Archbishop Stepinac faced Cardinal Hayes in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Crusaders walked away with a 14-6 victory over the Cardinals. The game was the first time the Crusaders have beaten the Cardinals on their field since November 17, 2018.
Richie Demarco
| 09/06/25 vs Central Catholic | 223 |
| 10/03/25 @ Cardinal Hayes | 88 |
| 08/30/25 vs Lincoln | 23 |
| 09/19/25 vs Chaminade | 12 |
| 09/26/25 @ St. Joseph-by-the-Sea | 10 |
Archbishop Stepinac's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Grayer Hong led the charge by throwing for 195 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Crusaders also got help from Richie Demarco, who showed off his sure hands for 88 receiving yards.
On the other side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Archbishop Stepinac's defense and their eight sacks. Elias Murray was particularly dangerous to the passing game, picking up three himself. Another thorn in Cardinal Hayes' side was Dean Gaughran, who picked up a sack and made 11 total tackles (2.0 for loss).
The win made it two in a row for Archbishop Stepinac and bumps their season record up to 4-2. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered a grand total of 23 points in those games. As for Cardinal Hayes, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 1-3.
Archbishop Stepinac didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next game, a 21-14 win against Xavier on the 11th. As for Cardinal Hayes, they also wasted no time getting back out on the field and have already played their next matchup, a 42-14 loss against St. Anthony's on the 10th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
