Carmel 35, St. Viator 11
Carmel kept its hopes alive for an East Suburban Catholic Conference football title by spoiling St. Viator's homecoming 35-11 Friday, setting up a showdown for all the marbles against Joliet Catholic next week and leaving the Lions in need of another win to qualify for the playoffs.
The player mostly responsible for the Corsairs' successful evening was quarterback David Venegoni, who scored 4 touchdowns (47, 58, 1 and 65 yards) and gained 206 yards in 15 carries.
"I really didn't do anything. The line and the backs did it all," said Venegoni. "Alec Smith made great blocks on all three (long TD runs), and Matt Berg just killed his kid on that last one.
"Once I get in the open field, I just run, like Forrest Gump," Venegoni said.
Carmel coach Andy Bitto said Venegoni's ability to check his options at the line were keys to his performance on Friday.
"Plus, he runs a 4.5 (40)," Bitto said. "Once he gets open, it's hard to catch him."
Next week's ESCC showdown with the Hilltoppers will be the third in the four years.
"We put ourselves in a great position," Bitto said. "It's always nice to play for a championship."
"As freshmen and sophomores, we played them for the conference," Venegoni said. "Tonight, we wanted to come in and set the tone, an example of what we can do.
"It should be an even game (next week.)"
"They were better than us," said St. Viator coach Chris Kirkpatrick. "They hit, and they get to the ball. That No. 24 (Ryan Williams) is probably the best player on defense I've seen all year."
"Our defense played great," Bitto said. "The offense was inconsistent, outside of David. The defense was on the field a lot. My hat's off to them."
Carmel (7-1, 6-0) scored on its first two possessions. Venegoni's 47-yard score came on the fourth play of a 65-yard drive, and his 58-yard dash was the second play of a drive that started on Carmel's 45.
St. Viator (4-4, 2-4) got on the board when Jon Harris kicked a 28-yard field goal with 8:30 left in the half, and Matt Berg's 31-yard dash around left end gave Carmel a 21-3 lead just 3 plays later.
Two more touchdowns by Venegoni, a 1-yard sneak and a 65-yard burst stretched Carmel's lead to 35-3 midway through the final quarter.
No. 3 quarterback Julian Sipiora, filling in after both Dan Faerber (shoulder) and Eric Huber (concussion and lingering shoulder injury) were sidelined, put a spark in the Lions' offense in the fourth quarter.
He engineered a 15-play, 84-yard drive for their only touchdown, scoring on a 3-yard run with 1:28 left, and he found end Richard McLoughlin for the 2-point conversion.
St. Viator needs a win next week but will be limping to the finish line.
"Julian played well," Kirkpatrick said. "We're really thin. One thing we said was we couldn't have injuries.
"We've got to win," Kirkpatrick said. "We have a slim shot. It's going to be real close (with playoff points)."