By keeping cool under the heat of the West Lafayette offense, Guerin Catholic scored an upset victory.
The Golden Eagles hosted the No. 2-ranked Red Devils in first-round action at Class 3A Sectional 28 Friday at the Eagles Nest. Guerin took the lead on a big touchdown run, then its defense stepped up big with two plays in the final minutes, which gave the Golden Eagles a 20-18 win.
“They battled,” said GC coach Tom Dilley. “There were plenty of opportunities to have some letdowns and get down a little bit.”
While Dilley admitted things weren’t perfect, he said his team “battled and just kept playing regardless of the situation and the circumstances, just kept playing.”
After trailing 6-0 at halftime, Guerin Catholic took the lead after Jagger Albert rushed for a 12-yard touchdown. Addison Lushin’s kick put the Golden Eagles out front 7-6, and that would be the third-quarter score.
West Lafayette’s Colin Martin punched the ball in from the one to jump ahead 12-7, but GC stopped a two-point conversion attempt. Minutes later, Danny Rhoad took off on a 57-yard run to the end zone, getting the Golden Eagles back up 13-12. A two-point conversion try didn’t go, but Guerin was in the lead with 4:59 to go.
After forcing the Red Devils to a three-and-out, GC drove down the field. The Golden Eagles would eventually score again, with Brayden Hall running the ball in from nine yards at the 1:20 mark. Lushin made the extra-point kick.
That gave West Lafayette the ball back, and it would go on to score with 36 seconds remaining when Martin threw a 25-yard pass to Corey Adams. But again, Guerin Catholic prevented a two-point conversion.
The Red Devils got one more chance, as they recovered an onside kick. West Lafayette would try for a long field goal, but Rhoad blocked the attempt.
“There were plenty of situations for us to get a little nervous or whatever,” said Dilley. “The kids just kept battling.”
Both Albert and Rhoad wound up with 107 yards rushing and one touchdown each. Quarterback Sam Miller completed 8 of 14 attempts for 58 yards, with Ryan Glenn making four of those catches.
The Golden Eagles improved to 4-4 and were part of a 6-0 night for Circle City Conference teams. Guerin Catholic will play one of its conference rivals in next week’s sectional semi-finals, taking on Bishop Chatard in an away game.
GUERIN CATHOLIC 20, WEST LAFAYETTE 18
Score by Quarters
West Lafayette 0 6 0 12 – 18
Guerin Catholic 0 0 7 13 – 20
Team Stats WL GC
Rushes-Yards 35-102 42-242
Yards Passing 200 60
Comp-Att-Int-TD 16-26-0-2 9-15-1-0
Punts-Average 5-30.8 3-33.7
Guerin Catholic Scoring
Third Quarter
Jagger Albert 12-yard run (Addison
Lushin kick)
Fourth Quarter
Danny Rhoad 57-yard run (conversion failed)
Brayden Hall 9-yard run (Lushin kick)
Guerin Catholic individual stats
Rushing: Jagger Albert 21-107, Danny Rhoad 10-107, Hall 3-19, Sam Miller 3-18, Elijah Edwards 3-8, team 2-minus 17.
Passing: S. Miller 8-14-58, Rhoad 1-1-2.
Receiving: Ryan Glenn 4-36, Albert 2-7, Max McGreal 1-8, Jack Cherry 1-8, Anthony Ferrucci 1-1.