St. John the Baptist falls victim to Xavier's Single Wing in loss

St. John the Baptist's Jayden Louis powers his way down to the Xavier 2-yard line on Oct. 6, 2019. Photo Credit: George A. Faella
By Roger Rubin roger.rubin@newsday.com @rogrubin Updated October 6, 2019 8:26 PM

Whenever St. John the Baptist reviews the video of its loss against Xavier on Sunday, the Cougars should see if there is a way to view it in black and white instead of color.

Xavier used a 1950s-era single wing offense and executed it well with a cadre of strong, physical athletes. The Knights had a superior running attack and turned three possessions that started with St. John the Baptist turnovers into touchdowns as they rolled to a 41-6 non-conference win over the host Cougars in West Islip.

“It’s difficult to go against their style of offense and with only a week to get ready for it,” SJB linebacker Anthony Ermelino said. “We thought we were prepared, but they got the best of us today. They’re just a big, physical team. And they just they wanted it more than us today.”

Andrew Scariano rushed for 156 yards and two touchdowns on runs of 15 and 4 yards for Xavier (2-3); Matthew Geruso rushed for 63 yards and three scores on runs of 1, 4 and 56 yards; and Gregory Steffans had an interception and a fumble recovery that led to scores.

Nick Mazziotti was 7-for-23 passing for 157 yards with two interceptions for St. John the Baptist (2-3) and Christian Maisel had six receptions for 149 yards but committed a fumble after a 68-yard catch. The Cougars also were coaxed into four encroachment calls by the Knights’ shifting line.

“You can’t make mental mistakes and turn the ball over against those guys when the game is competitive,” SJB coach Philip Alba said. “The way they play and grind you down, it’s very hard to come back once you get too far behind.”  

“The offense we run isn’t like what anyone else runs and that can be a big advantage,” Boyle said. “There is a lot of work in learning how to do everything involved, but we work hard at it. When we have it going like we did today, it’s pretty fun to watch.

“Also It’s nice when we play out here and win,” said Boyle, who commutes an hour each way to Xavier in Manhattan via the LIRR and city subway. “All my friends from out here go to Chaminade and Kellenberg so this is cool.”

All three of Geruso’s touchdowns came running behind Boyle, Chapman and Hollywood. So did Anthony Bruno’s 42-yard scoring run in the third quarter.

“We’re a very young team and a lot of our guys weren’t used to the physicality that Xavier brings,” Alba said.

In the waning minutes of the contest, St. John the Baptist had its most promising moment. Sophomore Kyle Chase got back on the field after missing time with a concussion. He completed a 35-yard pass before a 1-yard TD run. Alba called Chase “the future” of the Cougars and his strong play could make for some hard decisions by Alba and his staff.

“Maybe you’ll see both kids taking snaps going forward,” Alba said of Chase and Mazziotti. “I’m not going to be quick to make a wholesale change right away.”

Xavier has been running the single wing under coach Chris Stevens for some time, so teams know it’s coming. However, the Knights are the high school football rarity and unlike what most defenses are used to seeing.

Brian Boyle of Rockville Centre is a senior offensive tackle for Xavier and his side of the line — along with Daniel Chapman and Timothy Hollywood — opened gaps for five of the Knights’ six TD runs.

Nominee: Sean Hennessy                                                                         School: Xavier High School

Position : Free Safety / Punt Returner / Kick Returner                        Opponent: St. John the Baptist
Date of Game: 10/06/19   Ht. 6’1”   Wt . 165   Class: Sr.                  Hometown: Queens, NY

Details of nominees performance:

Last season the Xavier defense posted 4 shutouts which was the most in the CHSFL.  Yet, giving up between 26 to 35 points in each of their losses this season, the Knights needed a big defensive showing to settle things down and that is just what they got.  As a matter of fact 3 of Xavier's 4 scores in the first half vs. St. John the Baptist this week came off of turnovers, 1 fumble and 2 interceptions.  

The first of those turnovers was caused by Xavier's leading tackler this season Free Safety, Sean Hennessy.  After a broken coverage resulted in St. John's making a 65 yard completion during their opening drive, Sean turned around, chased down the receiver and punch the ball out of his hands changing the whole complexion of the game early on.  In his first varsity start moving from Cornerback to Free Safety, his impact was not only felt in coverage, but in strong run support alley fills all day.  Making 38 tackles this season, Sean has averaged 7.6 tackles per game, but in the last two weeks, he has upped his game making 22 tackles for an 11 tackle per game average.