Cub Football - Loyola falls to St. Paul by a point - Will play at Villa Park in CIF Division 3 first round
LOYOLA UPSET BY ST. PAUL IN ANGELUS LEAGUE FINALE
In a fight for the outright Angelus League championship on Senior Night at Smith Field on Friday night, there were more tricks than treats for Loyola as St. Paul stunned the Cubs, 36-35 in a pre Halloween thriller that ended in an unsuccessful 45-yard Loyola field goal attempt as time ran out.
There were highlights for the Big Blue, but in the end, St. Paul capitalized on Cub miscues, allowing the Swordsmen to forge an improbable three-way tie for the Angelus League title.
Loyola’s JACOBY KELLY started things off with a bang, taking the opening kickoff to the house. Kelly fielded the kick at the Cub 30 yard line, bounced outside and raced 70 yards in eleven seconds for the first score of the contest. MARK HYAN’s PAT kick put Loyola up, 7-0.
St. Paul answered immediately, driving 62 yards in seven plays, capped by a 19 yard touchdown pass to tie the score, 7-7, at the 8:46 mark of the first quarter.
Once again, St. Paul kicked off to the wrong guy, as All-CIF tailback TAHJ OWENS raced for another apparent special teams score. Unfortunately a holding penalty on the return caused the Cubs to start their second drive of the game at the Swordsmen 40 yard line. OWENS ran two yards for a touchdown to cap a nine-play scoring trek to put the Big Blue ahead, 14-7 with 3;23 left in the first quarter.
Senior JACKSON SHEA intercepted a St. Paul pass on the Swordsmen’s ensuing possession to set Loyola up at the visitors’ 47 yard line. Six plays later Owens carried the ball six yards for a Cub TD with 52 seconds remaining in the first quarter. HYAN’s extra point kick gave Loyola a 14-point lead, 21-7.
St. Paul served notice that it would not fade as the Swordsmen quickly drove 75 yards on just five plays to score on a 20-yard pass. The PAT attempt failed to make the score 21-13 at the 10:08 mark of the second quarter
The Swordsmen appeared to be gluttons for punishment as they kicked to KELLY again. The senior standout promptly raced 90 yards for his second scoring return of the game to put the Cubs ahead, 28-13, with 9:53 left in the second quarter.
In what might have been the pivotal play of the contest Loyola went for it on a fourth-down-and-one play at its own 17 yard line after the Big Blue had been set up by another Cub interception. The gambit failed, and four plays later St. Paul scored on a two-yard run to draw back within seven points to make the score, 28-21, following a successful two-point conversion pass which was set up by an encroachment call against the home squad.
Loyola answered with a seven-play 60-yard drive, capped by a one-yard LUCA DIPAOLO scoring run with 2:16 remaining in the first half. With a 35-21 lead the Cubs headed to the locker room at intermission thinking they were on their way to a high-scoring victory.
After forcing a Swordsmen punt on St.Paul’s first possession of the second half, Loyola’s offense sputtered and the Cubs had to punt for the first time.
Aided by big pass completions, it took only four plays for the Swordsmen to find pay dirt, with the rapier strike coming from 30 yards out, to cap a 64-yard drive at the 1:42 mark of the third stanza. Another encroachment call against Loyola on the ensuing extra point play allowed St. Paul to go for two. The Swordsmen converted and narrowed the deficit to six points, 35-29.
All of a sudden an ominous pall seemed to cover the home team. The Cubs threw an interception on their next possession. Loyola’s ‘Wolfpack’ defense, though, stepped up and forced a St. Paul punt. The Cubs took over at their 25 yard line but went three and out. The goblins and ghosts were out in full force at that point. The Swordsmen smelled blood. They drove 60 yards in 11 plays, scoring on a 20-yard pass. The extra point kick gave St. Paul a one-point lead, 36-35, with 5:05 left in the game.
On the final play of the battle, Loyola missed a 45-yard field goal try, and the Swordsmen stormed the field as the clock struck 0:00.
The failed fourth down attempt deep in Cub territory and St. Paul’s pair of successful two-point conversion attempts conspired to leave Loyola with an empty pre-Halloween bag.
The Cubs were unable to hold St. Paul’s outstanding quarterback, Isaiah Dunn, at bay. Dunn finished the contest with 292 passing yards (65%) and four TD tosses. The Swordsmen amassed a staggering 446 yards of total offense. St. Paul’s fired up defensive squad held Loyola scoreless in the second half and only allowed three Cub touchdowns in the game.
KELLY (two kick return touchdowns), OWENS (20 carries, 110 yards, two TDs) and wide receiver PETER VANIS (8 receptions for 119 yards) were the offensive standouts for Loyola which garnered 333 total offensive yards. Safety JACKSON SHEA’s interception made the defensive play of the contest for the Cubs, as it set up a TD march.
ON TO THE CIF PLAYOFFS FOR LOYOLA
Loyola won coin flips to finish number one in the Angelus League. Under the old CIF Southern Section playoff rules, the Cubs would have hosted a first round game, but the new competitive equity format which allows higher ranked teams (per the CalPreps.com rankings) the home field advantage in first round playoff contests means Loyola (the 10th seed) will travel to Crestview League runner-up Villa Park (sixth seed) for a first round game on Friday.
Like the Cubs the Spartan have a 7-3 overall record.
