Football Preview: Archbishop Stepinac Crusaders vs. Cardinal Hayes Cardinals
Archbishop Stepinac and Cardinal Hayes are an even 5-5 against one another since October of 2017, but not for long. The Archbishop Stepinac Crusaders will stay at home for another week and welcome the Cardinal Hayes Cardinals at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Things were looking good for Archbishop Stepinac after they put the first points on the board on Saturday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They took a 24-14 hit to the loss column at the hands of Monsignor Farrell. While the Crusaders didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Lions 7-0 in the first quarter.
Archbishop Stepinac's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Jesse Osbourne, who rushed for 60 yards and two touchdowns, and Max Oliveri, who picked up 90 receiving yards. That's the most rushing yards Osbourne has posted since back in August.
Archbishop Stepinac wouldn't let Monsignor Farrell keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Archbishop Stepinac can thank John Marino and Elias Murray for forcing both of them. Marino also set a new season high mark in total tackles with 11. Another thorn in Monsignor Farrell's side was Andrew Waters, who made 14 total tackles and defended a pass.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Hayes faced Chaminade in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Sunday. Cardinal Hayes narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Chaminade 16-14. The 16-point effort marked the Cardinals' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Archbishop Stepinac's loss was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 0-8. As for Cardinal Hayes, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 5-2 record this season.
Archbishop Stepinac couldn't quite finish off Cardinal Hayes when the teams last played back in November of 2023 and fell 29-26. Can Archbishop Stepinac avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
