Wolfer boots Xavier past Bishop Ford in OT
One week after a heartbreaking loss to St. Francis Prep in
overtime, Xavier beats Bishop Ford, 17-14, in OT.
The scene was set for Xavier senior Jimmy Wolfer on a chilly Saturday night at the Aviator Sports Complex.
Xavier coach Chris Stevens called on his wing back to attempt a game-winning 24-yard field goal in the first overtime with the Knights and Bishop Ford knotted at 14. The left-footed kicker had plenty of nerves when he was chosen over teammates Marsallis Faircloth and Robert Irimescu.
“I felt it was a shorter kick and I’m a little more accurate I feel, and once he [Stevens] called my name up to go, I was shaking,” Wolfer said.
Wolfer settled down and sailed his field goal attempt through the uprights to give Xavier a much-needed 17-14 CHSFL Class AA win. The victory improved the Knights record to 4-2 overall and 3-2 in the division and keeps them in contention for a playoff berth.
More importantly, it helps Xavier erase the memories of St. Francis Prep’s 41-35 overtime win last week in a game that saw the Terriers rally from a 21-6 deficit.
“This is a heck of a win considering what we’ve been dealing with and how much they [Bishop Ford] improved,” Stevens said. “I’m not happy the way we won it, but I’m happy we won it.”
Along with nagging injuries and a serious case of bronchitis for star running back Trey Solomon, who played despite not being at 100 percent, Stevens had plenty to deal with throughout the week.
“They got 17 returning starters and [Bishop Ford head coach Jim Esposito] is heck of a defensive coach,” Stevens said. “It’s been a week that we’ve been trying to get rid of a demon from an overtime loss that we should have won. We had 525 yards of offense in a game we didn’t win.”
Xavier found a way to persevere in a hard-hitting contest that was not decided at the end of regulation. Solomon rushed for 127 yards on 22 carries, scored two rushing touchdowns and played in the secondary even with Stevens giving his junior some plays off.
Solomon rushed up the middle untouched on a 25-yard touchdown run, and made the two-point rushing conversion to put Xavier up 8-0 with 11:54 left in the second quarter.
Bishop Ford answered back with a much-needed score before halftime. Falcons quarterback Xaviah Mattocks found Rodney Gonzales in the back of the end zone for a 6-yard touchdown pass to tie the game with six seconds left in the second quarter.
Xavier took a 14-8 lead on Solomon’s two-yard rushing touchdown, but the Knights missed the two-point conversion with 11:25 left.
The Falcons would not go away as Dante Aiken converted on a crucial fourth-and-1 from their own 30-yard line. Aiken rushed up the middle of the field, broke two tackles and completed a 70-yard touchdown score with 2:43 left.
Xavier’s defense stood tall to force an incomplete pass on the ensuing two-point conversion to keep the game tied at 14- all. On Bishop Ford’s first possession of the overtime, Mattocks attempted a pass into the end zone to Gonzales, but Solomon and Ryan Kilgallen teamed up to knock away the pass.
“Trey was sick all week and for him to come out and show some of the heart he did there, he’s just a big time player, and shows up in the big times,” Kilgallen said. “He’s always helping us.”
Kilgallen doesn’t ever want to experience another heartbreaking loss again when Xavier takes on Cardinal Spellman next Saturday in another must win.
“We don’t ever want that to happen again. We don’t ever want to lose again,” Kilgallen said. “We want to win every game and play tough every game.”
