Marist's big plays sink Benet
CHICAGO - By the time Benet finally made a big play on Friday night, it was too late to catch up to Marist, which had made every big play up to that point in a 43-12 win that got the RedHawks playoff eligible.
Marist quarterback Mike Perrish was involved in most of the big plays for the Redhawks as he completed 18 of 25 attempts for 257 yards and four touchdowns. Perrish threw scoring passes of 24, 5 and 46 yards in the first half to build a 20-0 lead.
"Kids made big plays when they had to," Marist coach Pat Dunne said.
"The field was a little messy tonight. We were in some long situations and the guys came through and made some big plays."
Benet (3-5, 2-4 East Suburban Catholic) had two productive drives in the first half but had only a missed field goal to show for it. The Redwings were down 6-0 with 3:03 to go in the second quarter before allowing two crucial scores before halftime.
"We failed to execute, which has pretty much been our downfall all season," Benet coach Gary Goforth said. "We don't execute when we need to and we don't make big plays. You don't win many ballgames that way."
A piece of the ESCC title is possible for Marist (6-2, 4-2), which closes the regular season next week against Marian, which entered Friday in a three-way tie for first with fellow 4-1 teams Joliet Catholic and Carmel.
"You can't control anything else," Dunne said. "There's this and that and whatever. All we know is this game. Tonight it was great to get a win and now we're on to Marian Catholic."
The first time Benet got the best of Marist was with the Redwings down 30-0 late in the third quarter. Quarterback Luke Terna heaved the ball to Mike Kipp, who made a great play on the ball to haul in a 50-yard completion over two defenders. That catch set up Pat Boyle's 1-yard dive over the Marist line for a touchdown.
Benet scored on its next possession with another long pass. This time Terna found a streaking Phil Schmidt three steps past the RedHawks defenders for a 64-yard score.
Terna was 11-of-19 passing for 202 yards.
Mike Kamykowski was effective as a runner and receiver, totaling 72 yards from scrimmage on 11 touches.
Marist opened the second half with great field position after Dave Pirkle's 51-yard return and a personal foul penalty. That led to Ben Falloon's 31-yard field goal to make it 23-0.
The RedHawks scored touchdowns on their next three possesions, getting two scoring runs from backup running back Kevin Callahan and the second touchdown catch of the game for Mike Skalitzky.
"They're good. They're good," Goforth said. "They're 6-2 for a reason.
