Cardinal Mooney shuts down Canfield
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YOUNGSTOWN -- After giving up 49 points at Garfield Heights last week, Cardinal Mooney's defense came away from that loss with a bad taste in its mouth.
A return home proved to be fruitful for the Cardinals on Friday night, as Mooney's defense bounced back by shutting down Canfield, recording three takeaways and a safety in a 19-7 victory at Stambaugh Stadium.
"When you get a lot of points put up on you, you start to doubt yourself and they just kept playing the next play in this game," Mooney head coach Frank Colaprete said. "They didn't let what happened last week affect them, and they stayed focused, stayed poised and continued to play hard.
"Any time you can fight through adversity and come back the way we did from the week before -- going into an emotional game against a tough opponent -- and come through on the winning side of things, it's a testament to their character and the way they're focused."
Mooney's defense made life difficult all game for quarterback DJ Porter and the rest of Canfield's offense, limiting the Cardinals to 140 total yards.
"[It was] mental toughness and fortitude. That's why I couldn't be more proud of them growing up at such a young age that way," Colaprete said. "It's exciting to see, and I couldn't be more proud of them. The physical talent's there and to be able to do that mentally and fight with that fortitude is impressive."
Neither team could get much going in the first quarter as both teams struggled to run the ball.
Porter was intercepted by Mooney's Brady Desmond on Canfield's first possession. However, despite taking over in opposing territory, penalties and negative-yardage plays backed Mooney up and the Cardinals were forced to punt.
Canfield started to find some offensive momentum on its next drive, moving the ball into the red zone by the end of the period. Canfield had a chance to get on the board first to start the second quarter, but kicker Luke Goodrich missed a 32-yard field goal wide right.
It didn't take Mooney long to take advantage, as Tyree Dawson burst into the open field for a 71-yard run on the very next play. Mooney quarterback Vince Gentile then hit Michael Schiraldi on a fade to the back-left corner of the end zone for a 6-yard touchdown two plays later.
On the ensuing possession, Canfield's Sami Hout fumbled at the end of a 17-yard catch-and-run and Mooney recovered to take over in plus territory. Mooney capitalized on the takeaway and added to its lead with a 5-yard touchdown run from Desmond.
"It just kills what you're doing. We get a big run, they make a tackle and we turn it over," Canfield head coach Joe Ignazio said. "When we're getting momentum there, we're just shooting ourselves in the foot. With some younger guys playing, they're under a microscope and things get compounded."
After another Canfield punt, Mooney looked to put Canfield in a bigger hole in the final minutes of the half, but Gentile was picked off by AJ Economous and Mooney took a 14-0 lead into halftime.
Despite the turnover, Gentile managed to find success in the passing game throughout the first half as Canfield tried to take away Mooney's ground attack. He completed each of his first four passes and finished 10-of-19 for 116 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
"It was important because we were able to run the routes, get open in windows and Vince was able to get through his progressions, find the right guy and be accurate with the ball," Colaprete said. "When everybody puts everybody in the box, we need to be able to do that. When we're able to do that, our confidence grows and then things open up and we can get some nice runs off that."
To start the second half, Hout took the kickoff back 65 yards, which set up Porter's 4-yard touchdown scramble six plays later to finally put Canfield on the board.
After a pair of three-and-outs, Mooney finally started to find some rhythm in the run game. Even though the Cardinals' drive stalled out at the end of the third quarter, freshman kicker Gio Whetstone drilled a 39-yard field goal to begin the fourth quarter, giving Mooney a crucial two-score lead at 17-7.
"The kid's got ice in his veins," Colaprete said. "Each week, he continues to grow and get better, and you can see it on the field. He did a great job against Garfield Heights, and he came out here and continues to improve."
Both teams exchanged turnovers midway through the period, as Economous earned his second interception off Gentile and Mooney's Tyrus Sheeler recovered a botched handoff in Canfield's backfield.
Mooney dealt the finishing blow with about four minutes left when Porter was sacked in the end zone by Anthony Brock for a safety. Getting the ball back with a 19-7 lead, Mooney ran out the clock to close out the victory.
"We're, like, right there. We're still finding our depth chart a little bit. But guys are showing up and fighting," Ignazio said. "We lose the turnover battle there, and that is unacceptable for us. It just irritates the crap out of me and it's just unacceptable. But we'll get back in there and figure things out."