DC – Washington Catholic Athletic Conference | Archive | November, 2008

By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

When Gonzaga wrestling coach Milton Yates took over six years ago, he inherited a team with just eight wrestlers.

Forfeiting 30 points per dual, the Eagles went 1-15 their first year with their only victory coming against Hyde.

“We didn’t have much,” Yates said. “It was a learning experience.”

Now Gonzaga is coming off a season in which it went 11-3 in duals and crowned a pair of WCAC champions in Paul O’Neill at 103 pounds and older brother Joe O’Neill. The Eagles also have more wrestlers than ever in the room, now at 44.

But heading into this year’s wrestling season, even a team on the rise like Gonzaga still faces a cold fact every day; that at this point it’s incredibly difficult to end DeMatha’s 23-year streak atop the WCAC.

“Last year we had a great year,” sophomore Paul O’Neill said. “We beat a lot of teams we haven’t beat in a long time. But DeMatha’s a good team. It’s going to take a lot to beat them – O’Connell too. So it’s definitely going to be tough. It’s doable, but it’s tough.”

While DeMatha is lauded for its success in other sports, such as winning a sixth-straight football championship this past season or for continually fielding one of the best soccer, basketball, baseball and lacrosse teams in the Washington area, it’s most dominant team compared to those around the rest of the conference is wrestling.

The Stags have not only won 23 straight titles but they’ve done it with so much ease that it’s kind of accepted as a fact of life in the WCAC.

“It’s DeMatha; they’re powerhouses in all their sports,” junior Zach Thompson said. Every single year they’re bringing in new kids that are good. It’s discouraging but at the same time it makes beating any of their kids that much better.”

“It’s one of those things that you realize if you’re coming here and you don’t have that experience you understand why they’re where they are,” Yates added. “You understand that not until when we have multiple years of getting five to six experienced kids a year, then we’ll be in a position to compete with them.”

So where do programs outside of Hyattsville even start?

Yates goes with a grassroots approach, meeting kids, parents and coaches in wrestling rooms inside and outside the beltway.

His sell isn’t necessarily wrestling, because if a grapper has his eyes set on team championships and a life focused around athletics, they’re heading to DeMatha. Instead, Yates sells Gonzaga’s academics and hopes that the student is smart enough to get admitted if they choose to even apply.

Yates has steadily improved the numbers in his own room. He will also, for the first time, have a wrestling dual match in the middle of a school day with the entire school’s student population watching, thus hoping to spark some interest amongst those already enrolled.

But while getting kids who have never wrestled before helps to at least put more bodies in the gym, it’s going to take more than that to catch up to the Stags.

“You have to get kids admitted that have wrestling experience,” Yates said before addressing DeMatha. “They’re not dealing with a lot beginners. The only beginners they usually get play football and want to improve and they’re usually heavier.”

Gonzaga’s top returning wrestler is O’Neill, who won the WCAC championship last season by beating DeMatha’s Pat Prada. But O’Neill stumbled at National Preps and didn’t place while Prada took eighth. O’Neil didn’t wrestle this summer so Yates said he’s not sure what to expect from the hard-nosed sophomore.

“Hopefully I keep on winning. That’s about it, keep on winning, keep on working hard,” O’Neill said. “I know I have strength and quickness but my technique wasn’t there last year.”

The Eagles also return senior Stephane Guillou and should get Thompson back near the start of 2009 when his knee heals. Gonzaga feels it has more depth than last year and has a shot at finishing in the top three of the WCAC.

But with DeMatha all but already locking up the title before the season even starts, Gonzaga’s eyes are set on a city championship, which has been won by Sidwell Friends the past few years by a large margin.

“Our chances [of winning a city title] are a lot better,” Guillou said. “It would be great to end my senior year on a city title, especially because I’m a captain. It would mean a whole lot to the whole team.”

SO WHO DOES DEMATHA HAVE?

Yet again, the Stags graduate a talented class of wrestlers, in specific Matt Dugan and Mike Aggugia who went to Drexel and American, respectively. But DeMatha still has a strong cast returning.

“It’s always tough to replace a good guy and a kid that works hard in the room,” Coach **** Messier said. “Both those individuals had that kind of work ethic. Seeing how they were successful carries over to the next year and the year after that.”

Leading the way is Prada, Ben Hatef (who placed third at national preps in the upper weights) and Kyle Haden, who made a big splash as a freshman last year at 125. Michael Williams, Cory Wilson, Arie Kouandjio, John Daniel Peacock and Chris Miller should also be impact grapplers.