Loyola has lost three games by a combined total of just seven points, so it is clear the Cubs have the ability to make a run for the CIF Division-3 championship. They still have yet to play their best game.
In a fight for the outright Angelus League championship on Senior Night at Smith Field on Friday night, there were more tricks than treats for Loyola as St. Paul stunned the Cubs, 36-35 in a pre Halloween thriller that ended in an unsuccessful 45-yard Loyola field goal attempt as time ran out.
There were highlights for the Big Blue, but in the end, St. Paul capitalized on Cub miscues, allowing the Swordsmen to forge an improbable three-way tie for the Angelus League title.
Loyola’s JACOBY KELLY started things off with a bang, taking the opening kickoff to the house. Kelly fielded the kick at the Cub 30 yard line, bounced outside and raced 70 yards in eleven seconds for the first score of the contest. MARK HYAN’s PAT kick put Loyola up, 7-0.
St. Paul answered immediately, driving 62 yards in seven plays, capped by a 19 yard touchdown pass to tie the score, 7-7, at the 8:46 mark of the first quarter.
Once again, St. Paul kicked off to the wrong guy, as All-CIF tailback TAHJ OWENS raced for another apparent special teams score. Unfortunately a holding penalty on the return caused the Cubs to start their second drive of the game at the Swordsmen 40 yard line. OWENS ran two yards for a touchdown to cap a nine-play scoring trek to put the Big Blue ahead, 14-7 with 3;23 left in the first quarter.
Senior JACKSON SHEA intercepted a St. Paul pass on the Swordsmen’s ensuing possession to set Loyola up at the visitors’ 47 yard line. Six plays later Owens carried the ball six yards for a Cub TD with 52 seconds remaining in the first quarter. HYAN’s extra point kick gave Loyola a 14-point lead, 21-7.
St. Paul served notice that it would not fade as the Swordsmen quickly drove 75 yards on just five plays to score on a 20-yard pass. The PAT attempt failed to make the score 21-13 at the 10:08 mark of the second quarter
The Swordsmen appeared to be gluttons for punishment as they kicked to KELLY again. The senior standout promptly raced 90 yards for his second scoring return of the game to put the Cubs ahead, 28-13, with 9:53 left in the second quarter.
In what might have been the pivotal play of the contest Loyola went for it on a fourth-down-and-one play at its own 17 yard line after the Big Blue had been set up by another Cub interception. The gambit failed, and four plays later St. Paul scored on a two-yard run to draw back within seven points to make the score, 28-21, following a successful two-point conversion pass which was set up by an encroachment call against the home squad.
Loyola answered with a seven-play 60-yard drive, capped by a one-yard LUCA DIPAOLO scoring run with 2:16 remaining in the first half. With a 35-21 lead the Cubs headed to the locker room at intermission thinking they were on their way to a high-scoring victory.
After forcing a Swordsmen punt on St.Paul’s first possession of the second half, Loyola’s offense sputtered and the Cubs had to punt for the first time.
Aided by big pass completions, it took only four plays for the Swordsmen to find pay dirt, with the rapier strike coming from 30 yards out, to cap a 64-yard drive at the 1:42 mark of the third stanza. Another encroachment call against Loyola on the ensuing extra point play allowed St. Paul to go for two. The Swordsmen converted and narrowed the deficit to six points, 35-29.
All of a sudden an ominous pall seemed to cover the home team. The Cubs threw an interception on their next possession. Loyola’s ‘Wolfpack’ defense, though, stepped up and forced a St. Paul punt. The Cubs took over at their 25 yard line but went three and out. The goblins and ghosts were out in full force at that point. The Swordsmen smelled blood. They drove 60 yards in 11 plays, scoring on a 20-yard pass. The extra point kick gave St. Paul a one-point lead, 36-35, with 5:05 left in the game.
On the final play of the battle, Loyola missed a 45-yard field goal try, and the Swordsmen stormed the field as the clock struck 0:00.
The failed fourth down attempt deep in Cub territory and St. Paul’s pair of successful two-point conversion attempts conspired to leave Loyola with an empty pre-Halloween bag.
The Cubs were unable to hold St. Paul’s outstanding quarterback, Isaiah Dunn, at bay. Dunn finished the contest with 292 passing yards (65%) and four TD tosses. The Swordsmen amassed a staggering 446 yards of total offense. St. Paul’s fired up defensive squad held Loyola scoreless in the second half and only allowed three Cub touchdowns in the game.
KELLY (two kick return touchdowns), OWENS (20 carries, 110 yards, two TDs) and wide receiver PETER VANIS (8 receptions for 119 yards) were the offensive standouts for Loyola which garnered 333 total offensive yards. Safety JACKSON SHEA’s interception made the defensive play of the contest for the Cubs, as it set up a TD march.
ON TO THE CIF PLAYOFFS FOR LOYOLA
Loyola won coin flips to finish number one in the Angelus League. Under the old CIF Southern Section playoff rules, the Cubs would have hosted a first round game, but the new competitive equity format which allows higher ranked teams (per the CalPreps.com rankings) the home field advantage in first round playoff contests means Loyola (the 10th seed) will travel to Crestview League runner-up Villa Park (sixth seed) for a first round game on Friday.
Like the Cubs the Spartan have a 7-3 overall record.
Loyola has lost three games by a combined total of just seven points, so it is clear the Cubs have the ability to make a run for the CIF Division-3 championship. They still have yet to play their best game.
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