Carmel clinches share of ESCC crown
Carmel's defense didn't quite pitch a shutout, but the Corsairs toyed with perfection in the first half of its 35-7 win over Nazareth on Friday.
The Corsairs (7-2, 6-1 ESCC) victory secured a share of the East Suburban Catholic Conference title with the win. The loss ended Nazareth's season at 4-5, a win short of a playoff berth.
Carmel was nearly perfect in the first half, allowing 1 net yard. Linebackers like Nick Keller, Dirk Wagner and Mike Fitzgibbons and linemen Steven Lester, Connor Sexson and Mike Cohen swarmed Nazareth running backs LaSteven McKinney and Reggie Jennings and frustrated quarterback Matt Behrendt. Behrendt was 1-for-10 with minus-4 passing yards while McKinney carried the ball five times for no yards and Jennings picked up only 3 yards on one carry.
Nazareth's offensive woes continued into the third quarter, as the Roadrunners didn't pick up a first down until 5 seconds remained in the third. Nazareth's lone score came on a 56-yard run by McKinney with 2:44 left in the game, when Carmel's regulars were pulled.
"We tried to focus on McKinney," said Fitzgibbons, a junior who had 7 tackles. "He's an elusive runner. All week, we worked on getting low to the ground and keeping our heads up."
If there was a signature series by the defense, it came in the first quarter. After an errant snap on a punt gave Nazareth the ball on the Carmel 11, the Fitzgibbons stopped McKinney in the backfield on a misdirection play for a 6-yard loss. After an incomplete pass, McKinney gained 6 yards on a dive play, setting up a 30-yard field goal try by Patrick Dunn.
Carmel's Dirk Wagner blocked the kickoff, extinguishing Nazareth's best scoring chance.
"The momentum built up after that," Carmel coach Andy Bitto said.
Nazareth's Behrendt struggled to see over a menacing Carmel line that batted down at least three passes.
"I'm putting the whole defensive line - all three of them - up for all-conference," Bitto said.
Quarterback Brian Serio completed 5-of-8 passes for 155 yards and 3 touchdowns. His 43-yard pass to Christian Nemeth put Carmel on the board late in the first quarter. Two long connections to Matt Felicelli in the third quarter put the Corsairs up 28-0.
"They had 11 guys 5 yards from the ball," Bitto said. "That's why we threw as much as we did."
Serio also gained 106 yards on 22 carries, but backup quarterback Larry Amato actually led the Corsairs in rushing, gaining 117 yards on nine carries, including an 80 yard run with a little over a minute remaining. Amato was stopped at the Nazareth 6, and the Corsairs elected to run out the clock.
This afternoon, Carmel will learn who its first-round playoff opponent will be. For now, the team can celebrate its first conference title since 2003 - the year Carmel won the Class 6A state title.
"It's a great feeling to finally win (a share of the conference title)," said Fitzgibbons, who literally grew up with the Carmel football program as the son of Bitto's predecessor. "We had that tough loss to Joliet Catholic to start the year and then had the loss to Marian."
Bitto looks at the midseason loss to Marian Catholic as a bit of a turning point.
"In a lot of ways, a loss like that allows you to redirect kids if they let you," Bitto said.