The Stags, as usual, have a pair of highly-touted freshman coming into the fold in junior league champions Sean Patrick Meehan and Jonathan Simmons. Simmons notched a big overtime win in the first match against Curly this past weekend at the Curly Duals.

DeMatha topped perennial state power Curly, 38-36, in an early display of how strong the Stags are again this year. Other than Simmons’ big win, Wilson and Hatef each notched big pins and Prada also had a major decision. The Stags also beat John Carroll, Calvert Hall and St. Mary’s Annapolis to get Messier his 401st career win.

WHO HAS THE BEST CHANCE?

O’Connell’s Nam Dunbar leads an experience-laden Knights squad that may have a senior at every starting position and should have the best chance of knocking off DeMatha.

Dunbar, an aggressive wrestler with a unique style, will surely be looking to get revenge on McNamara’s Andrew Bannister, who came from behind to beat Dunbar at National Preps last season.

The Knights also return seniors Kyle Mason, James Young, Jonathon Carpenter, Chris Curtain, Connor Furey, Mike Pettit, Jeff Carrol, Michael Winkler, Chris Staubs and Jonathan Nieto. O’Connell placed 13th at National Preps last year.

GEMS ELSEWHERE

There’s certainly some top-notch wrestlers sprinkled throughout the rest of the WCAC.

Bishop McNamara senior Andrew Bannister has a chance to become a four-time private schools state champion. Good Counsel offensive lineman and upper weights monster Devin Gordon-Hamm should make a big splash this season as well. St. John’s returns City Champion and National qualifier James Wenzlaff.

Paul VI also returns experience this season and St. Mary’s Ryken is on the rise with Daniel Schuck and Jonathan Boyd leading the way.

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By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

The slogan “Get Good” floats all over the new Champions Field House training facility in Rockville.

It’s almost a challenge from current Bethesda-Chevy Chase girls lacrosse coach Jenna Ries, the woman behind the construction of the 50,000 square foot indoor facility that opened on Oct. 30.

Now with an all-year round facility where athletes of all sports can train, there are no more excuses.

“It’s actually relevant to skill development, and that’s what we’re all about,” Ries said. “I think this changes the skill part because now there’s going to be a bar for that.”

The slogan originated with the program Champions of Tomorrow, which Ries founded 10 years ago when she felt female athletes didn’t have adequate training facilities to improve their skills. What began with 20 girls practicing field hockey drills in Westbrook Elementary School’s all-purpose room grew into a program training several thousand field hockey, lacrosse and volleyball players.

But as Champions of Tomorrow grew, so did the demand for more fields and training facilities.

“I began to look around and realized that none of the existing facilities offered a clubhouse environment that catered to developing real athletes and teams,” Ries said in her press release. “I knew that if I wanted a facility that really reflected the vision of Champions of Tomorrow, I would have to build it from the ground up.”

Ries found space opposite the Arc Ice Arena, located off Southlawn Court near Gude Drive. And what Ries has constructed is a large recreation arena with impeccable attention to detail.

The Champions Field House has two artificial grass fields with thick rubber cushion that players can wear their cleats on and even slide on without fear of injury.

The fields are of course not regulation size but provide more of an opportunity for skill development with their closer quarters. They do not have walls on the sidelines to also promote maintaining control of the ball instead of forming bad habits, Ries said.

There are two full-size basketball courts, six full-size volleyball courts, two regulation futsal courts, two field hockey courts, batting cages and a artificial grass patch for the 40-yard dash.

All the courts are on a snap sport floor, which is the same surface national field hockey and futsal events are played on. They are nationally sanctioned, meaning national events could be held at the facility.

“We have what those people didn’t have before,” Ries said. “Actual, national pitches.”

The lighting is bright and state-of-the-art and the ceiling also helps with the facility’s illumination, which gives it a more outdoor kind of feel rather than artificial.

There’s a gym with top-quality equipment for athletes or parents of athletes to use while they are watching the games or practices. A study and break room is also on site for parents or students to spend their down time.

Dr. Stephen Horwitz, a Sports Injury Prevention Specialist and Sports Performance Coach, also has an office in the building, which can provide immediate medical assistance to any athlete and also provide teams or individual athletes with injury prevention training and more.

That is the part of the facility, among other things, that Good Counsel boys soccer coach Julio Zarate most appreciated.

“The place is state of the art; it’s very good and has many opportunities to play many sports,” Zarate said before saying whether his teams will be coming to Champions Field House. “They will be part of this, definitely.”

