CONSHOHOCKEN, PA – Last week, Roman Catholic suffered a tough loss at the hands of Archbishop Wood. The Cahillites were looking to bounce back from that defeat and beat Archbishop Carroll in Friday evenings match-up. Roman also faced an obstacle not having the option to transfer in running back AJ Gaymon due to an injury. Head coach Jim Murphy looked for other players to step up and make big plays in his absence.
Coming into this game, both Roman (1-1 PCL, 2-4 overall) and Carroll (0-3 PCL, 0-5 overall), knew that it was going to be a hard-fought game. Both teams had something to prove, so they were going to put in 110% effort on the field to win, especially because they were dealing with nasty weather conditions and a muddy field.
The Cahillites received the opening kickoff and Jordan Haynes took the kick close to midfield, giving Roman’s offense good field position. However, they could not take advantage and score on their opening drive. After that, the first quarter became a stalemate with neither team able to put points on the board.
Roman Catholic vs. Archbishop Carroll (photo: Kendrick Wright)
It was not until late in the second quarter that Roman was able to put the first points on the scoreboard. Senior quarterback, Anthony Butler, scored a touchdown off a 1-yard run with 4:44 left in the second quarter. A little later in the second quarter, Roman senior transfer, Miles McLeod, suffered an injury. With another starter down, the team needed other players to step up and find the end zone. The Cahillites went into halftime leading the Patriots by a score of 7-0.
In the beginning of the third quarter, Carroll had the ball in the red zone and ran a wide receiver screen pass. After that play, there was a lot of pushing and shoving happening, which caused numerous penalties to be called on both teams. Once the players settled down, both teams went back to play but Carroll still failed to put points on the board.
One minute into the fourth quarter, the Cahillites scored another touchdown off a 15-yard run by senior running back, Elijah Bolden, with 11:05 left in the game. Roman missed the extra point leading to a score of 13-0. With 8:36 remaining, Carroll’s junior cornerback, Dahmir Ruffin, caught an interception and returned it for a touchdown, making the score 13-7. Carroll started showing some heart in the fourth quarter with a, "We won't go down without a fight," attitude, but it was not enough to stop the Cahillites.
(photo: Kendrick Wright)
With 1:40 left in the game, Roman senior wide receiver, Jordan Haynes, added one final touchdown with a 15-yard run, to make the score 20-7. In the last minute of the game, Carroll began driving down the field, trying to put some plays together for a touchdown. Sadly, they ended up throwing a game-ending interception to senior cornerback Dahmeer Duvernay. The Cahillites offense came onto the field to take a knee ending the game with a final score of 20-7.
Despite losing a few valuable players, Roman’s QB Anthony Butler was happy to pull-off the win.
“We battle through adversity and fought through tough losses due to injuries, but in the end, we won the game,” said the senior captain.
With the victory, Roman snapped their three-game losing streak. The Cahillites hope the win will serve as a confidence boost in anticipation for taking on Saint Joseph’s Prep in their upcoming game this Friday. Kickoff is scheduled for 7PM at A.A. Garthwaite Stadium.