No. 10 Owensboro Catholic holds off Owensboro in 43-31 rivalry win
A good ‘ole fashioned rivalry game has never disappointed.
The No. 10 ranked Owensboro Catholic Aces have had a predictable season so far given their undefeated record against the caliber of their competition up to this point. Owensboro‘s season hasn’t looked like that on paper, but the first three weeks of play prepared them for the dog fight that was Friday night’s match at Steele Stadium.
The Aces came back from a halftime deficit to defeat the Red Devils and advance to 4-0 on the season. In the city rivalry, Owensboro Catholic walks away with a huge win.
“I’d be lying to tell you that city-county championship is not important, it’s important to the city of Owensboro in general,” head coach Jason Morris said after the game. “It was one of our goals.”
First Half
In typical Owensboro Catholic fashion, the Aces started off hot with a quick drive upfield and touchdown reception to take the lead in under one minute of play.
The Aces’ offense was rolling, using senior quarterback Brady Atwell‘s arm to move the ball and senior receiver Dereon Crowe’s athleticism to keep it on the Aces’ side.
Waryn Ebelhar caught a dime in the end zone to give the Aces a 14-0 lead late in the first quarter. It felt like a blowout could happen at any moment. The Red Devils stuck to their script, though.
After a huge interception by Owensboro gave them 1st and goal on the opposite 10, the Red Devils capitalized on the field position to put some points on the board at the end of the first quarter at 14-7.
Midway through the second quarter, the Red Devils came up with a huge reception from senior receiver Blake Kimbrell to even the score at 14-14. Owensboro went on to kick a field goal right before the half, taking the lead 17-14 and momentum into the locker rooms.
Second Half
The energy Owensboro created in the locker rooms came right back out with them to start the second half. The Red Devils scored off the kickoff for an immediate double-digit lead at 24-14 to give them 24 straight unanswered points.
This sparked something in the Aces, and their sense of urgency changed when senior receiver Dereon Crowe grabbed six for the Aces to tighten the gap at 24-21. This led to huge defensive stops and gave Atwell the chance to do what he does best — toss the football.
Ebelhar came up with a massive grab under pressure, putting the Aces on the one-yard line which led to a rushing touchdown (and two-point conversion) by Atwell, giving Owensboro Catholic back the lead at 29-24.
After a forced fumble by the Aces defense, junior Miles Edge found the end-zone, giving the Aces a cushy 36-24 edge to end the third quarter.
The beginning of the fourth quarter was relatively quiet on both ends until the Red Devils put together a long scoring drive with under two minutes to play, where senior quarterback Trevor Delacey grabbed a touchdown to make it a one-possession game at 36-31.
Owensboro Catholic recovered the onside kick, and instead of kneeling on downs, Atwell decided to take matters into his own hands. From his own 33-yard line, Atwell trucked through multiple defenders to score a 60+ yard rushing touchdown, solidifying the win at 43-31 Aces.
“I knew I was gonna get in the end-zone,” Atwell said on the final touchdown. “Nobody was stopping me. It was one of those things where I was like ‘I gotta do it.'”
“You can’t really describe it in words, the effort that the team put in tonight was incredible,” Atwell added. “I’m so proud of my guys and so proud of this community for all the hard work we put in.”
The Aces look forward to next week when they take on Henderson County away from home on Friday, Sept. 20. Owensboro falls to 1-3 and will play Graves County next week at home.
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