A major emphasis for Ries was to make sure she had a top-notch staff that could develop well-rounded athletes in an array of different sports. And she accomplished that.

The staff consists of a wide variety of top-notch coaches and current athletes from around the area, including Denise Infante (field hockey), Jason Gasaway (baseball), Devin Payton (futsal), Michael Haight (girls lacrosse), Jennifer Greenberg (girls lacrosse), Corey Samperton (girls lacrosse), Alan Pohoryles (boys lacrosse), Kip Turner (boys lacrosse), Jim Bruno (soccer), Matt Pasquinelli (soccer) and Karen Jones (volleyball).

“If nothing else, this building is spot on for niche marketing for what’s happening,” Ries said. “The staff, the actual surfaces, everything. That’s our biggest forte.”

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By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

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This was supposed to be Good Counsel’s year to finally break through and win the WCAC football championship.

DeMatha had graduated 32 seniors from last year’s team, the Falcons had a handful of star Division I prospects and had beaten the Stags handily during the regular season.

But DeMatha senior running back Aaron Conaway still couldn’t understand how DeMatha could be considered the underdog.

“It’s really never their year,” Conaway said. “It’s always DeMatha’s.”

Once again, for a program record sixth straight season, it was DeMatha’s year. The Stags not only beat Good Counsel for the fifth straight time in the championship game, they poured it on this year, winning 34-7 Saturday night at the Navy Marine-Corps Stadium in Annapolis before a crowd of 6,000.

“We got embarrassed in the regular season and we just came out here today and had a little fire to us,” senior quarterback Tommy Chroniger said. “We’re not going away. That’s basically what this means. We’re going to be around for years and years to come.”

DeMatha’s defense should get the majority of the credit this time around.

Behind a three down linemen and five linebackers formation, a deviation from the Stags’ typical 4-3, DeMatha (12-2) held Good Counsel’s Caleb Porzel to just 59 yards rushing on 15 carries and two catches, each for negative yardage. Jelani Jenkins only rushed five times for 17 yards and caught two passes for 34 yards.

Compare that to the Oct. 2 regular-season meeting, in which Porzel ran for three touchdowns in the first quarter alone and Jenkins ran for two touchdowns of his own in a 42-21 Falcons win on ESPN2, and it explains the drastic change in the outcome.

“We thought we were going to do it,” Porzel said. “I just don’t have words right now. It’s a rough feeling that I have right now that we didn’t come out with the W. Every play they were shooting the gaps and I think that’s what got us.”

Good Counsel (11-1) had its chances to open up the game early on, which could have been hugely significant considering the last four championship meetings were settled by a combined 13 points.

DeMatha fumbled deep in its own zone on its first drive, setting up the Falcons on the 30 yard line. Good Counsel worked its way to first-and-goal at the 1 after Jenkins hurtled a Stag and Porzel gashed DeMatha up the middle for a 15-yard gain. But from there, DeMatha’s defensive line pushed Good Counsel back and a 27-yard field goal attempt clanked off the right goal post.

Set up by a 70 yard pass from Tyler Campbell to E.J. Scott, Good Counsel scored on its second drive just more than a minute into the second quarter on a 12 yard touchdown run by Porzel to take a 7-0 lead.

DeMatha had a three and out on its resulting drive and it appeared as if the Falcons, who hadn’t trailed all season since the first week of the year, were on their way.

But pinned back on their own 5 yard line, DeMatha defensive back Austin Coley forced a fumble that squirted into the end zone. Porzel pounced on it, but the result was still a safety.

“It was a shocker,” Jenkins said of the safety. “They got the momentum after that.”

Given a short field to work with after the punt, DeMatha marched quickly into the end zone behind two Chroniger passes for 39 yards and a run on fourth-and-1. Marcus Coker capped off the drive with a 6-yard touchdown to give the Stags an 8-7 lead at halftime.

Good Counsel got the ball to start the second half but Campbell’s second pass was intercepted by Emmanual McPhearson, who took it 22 yards for a touchdown just 46 seconds into the half. DeMatha’s sideline sniffed out a screen and relayed that McPhearson, who jumped the route.

“It drained them; it’s all we needed,” McPhearson said. “I knew once we got the momentum, we were there.”

Good Counsel tried to pull out some trickery on its next drive as Porzel took a handoff on first down from the Falcons’ 32 and opted to throw it. His fluttering pass was intercepted by Jeff Knox and DeMatha needed just four plays to score again, this time on a 25-yard run by Conaway to take a 21-7 lead 4:25 into the half.

