game Recaps
Week Eight (10/12/07) Home
vs. Bishop McNamara
Providence 40,
Bishop McNamara 19
It’s all coming together as the Celtics push
towards the playoffs! The running game, the passing game and
defense all played well as the Celtics dismantled the Fighting
Irish 40-19. 33 points came in a dominant first half!
More additions to the school record book as Tom
Barry hooked up with Dan Ruzich for the longest TD pass in
school history, a 91 yard bomb in the second quarter. Ruzich
ended up with 181 yards receiving, second highest game total in
school history, turning 3 of his six catches into TD’s.
Tom Barry had his best night of the season
completing 11 of 15 passes for 219 yards and 4 TD’s.
The return of Sean Lindbloom (Homecoming King)
meant that the running game could get on track, and it did, with
Bloomie contributing 128 yards on 23 carries.
Defensively, Frank Carioti returned an
interception 45 yards for a TD and Chase Pavlick and Jim Byrne
each were a part of 11 tackles. D-lineman Mike Smith also had a
big day as he took part in 10 tackles, one for a loss and he
also contributed a QB Sack.
The playoff march has one game left, Senior Night
this week against Mother Guerin. This Fridays game will be
preceded by our freshman team, with the sophomores playing
Saturday morning against Lincolnway North.
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Week Seven (10/05/07) @ Gordon Tech
Providence 49,
Gordon Tech 0
After a bus ride that seemed endless on Friday
evening, the Celtics tore up the turf against Gordon Tech!
Junior Bobby McDonald ran for 128 yards adding 3
TD’s while sophomore Tim Hanrahan added 83 yards in only 6
carries including a 64 yard TD run, as the Celtics out gained
the Rams 271-61.
Big plays were the status quo, as the Celtics
broke a school record by returning two punts for touchdowns, a
62 yard return by Shane Paty to start the scoring, and a 42 yard
return by Eric Sawicki in the 2nd quarter. Tom Barry completed
only one pass in the game, however, it was a 79 yard TD strike
to Hayden Grove.
The Celtics are now 3-4, and need wins in the
last two games, home games against Bishop McNamara and Mother
Guerin. B-Mac is always a tough opponent for the Celtics, but
this years Homecoming is a MUST win if the team is hoping to be
in the playoffs.
Hopefully the team will get a boost with the
return of Sean Lindbloom who has missed several weeks with an
ankle injury.
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Week Six (9/28/07) @
Brother Rice
Brother Rice 10, Providence 9
Despite out gaining the Crusaders, 266 yards to
227, and having more first downs, 11-7, the Celtics lost a
heartbreaker 10-9. It was a typical example of Catholic League
football, where points were scarce, but physical play was
common. In the end, it was a lack of ability to finish drives
and put points on the board that cost the Celtics.
Drew Abernathy ran 20 times for a hard fought 106
yards and Hayden Grove caught six passes for 116 yards, but the
inability to get into the end zone was the downfall. Matt Hayes
was a part of 14 tackles and Jim Byrne a part of 11 for a
defense that played stellar!
Its back on the road next week as the Celtics now
must win all remaining regular season games to be eligible for
the 6A playoffs. Week 7 has the Celtics traveling to North Park
College to meet the Rams from Gordon Tech in a Catholic League
cross-over game.
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Week Five (9/21/07) @ St. Rita
St. Rita 21, Providence 7
The Celtic fans and cheerleaders were awesome on
this beautiful Friday night in Chicago, but unfortunately, the
St. Rita running game proved to be just a little too much in
this Week Five battle of powerhouses!
The Celtic defense held the powerful Mustangs to
only 21 points and 44 yards passing. However, the running game
controlled the clock and made it difficult for our Providence
offense to get into a rhythm. Mark Houlihan led the Celtic “D”
by being in on ten tackles, while Chase Pavlik was a part of 9
tackles. Junior Joe Michals, playing for injured Greg Bennett,
turned in an impressive performance with 8 tackles.
When the offense was on the field, it showed an
ability to gain yards and get receivers open. The Celtics
compiled an impressive near 300 yards against a very good St.
Rita defense. But, once again, shot themselves in the foot with
a couple turnovers in key situations that kept them from
scoring.
The offensive line of Patrick Ward, Jake Lembke,
Zach Panfil, Brian Noetzel and George Gniadecki did a great job
against a defense that boasts division one players. QB Tom Barry
was not sacked and the running game produced over 160 yards.
