'Canes football remains undefeated

Megan Ivers

If Marian Central’s versatility and resilience is any predictor of future success, then any teams lining up to play the Hurricanes for the remainder of the season better hope they are having their best days. The Hurricanes (6-0 overall; 4-0 SCC Blue) defeated St. Francis (3-3 overall; 0-3 SCC Blue) 28-9 Sept. 28 in front of a raucous Spartan homecoming crowd despite having some difficulty finding a rhythm early in the game.

“We haven’t been turning the ball over, and we turned the ball over,” said head coach Ed Brucker. “It was a big character-builder for next week.”

The Hurricanes suffered a few more turnovers than they have been used to and even received a harsh reminder of how costly those mistakes can be. Early in the second quarter the Hurricanes had the lead, 7-0. The Hurricane defense put a hard stop on the Spartans near the end zone, only for senior quarterback Streveler to be tackled in the end zone two plays later for a safety.

In the second half, the Canes completed an impressive seven-play 80-yard touchdown drive in the first two and half minutes of the third quarter. The drive began with a 17-yard kick return by junior running back Chris Daniels. Streveler orchestrated a quick carry by junior Ephraim Lee, which set the stage for the next 30-plus yard gain on a reception by junior CJ Wightman. Streveler and Lee worked together until Streveler could fire off a pass to junior receiver Brett Olson. The momentum allowed Lee to sneak right up the middle for a touchdown. Senior Trent Faunce’s kick capped the team effort.

“Right before the second half we started throwing a lot of passes,” said Wightman. “It wasn’t working like we wanted it too, but we came out in the second half and worked with the line, got them blocking better and the running game got a lot better.”

“I think it was good that we had a tight game at half,” added Brucker.

Scorers for Marian included Streveler, Lee, senior Kevin Kearley and junior Tom Klinger. Klinger caught a 46-yard pass from Streveler to solidify the lead at the start of the fourth quarter. The Spartans managed a last-minute touchdown, but the strength of Marian’s second-half offense limited St. Francis to just two scoring opportunities.

“Kyle Bosch, who I was going up against, is a Michigan commit and one of the top 100 recruits in the nation,” said senior lineman Liam Kirwan. “I was really pumped up to go against him and knew that after having a good week of practice, I would be able to handle myself against him.