Rebels quarterback James Shirley rushed for a go-ahead touchdown with 2:12 remaining in the fourth quarter to give Delisle a 29-16 win over the John Paul II Crusaders in their final home game Thursday night.
Delisle tacked on a touchdown with under a minute left to stay undefeated with a 13-point win.
"We were right there with the top team in our conference," said Crusaders coach Bruce Yockey. "I'm proud of the way we played today."
It was a tight, defensive game for the first half in cold, windy conditions. Neither team were able to get anything going offensively as the defences held them in check for the first quarter.
On a drive that started with a minute left in the first quarter, Delisle broke the deadlock with seven minutes left in the first half. The Rebels kept the ball on the ground for the majority of the drive as Sam Michnik and Reid Dubkowski combined for 61 yards of rushing, setting Delisle up at the Crusaders' five-yard line. Shirley capped off the drive with a touchdown pass to Dubkowski for a 7-0 lead.
The Crusaders responded on their next drive, which started with great field position after a penalty on the kickoff. Tailback Jacob Stynsky and quarterback Tyler Wasmuth ran the ball for most of the drive. Then, Wasmuth found Riley Loeppky for 16 yards to get the Crusaders into the red zone. Stynsky finished off the drive with a nine-yard touchdown run. Wasmuth connected with Jared Schmidt for a successful two-point conversion and an 8-7 lead.
A turnover on the ensuing kickoff set up the Crusaders with great field position. Dubkowski returned the ball to the Crusaders' 45-yard line before Stynsky ripped the ball away from him. However, John Paul II was unable to capitalize. A poor snap resulted in the ball rolling past Wasmuth, who dove for the ball and collided with Jake Middleton on the ground, who recovered the ball for the Rebels. Wasmuth was shaken up on the play. He left the game and did not return.
In the second half, the strong defensive play continued. Late in the third quarter, the Rebels took the lead again. After Shirley found Joshua Kemp for 26 yards, the Rebels returned to the ground game as Michnik and Dubkowski marched the team down the field. A penalty set up the Rebels on the goal line where Shirley plunged into the end zone for a 15-8 lead.
After the Rebels and the Crusaders exchanged scoreless drives, John Paul II started a drive from midfield with seven minutes left to play. Schmidt, who took over for Wasmuth at quarterback, found Loeppky wide open on the right side of the field for a 33-yard gain. Stynsky kept the ball on the ground, but was unable to pick up the third-down conversion.
However, the Rebels were given a penalty, setting up the Crusaders with a first down from the Rebels' goal line. John Paul II was stopped when they tried running up the middle on first and second down. On their third and final attempt, Schmidt pitched the ball to Stynsky who ran the ball on the right for the score.
On the two-point conversion attempt, it appeared Loeppky caught the pass for a good conversion. However, he was flagged for offensive pass interference, leading to a second attempt from the 15-yard line. On the second attempt, Schmidt found Loeppky again for a successful conversion and a 16-15 lead with 3:12 to play.
Yockey said they did not lose anything in the passing game when Schmidt replaced the injured Wasmuth, but it puts players in unfamiliar positions.
"Jared has a good arm and throws the ball well. But what it does is, Jared's a good fullback, a good two-back for us, and an excellent receiver. And so we did kind of lose that possession receiver that made us put some guys into positions they aren't totally familiar with all the time."
The Rebels marched the ball back down the field, sparked by Michnik's 34-yard gain. After a couple of plays, Shirley capped off the drive with a three-yard touchdown run, putting the Rebels up 22-16 with 2:12 remaining.
On the ensuing Crusaders' drive, Schmidt was intercepted by Shirley. The Rebels began to run down the clock before Michnik broke off an eight-yard touchdown run to increase Delisle's lead to 13 points with 20 seconds left.
Despite the loss, Yockey said there were many positives to take from the game, including the play of the defence.
"I thought our defence played really well. They did an excellent job making great plays, some good tackles."
