If the mark of a good team is an ability to win despite not being at your best, then Fenwick is in good shape.
The Friars overcame three turnovers, a multitude of penalties and a determined effort by an upset-minded opponent to beat St. Ignatius 17-9 on Friday night at Morton West Stadium in Berwyn.
The win means Fenwick (5-2) is playoff eligible for the third straight season.
“Ignatius played very well and I don’t think it was one of our better games playing and coaching, so that’s on me,” Fenwick coach Gene Nudo said. “I should have had our team more focused for this game, but I’m happy to get our fifth win.”
The outcome was in doubt until Aaron Garland intercepted St. Ignatius quarterback Ryan Coolidge at the Fenwick 33 and returned it 27 yards with 1:20 remaining in the fourth quarter, after which the Friars ran out the clock.
Kicker Michael Cahill had given the hosts some breathing room when he booted a 32-yard field goal with 2:43 remaining, forcing the Wolfpack (1-6) to score a touchdown to tie it. St. Ignatius made one first down before Garland’s clinching pick.
“It was a dog fight,” Fenwick defensive lineman Harry Bell said. “Coming in we thought there would be a little bit of a bigger gap in the score, but they came out fighting.”
Fenwick never trailed but was in danger for most of the game. Quarterback Jack Beneventi gave the Friars a 7-0 lead when he scored on a naked bootleg from three yards out on the first play of the second quarter.
But Beneventi and his receivers, who dropped five passes, had a shaky night. Beneventi completed just 11 of 27 passes for 190 yards and threw three interceptions, the first of which was returned 96 yards for a touchdown by Luke Soenen at the 8:15 mark of the second quarter. The extra-point kick was partially blocked, leaving the Friars in front 7-6.
Fenwick responded by marching 65 yards in nine plays to extend the lead to 14-9 on a one-yard run by fullback Adam Williams.
The Wolfpack closed within 14-9 on a 27-yard field goal from Chris Kreid 12 seconds before halftime. A late hit penalty on Fenwick kept that drive alive before the Friars forced three straight incompletions.
St. Ignatius had four chances to take the lead in the second half, but three of those drives ended with punts and the other a fumble recovery by Justin Rodriguez at the Fenwick 19.
“We had a high level of intensity,” said Bell, who had a key sack at the Wolfpack 2 late in the game. “We came out on every play wanting to hit someone. [There were] a lot of three-and-outs, four or five turnovers, a great overall defensive performance.”
Indeed, St. Ignatius mustered just 175 yards of total offense, including 57 rushing yards on 30 attempts.
Pat Donahue rushed 30 times for 96 yards and Joe Buzinski had four catches for 58 yards for Fenwick, which travels to Montini next week for a highly anticipated matchup in the Chicago Catholic Green.
“Montini is one of our toughest opponents this year,” Bell said. “We’re really going to have to focus this week. It’s going to be a dogfight the whole way.”