By Adam Knoll
Sports Correspondent
The Whitewater High School football program has begun its season on a bit of a low note, being outscored 63-7 by Burlington Catholic Central and Columbus over the last two weeks, though some of that is due to a shortage of players, according to the coaching staff.
Beginning the year with a shutout loss was difficult enough; compounding it with a 42-7 loss to visiting Columbus is certainly not where Whitewater wants to be this early in the season. After being down by 12 at the end the first quarter, the Whippets finally put the ball in the end zone on a 23-yard touchdown pass from James Maas to Tony Marinkovic. The Whippets tried to continue the momentum but a 16-0 run by Columbus closed out the half, followed by a 14-point third quarter to seal the deal.
“(We) had a tough night,” said head football coach Anthoni Parr after the game. “We were shorthanded in numbers and for the second week in a row it showed. This game was going to be a very difficult game no matter what.”
Indeed, the Whippets struggled on offense, gaining 58 yards through the air on 7-of-10 passing attempts by Maas. On the ground, John Saylor picked up 42 yards on 11 carries.
“Offensively, we are still trying to find our groove,” said Parr. “We were able to move the ball at times, but were unable to put together a string of plays to build any type of momentum.”
Defensively, the Whippets were bruised by the size that Columbus brought to the game. In nearly having two 100-yard rushers (Tarek Herschleb, 118, and Kyle Geiger, 98), the Cardinals picked up 222 yards rushing on the night and six total touchdowns. Columbus only threw the ball twice, completing both for 47 yards.
“The Cardinals were very disciplined and very well coached,” Parr said. “The Cardinals are a big physical team and got the best us on Friday. They have a rushing attack that you have to be very disciplined to stop and that really tested our young inexperienced players.”
The good news is, neither of the games were conference matches, so they do not count toward a playoff berth. All Whitewater needs to do is win four of its final seven games to gain entrance.
The troublesome news is conference play begins next week against regional powerhouse Big Foot, on the road. Right now, the Whippets are looking to take steps toward becoming a better football team, and perhaps Friday night’s game will go toward giving them the confidence they need to make a run.
