Published: October 26, 2007 01:57 pm            

NIAGARA CATHOLIC NOTEBOOK: Patriots relish last chance

After a heartbreaking loss that Niagara Catholic still feels as though they let slip away two weeks ago against Walsh, it seemed as if the Patriots hopes of making the Monsignor Martin League A playoffs had been dashed. But after Walsh also dumped Nichols, 36-14, last week there’s new hope among the Patriots, according to coach Don Marinucci.

“Everybody is excited, we’re practicing hard and I think we’re ready to do something here,” the coach said. “If we could beat them, we’d end up against O’Hara in the playoffs, but we’d definitely like to win this game and move ahead.”

NC is currently 0-8 overall and 0-3 in League A, while Nichols has the same League A mark, but a non-league win over DeSales of Geneva heading into today’s matinee in Buffalo.

• One of Marinucci’s biggest problems all season has been injuries and the effect they have had on his-already small roster. And unfortunately, the problems only got worse during last week’s 32-18 loss at Brocton. Quarterback/cornerback Mike Volpe went down in the second quarter with a knee injury that will cause him to miss the rest of the season. That’s on top of two-way starters Matt Marra, John McCarthy, Rob Swartz and Josh Puzan, who are all already out for the season.

"When our two-way guys get hurt at these small schools, it’s like losing four of five positions,” Marinucci said.

• There were still a few bright spots in last week’s loss, though, including another Connolly Cup-nominating performance from A.J. Roberts. The senior wide receiver racked up 334 total yards, giving him over 1,200 total yards on the season. Senior Nick Sepe also had over 100 yards and fullback Chris Glowacki played one of his best games of the season on both sides of the ball, according to Marinucci.

• Freshman Jeff Hare, who filled in for Volpe, will get the start at QB today. Marinucci also said that Roberts could also see time there, but he’d like to keep Hare in there and move Roberts out into space.

“It’s really his first week at quarterback, so we’re probably going to keep it simple and run right at them,” Marinucci said. “I think we can pass on them, but we’ll need to protect him to do that.”

The Vikings will show the Patriots a power running game that features the double wing offense. That could spell trouble for NC, which has struggled to stop the run all season. Still, Marinucci knows his kids will battle the whole game.

“We’ve moved a bunch of guys around and we’re just going to go right at them and try to get it done,” he said.

— Nate Beutel

        

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