Sean Lindbloom was out with an injury which gave
junior Bob McDonald and sophomore Tim Hanrahan an opportunity to
get some playing time in a big game atmosphere. They played
admirably combining for 25 yards in 8 carries. Drew Abernathy
led the team with 109 yards, including an electrifying 65 yard
TD run.
Dan Ruzich led the receiving core with 4
catches(54 yards) and Ryan Surico caught his first passes of the
season, 3 of them for 48 yards.
Just like last season, the Celtics have made the
road to the playoffs a difficult one! By losing to the Mustangs
Friday night, the Celtics have put the remaining 4 games into
that “must win” category to guarantee a playoff spot.
That first “must win” situation will be this
Friday night against archrival Brother Rice in Bishop Kaffer
stadium! Come cheer on the Celtics to victory!
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Week Four (9/14/07) home vs. Loyola
Providence 20, Loyola 17
Ahhhh! Finally a home game! That smell of Italian
sausage and popcorn from the concession stand and the music from
the Celtic band! Unfortunately, highly ranked Loyola showed up
trying to ruin the night for us all!
The Celtic offense seems to be finding its
comfort zone! Many good things happened despite only getting the
ball into the end zone twice(TD runs from Drew Abernathy and
Kevin Maloney). Tom Barry looked more comfortable than he has
all year, completing 9 of 14 passes for 159 yards. Included in
those were key downfield completions to Dan Ruzich and Hayden
Grove. Sean Lindbloom left the game early with an ankle problem,
but Drew Abernathy filled in nicely by running for over 100
yards!
The defense was reminiscent of the mean green
defense of years past! They stuffed and frustrated the Ramblers
most of the game until a couple 4th quarter drives produced a
couple TD’s for them.
It was a great victory and confidence builder for
the Celtics who now travel to St. Rita for their week five
contest.
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Week Three (9/07/07) @ Mt. Carmel
Mt Carmel 35, Providence 14
Despite their best efforts in week three, Mt.
Carmel, along with Celtic mistakes was just too much to
overcome.
Offensively, nearly 300 total yards netted only
14 points! A long TD run from Sean Lindbloom, and a TD pass from
Tom Barry to Jason Vollmer were the only touchdowns.
On the defensive side, sophomore Steve Laski and
senior Chase Pavlik were both in double figures in tackles. But,
overall, the Caravan running game was relentless, time
consuming, and ultimately victorious.
The Celtics need to put this one behind them.
Next week is the home opener against highly ranked Loyola
Academy. The Ramblers are always tough, but this year they seem
to be even a step above! They boast an excellent and fast
defense to go along with a Division 1 QB and slick running back.
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Week Two (9/01/07) @ Fenwick
Providence
30, Fenwick 6
Week two had the Celtics on the road again in
this Catholic League cross-over match-up. Historically, the
Friars are always a tough opponent!
But on this day, the Celtic running game took
over early and never looked back!
Senior Sean Lindbloom led the ground attack with 203
yards on 27 carries! Drew Abernathy saw his first action and had
64 yards on 6 carries. All of it was behind an offensive line
that dominated the line of scrimmage! Zach Panfil, Brian Noetzel,
George Gniadecki, Patrick Ward, Kevin Maloney, and Jake Lembke
consistently opened holes and steamrolled the Friars down field!
Josh Lembke recovered a fumble. Ken Eichorst and
Mark Houlihan had interceptions to lead the defense. Dave Togher
and Chase Pavlik were each in on 8 tackles. Overall the Friars
were held to minus 13 yards rushing and 187 total yards!
It doesn’t get any easier next week! The Celtics
travel to Gately Stadium Friday night to face the Caravan of
Mount Carmel at 7:00.
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Week One (8/24/07) @ Lincolnway East
Lincoln Way
14, Providence 6
In front of a huge crowd at Lincolnway East, the
Celtics started the 2007 football season.
Defensively, the Celtics did a nice job of
holding one of the top ranked teams in the state to just 14
points. With the combined efforts of defensive backs Mark
Coglianese, Ken Eichorst and Mark Houlihan, along with pressure
to the QB by Greg Bennett, Paddy O’Connell ,the Griffin passing
game was virtually shutdown! The Griffins were only able to
complete 2 of 9 passes with Frank Carioti and Matt Hayes each
getting key interceptions.
With the exception of a couple big plays, the run
defense was also strong, led by linebackers Chase Pavlik and Jim
Byrne. Sophomore Steve Laski and Andy Czorniak clogged the
middle.
The offense struggled a bit. Some highlights
included some strong running by Seasn Lindbloom in the first
half and a 78 yard pass play from QB Tom Barry to WR Hayden
Grove. But it just wasn’t enough as the Celtics fell 14-6.
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