Saturday, September 30 —  Point Stadium, 7:00 p.m. 
Radio:  Hot 92 FM —92.1 (Terry Deitz,  Al Steele, Don Stanton, & Gary Vitko)
Internet: www.redzonemedia.com and www.twitter.com/crushersports
Game Notes: Click here
Stadium Info: Gates Open at 5:45 p.m. / No Student Tickets at Gate
Overall Series Information: FH leads 16-11, LHAC Series: Tied 7-7-0
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2014 Crusher Football Preview:
The Bishop McCort football team begins the 2014 season looking to use a group of experienced players to lead the Crushers.

Sophomore quarterback Levi Cook (6-0, 192) will lead the offense for new head coach Jerry Davitch. The offense will also return senior Marc Smith (5-9, 180) who finished second on the team last season with 298 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns. Seniors Mark Barbera (5-9, 163) and Nick Gjurich (5-7, 174) will also be key contributors in the backfield while senior Corey Hall (6-1, 168) will lead a young receiver corps. The offensive line returns experience at tackle with seniors Lake Dorn (6-6, 274) and Eric Johncola (6-0, 250). Senior Adam Britton (5-11, 245) and juniors Connor Imler (5-8, 234) and Josh Way (6-0, 198) will make up the interior of the offensive line. Senior Patrick Unger (6-3, 238) will be the starting tight end.

Coach Davitch brings with him an attacking 4-3 style defense which will be led by a strong defensive line. Johncola and Britton will start at defensive end while sophomore Stefen Vyhonsky (6-0, 198) and freshman Anthony Walters (5-7, 168) will anchor the interior defensive line. The linebackers feature team leaders Smith and Gjurich along with sophomore Chris Miller (6-1, 163). The Crusher secondary will be led by seniors Hall and Nathan Thompson (5-6, 149). Junior Jozef Leech and Michael Stem will round out the starting secondary.

Miller and sophomore Shane Steele will handle the kicking and punting duties for the Crushers.
 
 
The last time—Forest Hills 16, Bishop McCort 14 (9/6/13):
A furious fourth quarter rally came up just short, and the Crushers were defeated last by Forest Hills 16-14.

The Rangers took the early lead as Joe Donoughe's first-quarter field goal gave Forest Hills a three point lead. The two teams traded possessions throughout the remainder of the first half before the Rangers were able to add to their lead just before intermission.

Donoughe found wideout Shareef Blough with a 31-yard scoring strike with just over a minute left in the half. The Rangers added the extra point and took a 10-0 lead into halftime.

Bishop McCort finally got on the scoreboard in the third quarter. After a 34-yard drive into Rangers' territory, Braden Junker made a 19-yard field goal to close the gap to 10-3.

The McCort defense continued the comeback in the fourth quarter. After a Junker punt pinned Forest Hills deep in their own territory, the Crusher defense forced a safety that made the score 10-5. After another Junker pinned the Rangers on their own 2-yard line, the McCort defense forced another safety to close the gap to 10-7.

Senior Luke DiFrancesco took the ensuing free kick and returned it 42-yard to the Ranger 20-yard line. DiFrancesco was a weapon for the Crushers all night as he led the team in all-purpose yards with 173 yards rushing, receiving, and returning. It didn't take long for the Crushers to capitalize on the great field position. Junior Marc Smith took a handoff on the first play of the drive and ran 19 yards to the Rangers' 1-yard line, and Smith took the next handoff into the endzone to give the Crushers their first lead of the game 14-10.

Smith led the McCort rushing attack all night and finished with 110 yards on 23 carries. However, the Crushers would not hold the lead for long. The Rangers took possession with just over two minutes remaining in the game trailing by three. The Crushers got a big stop on third down, but a roughing the passer penalty gave Forest Hills a first down. A pass interference penalty on the next play gave the Rangers the ball inside the McCort 10-yard line with just under a minute to play. Donoughe was able to find his way into the endzone on the next play. The Rangers missed the extra point and led 16-14 with 53 seconds left in the game.

Sophomore quarterback Blake Wade completed three straight passes to DiFrancesco to get the Crushers into Ranger territory in the final seconds. With just ten seconds remaining McCort was at the Forest Hills 34-yard line. Wade found senior Nemo Trexler for an 11-yard gain, but time expired as Trexler was attempting to get out of bounds to stop the clock, and the Rangers held on for the 16-14 win.

The loss dropped the Crushers to 0-2 on the season.

Media Stories:

• High school football: Davitch ushers in new era for Bishop McCort Crimson Crushers (Tribune Democrat/Mike Mastovich)

 
Media Videos:







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