Greg Gadell, O'Connell
File photo by Dan Rosenstein
It may be too early to predict who the team to beat is in the WCAC, but after one week of play it's clear that the league should be more competitive than usual. Gonzaga, Carroll, St. John's and O'Connell all took the field last weekend and each walked away victorious, outscoring their opponents by a combined score of 120-30.
The most impressive performance, however, was by St. John's senior running back Charles Brown, who rushed 22 times for 199 yards and two touchdowns.
“I had a lot of motivation to do well today,” Brown said after the game. “I’ve also been working hard in practice, and I just wanted to come out and do my thing.”
Brown did, as St. John's rolled to a 19-3 victory over the Calvert Hall Cardinals, making it the fifth straight year the Cadets beat Calvert Hall. But even with the strong St. John's showing, coach Joe Patterson isn't celebrating just yet.
“I think that we missed on several opportunities," Patterson said, "and we do still have a lot of issues we need to work out before we get into the conference play.”
Conference play might be tougher than usual. Gonzaga scored 55 points in a convincing victory over Anacostia, while Carroll put 32 on the scoreboard, as a freshman quarterback stole the show.
An injury to the Lions' starting quarterback meant Tim Brady would have to start his brief Carroll career under center. The freshman responded by completing 4 of 5 passes for 125 yards and four touchdowns. Three of his touchdown passes went to receiver Lamont Baldwin as Carroll beat St. Mary's Ryken 32-7.
Gonzaga was also led by an underclassman. Duane McKelvin, a 5-9, 156-pound sophomore running back, carried the ball five times for 57 yards and two touchdowns. McKelvin also returned an interception 40 yards to set up another score as Gonzaga beat Anacostia 55-20.
“I felt I needed to make plays," McKelvin said. "On offense, if us running backs can get going, it allows the offense to flow. We are trying to get back up to the top of league. We want to compete with the Good Counsels and DeMathas and today was the first step forward.”
Bishop O'Connell rounded out the perfect start for the WCAC with a 14-0 victory over Wilson. Josh Trimble, son of head coach Steve Trimble, returned an interception 90 yards for the first score of the game, which ended up being the only touchdown O'Connell would need.
“When I saw the ball go up, I said to myself ‘If I pick this, I’m taking it for six,’ said Trimble. “I just followed my blockers and made it through."
All eight WCAC teams will be in action this weekend, including Good Counsel, which will travel to San Diego to take on Valhalla.
Todd Bradley is the co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of DCSportsFan. Before starting the site, Bradley went to Gonzaga High School and Loyola University New Orleans. He wrote for The Times-Picayune during college and the Greensboro News & Record upon graduation.
