Owensboro Catholic is back in the 2A football state semifinals after yet another blowout victory, this one a 42-14 romp past Monroe County at home on Friday. Quarterback Brady Atwell continued his dominant postseason performance, throwing for three touchdowns and adding another on the ground in less than 14 minutes of play.
Starting with the ball, the Falcons quickly went three-and-out, but a monster punt pinned the Aces deep at their own 13. Atwell surgically picked apart the defense, finding his receivers with ease before connecting with Dereon Crowe on a 35-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead.
Just 51 seconds later, defensive lineman Barrett Evans flexed his athleticism – knocking the pass up into the air, hauling it in, and taking it to the house for a 22-yard pick-6 and a 14-0 lead.
“I was so happy for Evans to finally house one,” Owensboro Catholic head coach Jason Morris said. “Every week he tells me, ‘Coach I’m going to get one,’ and he got one this week and I am proud of him.”
The ensuing drive for the Falcons didn’t last long and ended with a botched punt. Two plays later, Atwell found Crowe across the middle for their second touchdown connection of the night – this time for 51 yards and a 21-0 lead.
“He has that speed and power combination, so he catches the ball in space, and smaller defensive backs try to tackle him and have a hard doing that,” Morris said. “He also has that burst after he makes them miss or gives a strong stiff or whatever he does with his power, he has the speed to break away. He is just a very special talent.”
The Falcons again stalled out on the offensive side on their next drive. Facing a fourth-and-one near midfield, the Aces defense stood tall, stuffing the Falcons rushing attempt and forcing a turnover on downs.
Starting at the Falcons 49, Atwell and the offense quickly found themselves in the red zone. Facing their own fourth-and-one from the 6, Atwell bullied his way through the defensive line and into the end zone for a 28-0 lead with 37.2 seconds left in the opening quarter.
After forcing their third punt of the night, Atwell found Waryn Ebelhar less than 90 seconds later from 30 yards out for a commanding 35-0 lead. With just over seven minutes remaining in the half, Morris decided to pull his starters, allowing backup QB Dremail Carothers to run the show.
On their last drive of the half, Monroe County was able to avoid the shutout thanks to a 1-yard touchdown run by Wade Carnahan.
Receiving the second-half kickoff, the Aces’ Josh James found a seam down the right sideline and took it 80 yards to the house for a 42-7 lead. With a running clock, Owensboro Catholic did not score for the remainder of the game. The Falcons got to the end zone one more time with six and a half minutes to play when Brayden Baxter finally broke through for a 29-yard rushing score.
Next Friday, the Aces host Somerset in a rematch of last year’s 2A state semifinals, which the Aces won handily 44-15.
“The main thing is to make sure we don’t self-destruct,” Morris said. “We need to have a better week of practice than what we had this week. We also need to get healthier, shore up our tackling, and make sure we don’t allow extra yards after contact. They are going to be a tough football team that is a year older.”
In the other semifinal matchup, Beechwood will host Lexington Christian Academy. The 2A state championship game is set for December 6 at Kroger Field in Lexington.
