Correspondent photo / Michael G. Taylor Ursuline’s DeMarcus McElroy (6) stiff arms Austintown’ Fitch’s Bryant Butler (19) during their matchup on Sept. 10.

YOUNGSTOWN — Midway through the week, Ursuline was gearing up to play Boardman in a battle of two of the area’s better programs.

Until it wasn’t.

On Wednesday morning, Boardman had to cancel the matchup, sending Ursuline (4-2) scrambling for a new opponent for the second time this season. The Irish’s matchup with Chaney on Sept. 24 was canceled, but UHS couldn’t find a new opponent.

Within a few hours of their second cancellation, however, the Irish had their next matchup set: a home game with Cleveland’s Villa Angela-St. Joseph (4-1).

Ursuline head coach Dan Reardon explained that the Irish put calls out to local teams and didn’t have anybody interested, so UHS called up to VASJ.

“They said they’d be interested, and it was real simple. Our athletic director, John DeSantis, and I called the captains down and asked if they wanted to play,” Reardon said. “All three said yes, and now we’re playing. It’s important to give the kids the opportunity to play, even in not ideal circumstances, and obviously St. Joe’s feels the same way.”

Scheduling a game that quickly is one thing. Preparing for it with two days’ notice is quite another.

Reardon said the teams exchanged film shortly after the announcement, but that still left limited time to watch it and break it down to form a game plan.

“I basically have about an hour to put together a preliminary game plan before we’re ready to go out on the practice field with limited practice opportunities,” he said.

So Wednesday’s practice, Reardon explained, was hitting the basics about VASJ: what formations the Vikings use on offense and defense and what they like to do in those formations.

Then, over the next 24 hours into Thursday, Reardon said the UHS coaches would continue to have discussions as to how to attack what VASJ does.

“I guess the mindset is to keep things relatively simple, because it’s basically two days to practice things and minimal opportunities to attack things schematically and change things up,” Reardon said. “It will be a fundamental week, and we’ll try to have one of those weeks where less is more and just approach things that way.”

Could that impact the game itself? Reardon isn’t sure, but did say, “I don’t know how elaborate either team will be with new wrinkles and things like that on such a short turnaround.”

There may also be a bit of a feeling out process to begin the contest, and in-game adjustments perhaps will be even more critical than usual this week.

“In some ways it may be like a scrimmage in that you’re not game planning too much, and you’re relying on in-game adjustments,” he said. “And then you have to trust (the players) to go out and play to their ability. I expect both teams to be more base fundamental than use new wrinkles schematically.”

At the end of the day, Reardon said the bottom line is Ursuline is happy to take the field in any capacity.

“Our kids want to play just like any other kid who puts on a uniform,” he said. “The past couple years have been less than ideal for everybody, so at the end of the day as adults, we owe it to the kids to give them as many opportunities as possible to take the field.”

Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. at Youngstown State’s Stambaugh Stadium.