Football Game Preview: Archbishop Stepinac Crusaders vs. Chaminade Flyers

The Archbishop Stepinac Crusaders will square off against the Chaminade Flyers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.

Archbishop Stepinac is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New York's top teams: Iona Prep, who was ranked first at the time (Archbishop Stepinac was ranked 18th). The Crusaders were dealt a 49-21 defeat at the hands of the Gaels on Saturday. That's two games in a row now that the Crusaders have lost by exactly 28 points.

Although Archbishop Stepinac took the loss, they still got scores from Ian Thomas and John Smith.

Meanwhile, Chaminade was able to grind out a solid victory over Kellenberg Memorial on Saturday, taking the game 24-17. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Flyers.

Archbishop Stepinac better keep an eye on Maccoy Wallace. He was instrumental in Chaminade's win, rushing for 123 yards on only 13 carries. Those 123 rushing yards gave Wallace a new career-high.

Chaminade was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 277 rushing yards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their rushing yard total in three consecutive contests.

Chaminade's defense made their presence known, laying out Daniel Licari three times. The team can thank three different players for their defensive prowess: Anthony Trapani, Nick Fochetta, and Luca Mastronardi, who each picked up one sack apiece. Another thorn in Kellenberg Memorial's side was Trapani, who picked up a sack, forced one fumble, and made four total tackles (2.0 for loss).

Chaminade's record is now 6-4. As for Archbishop Stepinac, their loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 6-4.

Archbishop Stepinac and Chaminade were neck-and-neck in their previous meeting back in September, but Archbishop Stepinac came up empty-handed after a 24-23 defeat. Can the Crusaders avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.