Cards, ‘Cats meet in Game of the Week

Press Sports Editor
sports@presspublications.com

Cardinal Stritch and Woodmore played two games and the results were about as different as could be.
The Cardinals, playing their first game since 2021, dominated St. Joseph Central Catholic, 41-6, behind four touchdowns from QB Blake Kamelesky.
The Wildcats, on the other hand, lost to North Central, 30-6, with the only touchdown coming on a 26-yard run by Michael Seeger as Woodmore accumulated just 63 yards of total offense.
Stritch (1-0) won its first game since defeating Hilltop, 49-0, on October 15, 2021.
“I told them to kind of take the moment in and suck it up, but (that) we had to get started the next day,” said Stritch coach Allen Thompson. “We had a lot of penalties that we didn’t need to have. We have to clean those penalties up. We had four touchdowns called back due to penalties.
“Practice has been good – everyone is taking days to recover and rest. We have film and conditioning days and getting ready (for the next game),” he said.
It’s just one game, but it was nice for the Cardinals to get started off on the right foot in such impressive fashion.
“Opening with a win to start the season keeps a lot more on the table,” said Thompson. “Guys start talking about the playoffs, not battling from behind. It was a good win, but we have to get better.”
Kamelesky was the star of the game, completing 8-of-12 passes for 140 yards and three touchdowns, plus a rushing touchdown, Nathan Frontine caught four passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns and Colin Kane caught a touchdown pass.
Trey Neely had a rushing touchdown and Thomas Toyer returned an interception for a touchdown.
Woodmore, which will host the game, got a good performance from its defense but was unable to move the ball on offense.
“North Central is a pretty good team. They run the Wing-T. Last year, they went 6-4 and made the playoffs,” said Woodmore coach Curtis Schlea. “This year, they’re a very senior-heavy team – their top players from last year are back. They have a good running back and good middle linebacker.”
Schlea credited MLB Jack Caldwell, who had 17 tackles, for his play, as well as FS Nolan Young, who had nine tackles, and freshman MLB Cole Potridge, who played well, too.
“Our defense played very well,” said Schlea. “Thirty points wasn’t all given up by the defense. We had some punts and turnovers that gave (North Central) good field position.
“It’s disappointing; every loss is disappointing. We played well on defense, played tough, limited them to about 200 total yards, but we just couldn’t get the ball moving on offense. There was only one drive where we sustained first downs. We couldn’t get our defense off the field, either.”
It’s the final game for the Wildcats before they begin play in the Sandusky Bay Conference River Division.
“It’s always very important to get a win before league play begins. The coaching staff has a goal for the team to go 2-1 in non-league play,” said Schlea. “Week 3 is an important week to get a win and get momentum going into league play.”