Playoff waiting continues for Canon-Mac
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Canon-McMillan’s David Cooper attempts to tackle Central Catholic’s Gavin Thomas during Friday night’s game.
Central Catholic’s Dominic Dodson tackles Canon-McMillan’s Dillon O’Donoghue during Friday night's game.
Canon-McMillan’s David Cooper strips the football from Central Catholic’s J.D. Younger during Friday night's game.
bigmacs
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Canon-McMillan coach Mike Evans instructs his players during Friday night’s game against Central Catholic.
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Canon-McMillan’s Drew Engle carries the football Friday night as Central Catholic’s Dominic Dodson waits to attempt to make a tackle.
CANONSBURG – There is no out-of-town scoreboard at Canon-McMillan High School’s Memorial Stadium, which might be a good thing, as there would be no distractions for Big Macs head coach Mike Evans and his players Friday night.
They had a tall enough task in trying to take down Pittsburgh Central Catholic than to worry about scoreboard watching for that all-important Norwin-Mt. Lebanon contest. A Canon-McMillan win and Norwin loss would clinch a playoff berth for the Big Macs, their first since 2008.
There was some good news for the Big Macs going into the contest as tailback Josh O’Hare returned from injury after missing last week.
Unfortunately for Canon-McMillan, O’Hare’s return was not enough as an opportunistic Central Catholic defense scored two touchdowns en route to a playoff-clinching 35-7 victory in a Class 6A Quad County Conference game.
The night wasn’t a total loss, however, for the Big Macs (2-5, 3-5), as Norwin lost to Mt. Lebanon, 34-28, meaning all Canon-McMillan needs for that elusive playoff spot is a victory at winless Butler next week.
“It’s a win and we’re in,” said Evans. “That’s exciting for us, but we wanted to win this football game. It’s disappointing.”
There were several key turning points in Friday’s game and not many went Canon-McMillan’s way. With the Vikings (5-2, 7-2) ahead, 7-0, a penalty against the Big Macs for an illegal man downfield from the Central Catholic 4-yard line midway through the second quarter nullified what could’ve made the score 7-7. Instead, two plays later, Anthony DiFolco intercepted quarterback Jonathan Quinque and returned it 93 yards for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead.
“That was a bad call,” said Evans. “My wide receiver coach told me he was a yard off. I’m going to go with him. Maybe we’re wrong.”
Canon-McMillan did recover a fumble and score on a gutsy fourth-down call just before halftime and were in position to potentially tie the game to begin the second half with a fourth-and-1 play at the Vikings’ 18. But Drew Engel was stopped in the backfield for a 4-yard loss, and Central Catholic marched down the field on 12 straight running plays to score for a 21-7 lead.
“The pick-six was very big, especially after the penalty,” said Central Catholic coach Terry Totten. “I credit Canon-McMillan. I think they got it going on down here. I think it’s going to be a nice program. They had a nice plan and their kids fought hard.”
A holding penalty on the ensuing kickoff backed up the Big Macs to their 8-yard line, and Central Catholic took advantage, forcing a fumble at the 10. The ball rolled backwards for a few seconds before being picked up by Jaishon Hawkins and returned for a touchdown, and suddenly it was 28-7.
O’Hare suffered another injury in the game and missed much of the second half, but his status is currently unknown.
“We didn’t take advantage of the red-zone opportunities we had,” said Evans. “I don’t think I put us in a great position sometimes. I feel like we made mistakes, but they’re a very good football team.”
Vikings quarterback Gus Sunseri rushed for 101 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown, and Kenneth Blake gained 91 yards on 11 rushes with one score. All told, Central Catholic gained 263 yards for all of its offense, with much of the damage done in the second half.
“We wore them down,” said Totten.