Bishop Fenwick takes its fans on a wild ride

READING – There’s nothing better than traditional Thanksgiving high school football games, especially when the game is as thrilling as the Bishop Fenwick win over Austin Prep.Fenwick rallied after being down by two touchdowns to defeat the Cougars (4-7, 1-4) on a beautiful, sunny morning at Father Seymour Field in Reading.”There was no panic,” said Fenwick head coach Dave Woods. “We had a lot of time left and some timeouts.”Austin Prep outplayed the Crusaders for the majority of the day, but they were unable to hold the lead.Crusaders’ senior quarterback Fran Hannon tossed a 35-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end James Traversy with 35 seconds left in the game. Sophomore running back Rufus Rushins scored on the two-point conversion to provide the winning points for Fenwick (8-3, 3-2).Hannon was 13-of-25 for 194 yards and two touchdowns.The Cougars received the ball to open the game, but Fenwick held Austin Prep near midfield. Austin Prep punter Nicholas Mulcahy dropped a punt that was downed at the Crusaders’ 5-yard line. Fenwick traveled 30 yards before Hannon coughed up the ball and Austin Prep’s Brendan Taylor recovered at the Fenwick 37.Austin Prep got a key 17-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Connor Duffy to Jonathan Sauerman to the Crusaders’ six.. Three plays later on third- and -goal, senior fullback Stephen Rickley ran past the goal line up the middle to hand the Cougars a 6-0 advantage in the opening quarter.On Austin Prep’s next offensive possession, they moved the ball into the red zone before Duffy’s pass was intercepted by Fenwick cornerback Eric Razney. Razney returned it to the Fenwick 15. On third-and-8, Hannon threw a slant pass in the middle of the field to Charlie Maistrellis who outran the Cougars’ defensive backs as he cut to the left side of the field before getting into the end zone. This knotted the score at six in the second quarter. Rushins converted the two points to give Fenwick an 8-6 lead.”That was great by Fran because they gave us a little bit of a different look that we weren’t expecting so he waited for the slant to clear,” explained Woods. “Then Charlie just outran the safety in the open field.”Austin Prep drove to the Fenwick 30 before two penalties and a sack ended the half.Despite the Crusaders holding the lead, Austin Prep’s offense controlled the clock for the majority of the opening half with their double-wing offense and proved that they were going to battle the Crusaders.”We only ran 20 plays in the first half,” said Woods. “Austin Prep played a phenomenal game and they chewed up the clock.”Fenwick took the initial possession of the second half. The Crusaders got the ball to the Cougars 41. On fourth-and-three, the Crusaders were called for an illegal formation penalty that brought the ball back to the Cougars’ 46. On fourth-and-8, Hannon’s pass fell incomplete.The Cougars’ offense went to work. They used 14 plays and 56 yards to regain the lead over Fenwick. Senior tailbacks Nicholas Vitale and Daniel Arena alternated carries until the Cougars got to Fenwick’s 17-yard line. After Fenwick held Austin Prep to -1 yard on the next three plays, Duffy connected with Mulcahy for a 13-yard gain. Vitale eventually scored from three yards out. Then Vitale got into the end zone on the two-point attempt.Austin Prep’s Taylor recovered a short onside kick at the Crusdaers’36. Duffy converted a third down with an 8-yard run to bring the ball to the 23. With 6:04 left in the contest, Duffy took the ball on a keeper for a one-yard touchdown scamper. Vitale had the two-point conversion to make it a 14-point difference.Fenwick’s offense kicked into gear. Hannon got into the Cougars’ territory on a 32-yard run on the first play from scrimmage. Rushins cut the Fenwick deficit to one possession with a 1-yard jaunt. Nick Bona made the critical extra point.This set the stage for the wild final few minutes. Fenwick’s defense held Austin Prep to just four yards. Mulcahy had a big punt and the coverag