Big plays boost Marist to one-sided win at Marmion

AURORA – Marist dominated on both sides of the ball in its 38-13 victory over Marmion at Fichtel Field Friday night.

The Redhawks offense put points on the board on six of eight drives, while the defense scored a touchdown and stopped the Cadets two yards from the goal line in the Chicago League Conference crossover game.

“We didn’t get anything explosive, and they got several explosive plays,” said Marmion coach Dan Thorpe. “We threw some haymakers, but we just didn’t throw enough.”

The Redhawks’ first drive ended with a failed field goal attempt. However, on Marmion’s ensuing drive, Marist defenders knocked the ball loose from Marmion quarterback Dan Chung at the Cadets’ 40-yard line. Marist’s Matthew Hansen scooped up the loose ball and returned it for a TD.

“We made that big play scoring a touchdown and that kind of set the tone for the game,” Marist coach Ron Dawczak said.

The Cadets drove the ball down to Marist’s 5-yard line on their next drive. Facing fourth and goal, Marmion (3-2) opted for a field goal.

Before the snap, the Redhawks were flagged for being offsides which resulted in the Cadets being only two yards from the end zone. Thorpe changed his strategy. His team went for the touchdown but was stopped by Marist.

With 3:53 left in the half, Marist increased its lead to 14-0 on a 50-yard pass from quarterback Dontrell Jackson to Tyler O’Brochta.

Marmion responded with a TD on its next drive. Chung connected with Anthony Kuceba for a 20-yard scoring pass to narrow the margin to 14-6. Chung completed 15 of 22 passes for 155 yards. Kuceba caught three for 59 yards.

Marist (4-1) expanded its lead on its final possession of the first half, when Jackson connected with Ak’tavion Agee for a 37-yard TD strike to take a 21-6  advantage at halftime.

The Redhawks widened the lead to 28-6 on their first possession of the second half. A 1-yard Agee scoring run with 5:16 left in the third quarter capped a 70-yard, 13-play drive that chewed up more than half of the third quarter.

On the team’s next drive, Jaylen Johnson extend Marist’s lead to 35-6 with two minutes left in the third period scoring on a 1-yard run. The senior running back rushed for 170 yards on 23 carries.

Marist finished its scoring with a 21-yard Kamil Kokot field goal.

Tyler Bradshaw (4 carries for 15 yards) scored Marmion’s second touchdown with 4:10 left in the game on a 3-yard run.