The Stags poured it on with short-yardage fourth quarter touchdown runs by Coker and Conaway, who each ran for two scores on the night. Conaway had 11 rushes, all in the second half, for 101 yards.

“I was on the sideline for a minute and it really hit me that this was my last game and I had to contribute to history so I ran the ball as hard as I could,” Conaway said.

After the game, DeMatha Coach Bill McGregor huddled his team and pointed to alumni standing around the players, saying this sixth consecutive title wouldn’t be real had it not been for them.

But this championship may be the most unexpected and hard-earned of them all considering that DeMatha lost 28 seniors from last year’s team and sat at 3-2 on the season following the crushing regular season loss to Good Counsel.

“This was the finest effort I have ever seen,” McGregor yelled to his players in the huddle. “It’s a sweet one; it really is.”

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First Team

Quarterback
Tommy Chroniger, DeMatha

Running Backs
Idreis Augustus, Paul VI
Jelani Jenkins, Good Counsel
Caleb Porzel, Good Counsel

Wide Receivers
Jerome Couplin III, McNamara
Dominic Sanders, Paul VI

Tight End
Dan McGroarty, Paul VI

Offensive Linemen
Harry Britton, Paul VI
Pete DeSouza, DeMatha
Devin Gordan-Hamm, Good Counsel
Calvin McDowney, DeMatha
Pete White, St. John’s

Defensive Linemen
Tim Anderson, Good Counsel
A.J. Bowman, Good Counsel
Jerimiah Mathis, DeMatha
Andre Monroe, St. John’s

Linebackers
Wayne Burden, St. John’s
Derrick Lakins, DeMatha
Chris Pitsenberger, Good Counsel
Chris Townsend, McNamara

Defensive Backs
Emmanuel McPhearson, DeMatha
Ed Thomas, St. John’s
Mike Wallace, Good Counsel
Louis Young, Good Counsel

Punter
Mark Hamilton, Good Counsel

Kicker
Matt Elsasser, St. John’s

Specialist
Stefon Diggs, Good Counsel

Second Team

Quarterback
Tyler Campbell, Good Counsel

Running backs
Alan Elder, Gonzaga
Marcus Coker, DeMatha
Greg Gadell, O’Connell

Wide Receivers
Brandon Coleman, McNamara
EJ Scott, Good Counsel

Tight End
Jake Ruffing, Gonzaga

Offensive Linemen
Alfonso Beale, Carroll
Jack Higgins, Good Counsel
Carl Katz, O’Connell
Nate Luongo, St. John’s
Mark Rehbein, Gonzaga

Defensive Linemen
Troy Gloster, Good Counsel
Patrick Goulden, DeMatha
Ike Nnawuba, DeMatha
Sam Oyekoya, Gonzaga

Linebackers
Alex Berdahl, O’Connell
Raheem Cardwell, DeMatha
Blair Rutledge, Carroll
Eric Wright, Paul VI

Defensive Backs
Michael Coley, DeMatha
Donald Quarles, St. John’s
Al Thompson, Good Counsel
Joshua Trimble, O’Connell

Punter
Robbie Colas, Gonzaga

Kicker
Michael Branthover, DeMatha

Specialist
Kyrrel Latimer, DeMatha

Third Team

Quarterback
Kevin Clark, McNamara

Running Backs
Charles Brown, St. John’s
Josef Epps, McNamara
Patrick Simms, O’Connell

Wide Receivers
Mike Milburn, DeMatha
Brian Williams, O’Connell

Tight End
Taylor Hayes-Leak, O’Connell

Offensive Linemen
Nick Appel, O’Connell
Kortlan Jackson, St. John’s
Shane Johnson, DeMatha
Jonathan Nieto, O’Connell
Gary Suarez, McNamara

Defensive Linemen
Michael Katz, O’Connell
Lawrence Lucas, Gonzaga
Steven Muskett, Paul VI
Cedric Watson, St. John’s

Linebackers
Dionte Holland, Carroll
Durrell Miller, Good Counsel
John Pfister, Gonzaga
DeAngelo Williams, St. John’s

Defensive Backs
Darrian Carmichael, McNamara
Matthew Goldsmith, McNamara
Taylor Hanley, Gonzaga
Jared Williams, McNamara

