Prep outruns BC High
DANVERS -- A second-half comeback attempt by BC High fell short and St. John's Prep pulled away in the fourth quarter to post a 40-30 Catholic Conference win yesterday. The Prep (3-3) piled up 428 rushing yards while pounding BC High into submission, with tailback Chris Zardas and quarterback John McCarthy (373 combined yards) the chief culprits.
"It's what we do," said St. John's coach Jim O'Leary. "We're not fancy. We needed the win."
Zardas started the Prep on its first drive by taking the pitch on a hook-and-ladder play 31 yards into BC High territory, capping the march six plays later with a 1-yard touchdown run.
BC High (2-4) was forced to punt on its next possession, and McCarthy increased the lead for St. John's with a 25-yard touchdown run.
Steve Hunt took over on BC High's next drive, carrying four times and catching a key third-down pass before narrowing the gap to 13-8 with a 4-yard touchdown run. It would quickly get worse for BC High, however.
St. John's took over on its 30-yard line after the BC kickoff, and McCarthy kept an option 71 yards for a touchdown. One interception later, McCarthy ran it in again from 4 yards and St. John's led, 26-8, at the half.
"We just didn't tackle," said BC High coach Jim Cotter. "We came back and played better in the second half, but you have to give credit to their backs. Their quarterback played a good game."
BC came out strong in the third quarter, forcing a three and out and scoring four plays later to cut the deficit to 11 points. St. John's failed on a fourth-down conversion attempt on its next possession, and a Hunt 24-yard touchdown run brought BC within 26-22.
"I'm just stubborn," said O'Leary of his decision to go for it on fourth and 2 from his 36. "I figured we might as well go for it."
BC threatened a few minutes later, after a Prep fumble gave BC High possession at its 30. A 37-yard pass from Reed Smith to Phil Perry moved the offense into Prep territory, and a Hunt run gave BC a first down at the St. John's 20.
A Hunt run yielded only a yard, and on second down, Smith lofted a pass toward the goal line, intended for BC's 6-foot-5-inch sophomore receiver Jack Shields. Smith was hit as he delivered the ball, however, and the pass floated long enough for St. John's defensive back James Alexander to recover and break up the play.
It was the final play of the third quarter, and it would be as close as BC would get. Another pass intended for Shields was incomplete on third down, and Smith was forced to scramble under heavy pressure on fourth down before firing incomplete.
McCarthy scored on a 20-yard option run on the Prep's next drive, and Zardas busted a 48-yard scoring run soon thereafter to salt away the win.
Zardas finished with 205 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries, while McCarthy carried 11 times for 168 yards and four touchdowns.
"It seemed like they were sticking with Chris on the option a lot," said McCarthy, "so I ended up just keeping it most of the time. It was working pretty well for us."
St. John's Prep (1-0 in the Catholic Conference) faces Catholic Memorial next week while BC High (0-1 conference) takes on Xaverian.
"This was a league championship game," said O`Leary. "And next week is a league championship game. With only four league games, there's no room for error."
