WILMINGTON, DE – It was a scorching, humid night for the opening game of Salesianum’s 2016 season. The Sals welcomed Philadelphia’s Father Judge High School to Baynard Stadium on Friday night. The Crusaders entered the game winning both of their prior games in dominating fashion, outscoring their opponents 75-14 in those games. That high powered offense would be shut down by the Salesianum defense in this one, as the Sals defeated the Crusaders 16-13.
Michael Drake proved to be a standout for the young Sals team, scoring two touchdowns on the night and intercepting Father Judge’s standout quarterback, Rob King, twice.
The game was scoreless through one quarter until Salesianum junior quarterback, Zach Gwynn, hit Drake on a nice 33-yard touchdown pass with under two-minutes left in the half. That would be the only scoring play in the first two quarters of this defensive battle.
Father Judge was pinned deep in their own territory late in the third quarter when they botched a punt snap, which flew over Colton Lieggi’s head for a safety. The ensuing free kick resulted in Drake torturing the Crusaders again, this time on a 68-yard return for touchdown, 16-0 Sals.
King would not be denied however, as he connected with wide receiver Steve Arrington on a 65-yard touchdown pass to end the third quarter, bringing the score to 16-6.
King also led the Crusaders on a crucial drive in the fourth quarter, which included a 60-yard pass to Justin Gies, and ended with King finding the end zone on a three yard run with 4:18 left in the game bringing the score to 16-13 Sals. After a stop, King was back on the field again with a chance to win, but once again Drake stepped up for Salesianum with a game clinching interception with two minutes left to seal the deal for the Sals.
Looking Ahead: Salesianum will host Caesar Rodney High School this Friday at Baynard Stadium starting at 7:30PM. Father Judge will face Archbishop Ryan in the annual Northeast Philadelphia Classic on Saturday Sept. 17 at 7PM at Northeast HS.