Event Recap: Rich Hidy ‘12
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Bombers Come Up Short in GCL Clash
On a Friday night game on the campus of the University of Cincinnati at Nippert Stadium, the St. Xavier Bombers came up just short of a huge comeback against the Moeller Crusaders. Moeller won the game 27-24 in the last few seconds of regulation after Moeller Coach John Rodenberg iced senior kicker Nick Roemer on his first attempt to send the game into overtime. Roemer was not able to connect on his second attempt at the field goal and Moeller took a knee to end the game. Even though the Bombers could not pull out a victory, they almost came back from being down 27-10 at one point in the game. The Bombers are now 3-2 and 0-1 in the GCL with the loss, and Moeller advances to 5-0 on the year, and 1-0 in the GCL. The Bombers played well on the defensive side, scoring once and forcing many turnovers.
Senior corner Jalyn Sutton-Jackson led the way for the Bombers on the defensive side of the ball. After junior corner Ben Carroll went down with an injury early in the game, Sutton-Jackson locked down on the Moeller receivers for the rest of the game. Sutton-Jackson had two interceptions in his first game with a lot of playing time and he should be a turnover producer for the remainder of the season. Senior linebacker Nate Gerbus also had a solid game for St. X. Gerbus recovered a fumble early in the game forced by linebacker Mark Jacob. Gerbus also had 5.5 tackles and one sack. Along with the forced fumble, Jacob had 6.5 tackles and a sack. Joe Barrett had a seventeen yard fumble recovery for a touchdown late in the third quarter, giving the Bombers a score on the defensive end. Senior defensive end Bryson Albright played well in the game. He had six tackles, .5 sacks, and a tackle for loss. The Bombers should be able to build on this defensive performance for the remainder of the season.
On offense, the Bombers seemed to struggle against a Moeller defense that was in senior quarterback Griffin Dolle’s face for much of the game. The Crusaders were able to get a rush on many of the passing plays that the Bombers attempted, only allowing Dolle to complete nine of his twenty-eight passes. Dolle finished the game with ninety-eight yards and two interceptions. Even though the Bombers could not advance the ball in the passing game, the offensive line created lots of big holes for Conor Hundley to run through. Hundley carried the ball twenty-three times for one hundred and twenty-three yards and two touchdowns. He also had two receptions for forty-one yards. Punter Robbie Dorger managed the field position game well with seven punts for a solid average of 35.1 yards and a punt inside the twenty.
The Crusaders had some very explosive players on offense in wide receiver Monty Madaris and running back Keith Watkins. Madaris had ninety-six yards receiving and Watkins had eighty yards rushing with two touchdowns, and thirty-eight yards receiving. The Bombers will next return home on Friday, September 30th for a clash with rival Elder. The game will be played at 7:30 in Ballaban Stadium. The game should be a good measuring stick for both teams on how they will shape up in the GCL. | 
