Moeller's Brennan haunts ex-mates St. Xavier loses GCL test, 28-21 By Bob Queenan
·~staff reporter
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For a time Friday night, it appeared as though Moeller quarterback Shawn Brennan's return to St. Xavier would be a very unhappy occasion. However, Brennan, who quarterbacked St. Xavier last season before transferring to Moeller, completed 12 of 22 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns as the Crusaders knocked off a stubborn Bomber team, 28-21 at the ~t. Xavier field. Brennan was only 5 of 12 in the first half for 127 yards. The Crusaders also fumbled the ball five times and lost three of them, one by Brennan and two by Kelly Davis, who would be the game's hero. Two interceptions by senior · defensive back Jason Florimonte kept the Bombers off the score-
board until late in the first half. "St. Xavier took a big chance and it almost paid off," said Moeller coach Steve Klonne. "We felt all week that if they thought they could surprise us, they would do exactly what they did--play man to man coverage and blitz on every down." The strategy worked until Brennan found Jason Brown on a simple out route, hit him with the pass and Brown rambled 66 yards for the game's first score. ''In the beginning, they forced the turnovers, and the strategy worked," said Klonne. "But in the second half, we started to move the ball." Davis also held on to it. "Shawn wasn't getting the ball in tight on the handoff," said Davis, "and I couldn't get hold of it right. "But in the second half, our coaches told me to make up for the mistakes I made in the first half, and I had to," said the junior tailback. Davis, who had only 22 yards
on nine rushes in the first half, tacked on 107 yards on 18 carries and one touchdown in the second half. And he caught a screen pass from Brennan for 40 yards and another TD. He finished with 27 carries for 129 yards. "Our players did a good job of executing," said St. Xavier coach Steve Rasso, "but those big plays ... 66 yard to Brown, a 24yard run off the draw by Davis, and that screen pass, the second one he had hit for big yardage hurt us." "Davis' fumbles were not his fault," said Klonne. "He really ran hard in the second half and helped us control the ball when we had to." When Davis 24-yard run put the Crusaders ahead 14-3, the Bombers had a chnace to fold. "But our kids didn't," said Rasso, "especially Scott Solimann." Sollmann, who had only 17 yards on seven first-half rushes, exploded for a 75-yard TD run on the first St. X. play from scrim-
mage after Davis' TD run. He caught the two-point conversion pass from sophomore quarterback Damion Dooros, and the Bombers later tied it on Bill Boehne's second field goal. MOELLER • ST. XAVIER
0
7
0
3 11
7 14-28 7-21
M-Brown 66 pass lrom Brennan (Houston kick) X-Boehne 27 FG M-Davis 24 run (Houston kick) X-Sollmann 75 run (Sollman pass from Dooros) X-Boehne 20 FG M-Brennan 1 run (kick failed) M-Davis 40 pass from Brennan (Carlberg pass from Brennan) X-Hendon 1 pass from Dooros (Boehne kick) RECORDS: Moeller, 4-1. 1-0 GCL South; 51. Xavier J.2, D-1 South.