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By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
After four weeks of frustrating losses, the Covington Catholic football team turned in the performance head coach Eddie Eviston has been waiting for during a 41-21 win over Beechwood on Friday night.
For the first time this season, the Colonels took command of the game by scoring on their first four possessions while their defense stymied the opponent’s ability to consistently move the ball.
“Our guys are starting to get it,” Eviston said. “The last four weeks we’ve been playing catch-up and trying to scratch and claw our way through a game. (Friday) it was a little bit easier to use all of our weapons, and our defense allowed us to do that.”
CovCath finished with 359 total yards, which was only slightly better than Beechwood’s 347 total. The difference in the game was the Colonels’ ability to run off 28 straight points in the first half. In their previous four games, the Colonels scored only one touchdown in the first half and was never able to take a lead.
“Quite honestly, we started the season this week,” said CovCath junior linebacker Alex Shelton. “We let go of the first four weeks. They happened and we took lessons from them and grew as a team. Then we came out here (Friday) and kicked it in.”
Beechwood opened the game with a 65-yard scoring drive that ended with senior running back Ethan Stringer’s 37-yard cutback run into the end zone. But CovCath dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball for the remainder of the first half and scored 28 straight points to quite the home field crowd.
The Colonels scored their first four touchdowns on short runs by four different players. One of them was Shelton, who carried the ball into the end zone for the first time in his varsity career to cap off his team’s first-half scoring spree.
“That felt nice,” Shelton said of his 2-yard TD run. “We put that in as a goal-line package this week. We’re one-for-one with it now.”
Beechwood’s offense got something going in the closing minutes of the second quarter. After moving the ball to the 2-yard-line with eight seconds left on the clock, it looked like the Tigers scored when senior quarterback Kyle Fieger lofted a pass to tight end Lucas Benson in the left corner of the end zone.
One official raised both of his hands to signify a touchdown, but then he waved it off because Benson seemed to be bobbling the ball when he stepped out of the end zone. Beechwood coach Noel Rash talked with the officials as they left the field at halftime, but the score remained 28-7 at the break.
CovCath extended its lead to 34-7 in the third quarter on a 41-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback A.J. Mayer to senior slot back Ryan McGinness. The pass was actually underthrown and a Beechwood defensive back tipped the ball into McGinness’ hands.
With his team unable to run the ball against CovCath’s defense, Fieger dropped back to pass on most of Beechwood’s offensive plays during the second half. He was sacked a few times, but he also managed to throw two touchdown passes to wide receiver Adain Justice, who slipped tackles on both of those scoring plays.
The second TD pass from Fieger to Justice trimmed CovCath’s lead to 37-21 with 8:46 left to play. But the Colonels put together one last scoring drive to clinch their first win under coach Eviston.
“This feels good,” Eviston said. “It’s been a long time coming, but we’ve been working hard and it’s good to get that first one.”
CovCath rushed for 261 of its 359 total yards. Sophomore running back Grant Dyer led the way with 95 yards on 17 carries, followed by Mayer with 84 yards on 12 carries and McGinness with 82 yards on 11 carries.
Fieger accounted for 270 of the Tigers’ 347 total yards. In addition to completing 17 of 32 passes for 207 yards, he rushed for 63 yards on 11 carries.
“We tried to take as many of their (offensive) weapons away, but I don’t know if you can take them all away,” Eviston said of Beechwood. “That’s why I think they’re going to be a top team at the end, for sure.”
COVCATH 7 0 7 7 — 21
BEECHWOOD 7 21 6 7 — 41
B – Stringer 37 run (German kick)
CC – McGinness 4 run (Kloska kick)
CC – Toebbe 10 run (Kloska kick)
CC – Dyer 1 run (Kloska kick)
CC – Shelton 2 run (Kloska kick)
CC – McGinness 41 pass from Mayer (kick blocked)
B – Justice 17 pass from Fieger (German kick)
B – Justice 36 pass from Fieger (German kick)
CC – Dyer 2 run (Kloska kick)
RECORDS: CovCath 1-4, Beechwood 3-1.