How did NC respond to the huge Lloyd swings?

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The visitors came out with some things unseen on tape.

But once the hosts figured them out, they rolled to another second-round Class 2A victory on Friday. The Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds football team (6-5 overall) managed the challenge of beating the Lloyd Memorial Juggernauts, 39-17 a second time this season.

The Thoroughbreds have won 18 in a row against the Juggernauts (8-3) dating back to 1991. They have advanced to the region championship game every year since 2000.

The upstart Juggernauts came out in a Power-I formation and pounded the ball with sophomore running back Justin Durham and junior Charles Gaines. Durham finished with 97 yards on 24 carries and Gaines had nine carries for 64 yards.

But when the dust settled, NewCath outgained Lloyd Memorial, 350-335 in total offense. That includes 218-202 on the ground. Jacob Smith again led the way with 22 carries for 126 yards and two touchdowns and John Harris ran for 64 yards on four carries and a score. Junior Erik Anderson ran for 28 yards on a fake punt.

“They put us on our heels starting out,” said Dan Wagner, NewCath Head Coach. “Once we settled down and started playing like we knew we could, we were okay. But they came out and took it to us. They controlled the line of scrimmage in the first quarter. There is no doubt about it.”

But the Thoroughbreds also had a huge receiving performance from senior Nate Enslen. Enslen recorded six catches for 117 yards and three touchdowns. NewCath sophomore quarterback Patrick Henschen completed 8-of-14 passes for 132 yards.

“(Balance is) very important,” said Dave Schneider, NewCath Head Coach. “A lot of things went well for us. We just ran our stuff, got the ball in the hands of our playmakers and they made plays.”

On the other side, Hayden Molitor completed 10-of-22 passes for 133 yards, a touchdown and interception to NewCath junior linebacker Peyton Davis. Lashunn Townsend had five catches for 29 yards to lead the Juggernauts.

The Juggernauts led 3-0 after the first quarter when Sergio Guitierez hit a 24-yard field goal. They extended it to 10-0 just nine seconds into the second quarter when Molitor hit Townsend for a 13-yard touchdown.

But NewCath responded with 19 straight points to go up 19-10 at halftime. Harris started the scoring with a 53-yard touchdown run before Henschen hit Enslen for 47 and 35-yard touchdown strikes.

NewCath put the game away in the third quarter. Henschen threw another touchdown pass to Enslen with 8:21 left in the third from 10 yards out.

The Thoroughbreds added two more touchdowns on Smith scores. His first came from a yard out with 45 seconds left in the third quarter and his second came from five yards away with 54 seconds.

NewCath takes on Newport on Friday at Newport Stadium for the Region 3 championship on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The Thoroughbreds beat the Wildcats, 22-17 on Oct. 10.