Football Hosts TRAC Foe Clay on Friday as Part of Homecoming Weekend
The Central Catholic football team will tangle with red-hot Oregon Clay on Friday, Sept. 30 as part of Homecoming Weekend. The opening kick against the Eagles (5-1, 2-1 TRAC) is slated for 7 pm in Gallagher Stadium.
CCHS (5-1, 3-0 TRAC), the four-time reigning Three Rivers Athletic Conference champions, is currently tied with Whitmer (4-2, 3-0 TRAC) for the top spot in the league standings, 1 game ahead of Clay and Fremont Ross (5-1, 2-1 TRAC).
The Fighting Irish are coming off an impressive 56-0 shutout victory against Lima Senior (3-3, 0-3 TRAC) on Friday in Spartan Stadium. Central Catholic scored 14 points in each quarter vs. the Spartans to record its 12th-straight triumph in the series.
The Scarlet & Gray did most of its damage vs. Lima Senior on the ground, finishing with a decisive 282-yard rushing advantage, 290-8. The 2-headed monster of senior RB Chris Edmonds and junior RB Marquan Braswell carried the load offensively, totaling 230 of the 282 yards rushing. Edmonds had a game-high 124 yards on 19 carries, while Braswell was close behind with 106 yards on only 4 attempts. Edmonds found the end zone on carries of 14 and 2 yards in the 1st quarter, and 3 and 7 yards in the 2nd period, respectively. Braswell was also credited with a 9-yard TD scamper in the 4th stanza.
A 2021 1st-team All-TRAC honoree, Edmonds has now topped the century mark in each of the last 5 contests, all CCHS victories. Overall this Fall, Edmonds rushed 121 times for 821 yards and scored 16 touchdowns.
In addition to being dominant running the ball in Friday’s shutout, Central Catholic was outstanding defensively. The Fighting Irish limited Lima Senior to 4-of-15 (26.7 percent) on 3rd-down conversions and recorded 3 interceptions to help them stretch their TRAC winning streak to 28-consecutive games.
CCHS will be looking for its 19th-straight victory against Clay on Friday. A season ago, the Fighting Irish secured a resounding 60-0 road triumph. All but seven of Central Catholic’s wins during this time frame have been by at least 30 points. Their last loss vs. the Eagles occurred during the 2003 campaign by a score 10-7.
Clay enters this week’s matchup on the heels of a 26-14 home victory vs. St. Francis de Sales (1-5, 0-3 TRAC) on Friday. QB Mason Heintschel completed 23 of 32 passes for 261 yards and 1 TD against the Knights. Eight of Heintschel's completions went to WR Christian Mays for 134 yards, and RB Kale Wilkins added 21 carries for 108 yards and 1 score.
Tickets for Friday’s game can be purchased online at bit.ly/3KgpfKi. Friendly reminder, no tickets will be available to purchase at the gate.
For those fans unable to attend Friday’s contest, the game can be heard LIVE on “The Ticket” l 100.7 FM with the “Voice of the Irish” Bill Clark & Jim Oswald, starting at 6:30 pm or streamed online HERE.
Central Catholic, which is ranked No. 8 in the most recent Division II state poll, will return to the gridiron against TRAC co-leader Whitmer on Friday, Oct. 7.
