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University vs. Gilmour football: Preppers beat…

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Friday, April 19th 2024

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University vs. Gilmour football: Preppers beat rival Lancers for first time since 2019

University's Ryan Pattison carries against Gilmour on Sept. 24 (Brian Fisher - For The News Herald)
University’s Ryan Pattison carries against Gilmour on Sept. 24 (Brian Fisher – For The News Herald)
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Chants of “Patty, Patty” rang out among the University football team in the aftermath of a dramatic, 28-20 win over arch rival Gilmour on homecoming Sept. 24.

University senior RB/LB Ryan Pattison and his teammates won’t soon forget this one, the first victory over the Lancers for the Preppers since 2019.

It wouldn’t be the Battle of SOM without a dramatic finish, and fans of both teams and University alumni got to witness one on an overcast afternoon.

PHOTOS: Gilmour vs. University football, Sept. 24, 2022

University drove from its 20 to a fourth-and-3 at the Gilmour 25 in the fourth quarter, burning more than six minutes off the clock and hoping to put the game away.

But with 2:02 left, Gilmour got the defensive stop it needed, putting the ball back in the hands of highly-skilled junior QB Jake Kavcic.

Kavcic kept the Lancers’ drive alive with a fourth-down completion to Will Lazzaro to the Gilmour 46.

But on the next play, with 22 seconds left, Pattison leaped and picked off a Kavcic aerial to seal the victory for the Preppers.

“It’s awesome,” Pattison said of the win. “Before this, all I could think about was my freshman year and the kids I looked up to, like they were my older brothers. I remembered how they beat Gilmour my freshman year, and it’s awesome just to do it for them.”

It was fitting that Pattison made the play that sealed the win, because he played such a large role in University having a lead to hold on to in the first place.

Running with determination and fighting his way through contact, Pattison churned out 183 yards and three touchdowns on 32 bruising carries.

In addition to Pattison’s running, the Preppers turned two Gilmour turnovers into first-half touchdowns in taking a 21-6 halftime lead.

University won the pregame coin toss and chose to defer, then pounced on the opening kickoff at the Gilmour 24. Five plays later, George Minello ran 8 yards for a touchdown and a quick 7-0 University lead.

Gilmour responded immediately with a 10-play, 65-yard drive, scoring on a Kavcic keeper from the 1. But the extra point was blocked, leaving the Preppers ahead, 7-6.

University put together an impressive, 10-play, 91-yard drive in the second quarter, keyed by runs of 21, 12, and 33 yards by Pattison, who finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to make it 14-6.

The Preppers tackled the Gilmour kick returner at the Gilmour 11 on the ensuing kickoff, and two plays later, Brian Kellon recovered a fumble at the Lancer 4.

It took two plays for Pattison to reach paydirt again for University, putting the Preppers ahead, 21-6 at halftime, but no lead is usually safe in this rivalry matchup.

“Tough result, and in the first half we kind of gave them two scores,” said acting Gilmour coach Jake Schaefer, filling in for Tommy Zagorski. “The kickoff, when they got the ball early on our plus-25, kind of started us off on the wrong foot.

“We come back, then they score and we get the ball again on our minus-10 and turn it over again. Giving them 14 points in the first half didn’t help us. But the kids at halftime all talked about coming back, and the history of this game.”

University converted two fourth downs on a lengthy drive to start the third quarter, but Gilmour stopped them on their third fourth-down try, at the Lancers’ 25.

Two plays later, Kavcic, as he often does, found some magic. Scrambling to his right to avoid a rush, he spotted his twin brother Andy downfield and fired off a pass to him while falling out of bounds. Andy made the catch and outraced the Preppers to the end zone to complete a 77-yard scoring play, cutting Gilmour’s deficit to 21-13.

University followed with a 65-yard drive that featured runs by both Pattison and junior QB Jackson Boland, and Pattison’s 4-yard scoring run, his third of the day, gave the Preppers a 28-13 lead late in the third quarter.

Andy Kavcic made it across the goal line on a run from the 3 to finish a 62-yard Gilmour drive in the fourth quarter, drawing the Lancers within 28-20 with 8:31 to play.

University burned more than six minutes off the clock on its next possession, converting a key fourth-and-2 play at the Gilmour 47 with a keeper by Boland.

But the Preppers could not convert on fourth-and-3 from the Gilmour 25, and the ball went back to Gilmour with 2:02 on the clock and memories of the Lancers’ 35-28 and 26-21 come-from-behind wins in 2021 and 2020 foremost in the minds of the fans of both teams and the large contingent of University alumni.

But it was not to be on this day.

“Long overdue, man,” University senior defensive end Jack Cocco said. “The last time was our freshman year, and the last two years really sucked. It’s just great to finally beat them, I’m telling ya.”

University accumulated 306 yards, 276 on the ground, and 21 first downs. Boland added 65 yards on 15 carries and passed for 30 yards. Kellon had 3 receptions for 29 yards.

“In so many ways this is such a great game,” University coach Ben Malbasa said of the rivalry. “You’ve got guys right up the street from each other, kids who work really hard, it’s everything you could want in a high school football game.

“(Gilmour) is such an impressive group. They were undefeated, they were eighth in (Division III, Region 9). We knew they would fight to the end and give us everything we could handle.”

Gilmour finished with 233 yards, and Jake Kavcic passed for 176 on 9 completions in 17 attempts. Andy Kavcic rushed for 49 yards on 16 carries, and the brothers combined for all three Gilmour touchdowns. Tommy McCrone chipped in two catches for 62 yards.

But Malbasa believed his defensive line was capable of pressuring and containing the elusive Jake Kavcic, and that proved to be the case.

“I’m so proud,” Malbasa said. “I thought our d-line might be the difference today. The number of times we were able to pressure (Kavcic), and make him move. As good as he is, he wasn’t really able to get out and create some of the havoc that he created against some other teams. That’s such a credit to our guys up front.”

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