Punter
Owen Scarbrough, Paul VI

Kicker
Matthew Michael, McNamara

Specialist
Devin Bassett, McNamara

Honorable Mention

Archbishop Carroll
Jeremiah Attaochu, DL
Cyrus Britt, RB
Nate Clarke, OL
Rian Gaskins, DB
Jonathan Matthews, QB

Bishop McNamara
Demetrius Baxter, TE
Tre Bracken, DL
Brandon Jackson, RB
Samuel Kydd, OL
Chrishon Rose, OL

Bishop O’Connell
Devin Amole, DB
Ernie Barber, OL
Beau Fitzpatrick, LB
Chris Jeffries, LB
Patrick Thompson, QB

DeMatha
Austin Bailey, RB
Bobby Caffes, DL
Aaron Conaway, RB
Jake Geiser, OL
Lorenzo Water, DB

Gonzaga
Alex Beauboeuf, WR
Kevin Hogan, QB
Max Johnston, WR
Dylan Jones, OL
Ricky Neville, WR

Good Counsel
Joe Keesling, LB
Tommy Kokolas, OL
Kelly Flaherty, DB
Mike Nittoli, DB
Garrett Schmidt, DB

Paul VI
Sam Bennett, OL
Chuck Carton, DE
Mike Lyons, LB
Scott Simmons, WR
Josh Wright, DB

St. John’s
Dominico McIntosh, OL
Daniel Wright, DB
Kyle Kirsch, TE
Cameron Webb, LB
Walter Contreras, LB

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Joined by Principal Tim Hamer, Athletic Director Bill Simmons, Coaches Cara Hurrin and Steve Tela as well as the teammates and family members, seven girls lacrosse seniors signed National Letters of Intent and commitment letters to compete at Division I and Division II programs starting in the Fall of 2009.

Players formally making official collegiate commitments are Claire Banta to the University of Virginia, Brittany Barnwell to Queens University, Maria Bowman to Villanova University, Allie Fife to Mount Saint Mary’s University, Lauren Gray to Georgetown University, Ashton Hellmuth to Lehigh University and Heather Olson to St. Joseph’s University.

Bishop Ireton finished last season with a 17-5 overall record, advancing to the finals of the WCAC and Virginia Independent School state semifinals and finished the season ranked 89th out of over 2,400 high school lacrosse programs nationally for the first time.  Last season’s team also posted an impressive collection of awards and accolades including two All Americans, four Academic All Americans, three All Met selections, four All Area, one first team All State, three first team All WCAC and five second team All WCAC. Bishop Ireton also sent five players to the US Lacrosse Women’s Division National Tournament.

The Cardinals return 18 varsity players in 2009, including 11 seniors and open the season at home against Robinson High School on March 14th.

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First-year DeMatha lacrosse Coach Scott Morrison announced last week that three DeMatha seniors signed National Letters of Intent to play for Division I schools in the coming seasons.

Ryan Brant, TJ Harris, and Mike Williams will play for Ohio State University, Loyola College, and Jacksonville University, respectively, beginning Fall 2009.

Brant posted a 70 percent save percentage in goal each of the past two
seasons in which he split time with Matt Miller, who now plays for
Drexel. Brant was heavily recruited last fall as a junior by the likes
of Hopkins, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgetown and Syracuse before
selecting Ohio State.

Brant participated in the very competitive Maryland Free State
games this past summer against the Long Island Empire team. Despite
torn ligaments in his knee, he held this Long Island team to only four
goals.

Harris has been member of the varsity team and All-Conference all four years he has attended DeMatha. An aggressive long pole, Harris was also recruited by Hopkins, Georgetown, Maryland and North Carolina before choosing his parents’ alma mater, Loyola University, as the place he wanted to make the most impact.

Williams is a four-year varsity player will head to Jacksonville. Known for his tremendous speed, Williams was named to the All-WCAC team last year in which he scored nine goals and 12 assists, including two goals and one assist. He was third on the Stags 46 ground balls.

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Box Score:
St. John’s     0   0   0   0   –   0
DeMatha      0   7   7   6  –   20

Scoring Summary:
DM – Chroniger 6 run (Branthover kick)
DM – Chroniger 27 run (Branthover kick)
DM – Coker 23 run (kick failed)

Stat Leaders:
Rushing: DM – Coker 20-153, Chroniger 8-73; SJ – Brown 16-101
Passing: DM – 2-8 20; SJ – Konieczka 8-20-1 62
Receiving: DM – Coker 1-13; SJ – Brown 4-22

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By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

As St. John’s girls basketball players Dymond James and Sydney Wilson signed their National Letters of Intent Monday afternoon, they each had different reasons for their college decisions.

