By Joe Slye, Gem of the Sound Sports Reporter.
Kennedy vs. Decatur Recap, 9/29/2022
The Kennedy Catholic Lancers hosted the Decatur Golden Gators Saturday afternoon September 24th for the second season conference game for both teams. Kennedy Catholic scored a lopsided 52-0 win and now sits 2-0 conference and 3-1 overall. Decatur drops to 0-2 conference (lost the prior week to Kentridge 47-14) and 2-2 overall.
Kennedy Catholic was the favorite going into this match-up. They left no doubt about why they are one of the top teams in the conference.
Kennedy Catholic opened with 38 points in the first half, leaving plenty of second-half playing time for everyone on the Lancer roster. Coach Cross commented that “every Lancer got to play today,” and the experience in game situations will help build some depth as the season grinds on. Kennedy Catholic was able to ride a defense that created opportunity. Decatur was intercepted once and also lost six fumbles. The turnovers kept them from mounting an offense that could provide any chance of staying in the game. The turnovers put the game out of reach early, and the Lancer defense held on for their first shutout victory since 2019.
Decatur had some early success, but their turnovers made a sustained drive impossible. They ended the game with just 64 passing yards and 33 rushing yards. The opening score for Kennedy Catholic was a 45-yard pass from quarterback Devon Forehand to receiver Mason Moriarty who caught the ball over the middle at the 10-yard line and waltzed into the end zone. With a 2-point conversion, the Lancers were up 8-0 and never looked back.
Kennedy Catholic was in air raid mode most of the day with 27 completions on 38 pass attempts and ended up with 396 passing yards and 76 rushing yards. Devon Forehand saw most of the quarterback action completing 23 of 30 attempts for 321 yards. Payton Faker was 4 of 7, and freshman Koi Calhoun had one pass attempt. The primary targets for all those passes were receivers Maclane Watkins, with nine catches for 148 yards. Mason Hayes with seven catches for 112 yards, and Mason Moriarty with 5 catches for 81 yards. The rushing attack saw limited action, and workhorse running back Zach Schell had only four carries for 26 yards and no touchdowns. A late in the game rushing touchdown came when Dante Saldino took the snap, faked a handoff, and outran everyone to the left 11 yards for a score. The Lancers also had issues stalling some of their drives with two fumbles and one interception. But overall, the Kennedy Catholic defense set up the offense by creating turnovers, and the offense followed through with good execution and accurate passing.
Next Friday, September 30th, at 7:00 PM, Kennedy Catholic travels to play the Federal Way Eagles at Federal Way Stadium. It is unlikely this game will be lopsided, as both have played some top-level teams, and each team has started the season 3-1 overall. Federal Way has a 21-63 loss to Lake Stevens (who also beat Bellevue two weeks ago) and has played one conference game where they won 3-1 Kentridge 42-7 last week. Kentridge beat Decatur (the only common opponent for the Lancers and Eagles) 47-14 two weeks ago. Kennedy Catholic is also 3-1 with three big wins and just that one loss to an excellent Eastside Catholic team. Through all the facts and figures about who has played who, this should be a really competitive game.
Kennedy Catholic, Federal Way, Mount Rainier, and Kentridge are all 3-1 overall in 2022. Both Kennedy Catholic and Federal Way were projected to be conference leaders this year, and so far, they are doing just that.
