to sideline using up a lot of turf, and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

Indiana falls to 2-7 on the year and will close their season next Friday night when they travel to Plum.”They have some fast, strong, and athletic kids,” said Indiana head coach Brad Wright. “Up front, they were big and stout. We played a lot of younger guys tonight. The kids were earning their stripes out there tonight, battling hard. I appreciated the effort and grit of all our guys. They didn’t tap out; they wanted to stay in the game and play hard. They’re going to be hungry for next week, and hopefully, this will also carry through to next year.”

Game Highlights:

North Catholic 42 Indiana 6

Score by Quarters

Indiana – 0 0 0 6 – 6
North Catholic – 21 7 7 7 – 42

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

NC – Jack Fennell 22 yd run, (Rylee Kumer pat), 8:30 – 2-64

NC – Fennell 2 yd run, (Kumer pat), 3:47 – 7-44

NC – Fennell 56 yd run, (Kumer pat), 2:31 – 1-56

Second Quarter

NC – Fennell 41 yd run, (Kumer pat), 8:10 – 1-41

Third Quarter

NC – Fennell 11 yd run, (Kumer pat), 8:15 – 3-15

Fourth Quarter

I – Michael Zimmerman 1 yd run, (kick blocked), 6:54 – 18-84

NC – Fennell 80 yd kickoff return, (Kumer pat), 6:33

Individual Stats

Rushing: I – Micheal Zimmerman 17-42, Trevor Smith 15-90, John Trevorrow 1-5, Team 1-(-13). Totals: 34-124. NC – Fennell 19-253, Danny Franco 6-20, Kaden Sarver 1-(-5), Austin Gaetano 2-(-8), Louie Iaquinta 1-1. Totals: 29-261.

Receiving: I – Zimmerman 4-(-2), James Mill 3-11, #85 1-13, Trevorrow 1-16. NC – Brady Koziara 1-14.

Passing: I – Smith 9-for-19, 38 yards. NC – Kaden Sarver 1-for-8, 14 yards, 1 INT.

Interceptions: I – Mill.

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