For Wilson, a transfer from Pittsburgh who felt like a freshman all over again last year at St. John’s, she’s finally settling down in Washington DC and will play for Georgetown.

James, on the other hand, is looking for a fresh start and will pack up her bags and head to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

For each, however, a promising college career awaits.

“It’s a very exciting time for them and for the program,” Coach Jonathan Scribner said. “To see them go and put their education in front of everything and go to two great schools like Air Force and Georgetown, it’s a proud moment.”

James, who was described as the heart and soul of the Cadets by Scribner, averaged 9.3 points and 9 rebounds per game her junior season and was named to the second team All-WCAC squad.

James has undergone a position switch during her career and got a new head coach last year in Scribner. She described her time as St. John’s as “versatile” but in a good way. That’s because James likes change.

Thus she chose Air Force, where her father also attended. James said her dad actually didn’t want her to go to Air Force but rather the Ivy League schools such as Columbia, Harvard or Colgate that also recruited her.

But in the end, James chose Air Force because she liked the school, including the academics and its distance from home.

“It’s far away and kind of a new start for me,” James said. “I guess all my life I wanted to see what else is out there.”

Wilson, on the other hand, is happy seeing more of Washington DC. She moved from Pittsburgh last year and fell in love with the capital as soon as she drove down M Street in Georgetown, she said.

“Downtown is shopping and everything’s in DC. You don’t get better than that,” Wilson said. “I’ve never been anywhere like here. I thought New York was cool and then I got to DC and I was like, ‘This is better.’”

Then when her Fairfax Stars AAU coach Keith Brown became an assistant coach at Georgetown, Wilson began spending more time at Georgetown and met the other players. From then on, Georgetown seemed like a natural fit and when her recruitment by Duke fell through, it was a lock.

“I’m really excited. I’ve been wanting to go to Georgetown for about two years now,” Wilson said. “I think it’s the school I would want to go to even if wasn’t playing basketball.”

Wilson led the Cadets in scoring last year with 9.6 points per game. She also averaged four blocks.

“She’s just a game-changer on the inside, particularly on the defensive end,” Scribner said. “I’m expecting a big season out of both of them this year.”

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DeMatha Shortstop Chris Cook and teammate Daniel Dragos signed their National Letters of Intent to play college baseball last week.

Cook will head to George Mason while Dragos is off to play for Temple. Both Stags were instrumental in DeMatha’s WCAC championship season last year.

Cook hit .359 with 17 RBIs last year while Dragos batted a team-high .421 with 18 RBI and 22 runs.

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By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

After 11 weeks of WCAC regular season and playoff semifinal football battles, the ending will once again be the same.

DeMatha and Good Counsel will meet in the WCAC championship game for the fifth consecutive year.

DeMatha advanced to its 17th championship game in the past 18 years with a 20-0 win over St. John’s in the WCAC semifinals Friday night at the Prince George’s Sports and Learning Complex. Good Counsel moved on with a 45-6 win over McNamara at Good Counsel.

“We’re getting better and I just think it’s going to be a tough, hard-fought football game,” DeMatha Coach Bill McGregor said of the championship match-up scheduled for next weekend at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis.

DeMatha, who has won the past four championships over Good Counsel, was led by the feet of quarterback Tommy Chroniger and running back Marcus Coker. Chroniger ran for two touchdowns, one of six yards and the next of 28 yards, and Coker rushed for 153 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown of 23 yards.

“Tommy’s second touchdown was just phenomenal,” McGregor said. “That’s one of the best runs I’ve ever seen. It was sick.”

DeMatha is now 30-4 in the playoffs since they were created in 1991. The Stags have also rattled off six straight wins this season. McGregor attributed much of the team’s success to its ability to get healthy down the stretch of the season.

Undefeated Good Counsel, who defeated the Stags 42-21 on Oct. 2, got production from all over the field and from each sector (offense, defense and special teams) once again in dominating the fourth-seeded Mustangs.

Mike Wallace opened the scoring with a 34-yard interception return for a touchdown, Jelani Jenkins score the second touchdown on a 2-yard run, Mark Hamilton his a 25-yard field goal and Caleb Porzel capped the Falcons’ first-half scoring with a 76-yard punt return for a touchdown.

Jenkins ran back an interception 32 yards in the third quarter, Porzel broke off a 62-yard touchdown run and Chris Pittsenberger recovered a fumble in the end zone to cap the Falcons’ scoring.

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