Published: October 05, 2008 12:08 am            

McCort hammers Hilltop

Bishop McCort scored on all three of its possessions and returned an interception for a score in the third quarter to pull away from Westmont Hilltop on the way to a 38-14 victory over the Hilltoppers at Price Field.

“I thought in the third quarter the offensive and defensive line asserted themselves, and I thought our backs did a great job of running the football,” Bishop McCort coach Ken Salem said. “We know in these rivalry games and in this conference that everyone is going to play us tough. A mature team trying to compete for a championship needs to learn how to play 48 minutes.”

The Crimson Crushers (6-0) were led by Isa Wadley with 131 yards on 17 carries and Eric Lowry with 14 carries for 121 yards.

T.J. Keklak had 15 carries for 64 yards and David McKolosky had seven receptions for 95 yards for Westmont (1-5).

The Hilltoppers got off to a strong start, scoring on their first possession. The six-play drive was highlighted by a pair of Keklak passes to Mike Valcheff (four catches for 53 yards) and a 15-yard face-mask penalty, setting Westmont up at the 20.

The drive was capped by three straight Keklak runs, the final for 5 yards and the touchdown.

Stephan Chessa’s kick put Westmont ahead 7-0.

On the ensuing kickoff, Dane Domonkos returned the ball to the Westmont 14. Three plays later, Wadley burst through the line from the 2. A muffed snap left the Crushers trailing by a point.

In the second quarter, an interception by Domonkos set Bishop McCort up on its own 38. The drive was stalled at the Westmont 43, but was revived when the Hilltoppers roughed the punter, putting the ball at the 29.

Five plays later, Lowry dashed in from the 9 for the score.

Wadley added the conversion to put Bishop McCort ahead 14-7 at the half.

“I think the key for us in the first half was lack of execution,” Salem said. “I thought we were a little bit inconsistent up front. We had some costly penalties (five for 40 yards) and that kept the game tight.”

In the third quarter, Bishop McCort started its drive from the 13.

Four straight running plays put the ball on the 38. Following a Westmont penalty, Lowry galloped 33 yards to the Westmont 24. After five consecutive runs, Domonkos kicked a 27-yard field goal to put the Crushers ahead 17-7.

On Bishop McCort’s next drive, it took just one play for Wadley to escape the Westmont defense and travel 67 yards for a touchdown.

Westmont’s next possession ended with Jason Reynolds grabbing an interception and racing 70 yards for another Bishop McCort touchdown.

On the ensuing kickoff, Wadley recovered a fumble at the 28. Four plays later, Lowry scored from the 3. Domonkos’ kick gave the Crushers a 38-7 lead.

Westmont’s Dan Price added a late touchdown on a 1-yard run.

“Too many mistakes,” Westmont coach Matt Glennon said about the outcome. “No matter who we play, that many mistakes, you’re not going to win. You play a good team, they’re going to take advantage of them.”

Notes: The Crushers starting quarterback, Jack Schrey, was out with an injury. ... Bishop McCort quarterbacks threw just three passes, completing one for 28 yards late in the game.

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.