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MLB

Preview: Jesuit vs. Brother Martin

Crusaders riding winning streak; Blue Jays fight for playoff position
By David Kahn
November 1, 2016

As the regular season comes to a close, the Brother Martin Crusaders (6-3, 3-2 in district) take on the Jesuit Blue Jays (5-4, 2-3 in district) in a crucial playoff positioning bout at the Shrine on Airline, kicking off at 7 p.m. on Friday night.

The Jesuit Blue Jays are winners of their last two contests, blowing out Archbishop Shaw at the Shrine two weeks ago before dismantling Franklinton last week, 56-21. Connor Prouet was the star of the night, collecting six of the team's eight touchdowns on the evening, with five coming on the ground behind 15 carries for 90 yards, and the other on a 19-yard pass from quarterback Denny McGinnis.

Prouet had the benefit of good field position due to several great defensive efforts by Cameron Crozier and Matt McMahon, who each blocked a punt and followed it up with big returns, including McMahon's 28-yard scamper to the house.

Brother Martin comes in riding a four-game winning streak, with no signs of slowing down. They defeated Archbishop Rummel in a key 27-22 victory a few weeks ago, ending the Raiders' chance at an undefeated regular season with a late fourth quarter touchdown. The Crusaders followed that up with a statement win against Shaw, 41-0, last Saturday afternoon.

John-Paul Pierce was dominant in this one, rushing for 85 yards and a touchdown, as well as hurling one to wideout Pattre'en Hughes to cap his 81 passing yards on the night. Pierce did fall sharply on his wrist in the first quarter, which forced the junior quarterback to miss the rest of the first half, but he returned in the third quarter for one drive and appeared to be alright following the contest.

Georgia-Tech commit Bruce Jordan-Swilling added a pair of rushing scores of his own, accumulating 96 yards overall before he yielded the turf to Chris Smith and Joshua Payne-Morgan. The Crusader defense held strong, keeping Shaw to negative 52 rushing yards with constant pressure in the backfield and four high snaps over the head of quarterback Pete Taylor.

Brother Martin won last year's regular season finale against Jesuit in a nail biter, 49-46, so expect this one to be close as well with two of the state's top running backs taking on two stingy defenses. This game will be up to whichever defense can stop the run better, and it may come down to the last possession of the ballgame.

Be sure to catch this one on Friday night, starting at 7 p.m. at the Shrine on Airline. Jesuit needs a victory for a chance to host a playoff game next week, while Brother Martin is hoping to stay on the top half of the Catholic League standings as they roll into the postseason.