Bishop Ireton High School | Archive | September, 2009

 Gonzaga rallied with3 goals in the final 13 minutes to defeat the Cardinals 3-1 in a penalty-filled contest marred by 3 red cards. 

With 9:21 remaining in the first half, Ireton senior Drew Bedford was carded for a “studs up” dangerous tackle and the Cardinals were faced with 60 minutes of shorthanded soccer.  The home team kept working and with 5:32 left in the period, Miles Campbell used a strong tail wind, and a blinding sun in goalie Chris Rubel’s face to launch a 60-yard direct kick over the outstretched keeper and into the net.

The Ireton lads would continue to play an inspired second half as Gonzaga, the defending WCAC champions, pressed the man advantage. When Campbell, Peter Giambone, and their mates didn’t turn the Eagles back, Frankie Massa made one strong save after another to preserve the 1-0 lead.

With 25:16 left, the physical game turned ****.  Ireton’s CJ Hancock and Gonzaga’s Joey Wilkins collided and ended entanged along the sideline. In an instant both squads gathered and a minor melee broke out. When order was restored, both players were ejected, both goalies received yellow cards for leaving the net, and tensions were even higher. It also left the field considerably more wide open as the Eagles now worked 10 players on 9.  About 12 minutes later, Gonzaga junior Jacques Casagnol pushed a short rebound past the sprawling Massa and the Eagles had tied the game at 1.  The momentum began to swing and Gonzaga continued the attack, culminating on one of 8 corner kicks the visitors earned on the day. With 6:58 to play, senior Earl Hamilton headed an Eagle corner into the net and a 2-1 advantage. With :48 seconds to play the Cardinals misplayed a pass into their own net to push the score to 3-1 but the damage had already been done.

The Eagles used a big second half to beat the Cardinals in the JV tilt, 6-0.

Ireton returns to action on Friday when the Cardinals host Good Counsel in a 4pm start on Fannon Field.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

Bishop Ireton’s JV volleyball team is off to a phenomenal start this year with a 7-0 record, and 6-0 in the WCAC. With a roster of experienced players, the Cardinals are perfect after one pass through the WCAC under the leadership of first-year head JV coach Don Hinton.

Coach Hinton’s philosophy for his team has been to focus on the fundamentals: consistent serving, excellent passing, and strong team communication. The stats show the girls are following his advice: starting setter freshman Sarah Hersey has a record 14 aces and is serving at 88 percent. Other outstanding servers include junior Kim Palmer, serving at 90 percent, and team co-captain Allie Schwartz at 88 percent.  Playing libero, junior Denise Catbay has a ball handling average of 88 percent, while sophomore Abby Cordova has an incredible 96 percent ball-handling average.  Finally, the Cardinals are a hard-hitting team, led by Schwartz with 11 kills, followed by junior co-captain Nailah Ramsey and sophomore Ashia Cook who each have eight kills.

The next opportunity to see these exceptional Cardinals soar is against Bishop McNamara on Oct. 1. The JV starts at 4:30pm followed by the varsity game at 6:00pm.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

Neither the weather nor the Cardinal defense provided much cooperation with the St Stephens/St Agnes homecoming festivities Saturday as the Cambridge Road bunch struggled to a 19-7 win in a steady rain Saturday.  On a day when alums return and the campus is alive with excitement, overcast skies and rain made for a sloppy game on the Saints turfed field.  In the end, it was too much Doug Vines and too many Saints’ turnovers for the hosts to prevail, gritty though they were.

“I am very proud that we could go in there and beat an incredibly tough St Stephens team today.” commented Ireton’s head man, Tony Verducci.  “I was relieved to get out of there with a win.”

The game started as if St Stephens couldn’t be stopped. They took the opening kickoff and drove to inside the Ireton 20, but linebacker Kevin Galloway jumped on the first of three fumbles the red and white clad hosts would cough up on the day.   When the Cardinals were forced to punt, the IAC school went back to work on offense and again moved deep into Ireton territory, only to again see the pigskin squirt loose and defensive end Richard Walker recover.  Again the Saints stonewalled Ireton and the teams traded punts as the scoreless battle entered the second quarter.

With a series of penalties, the Cardinals would be flagged 4 times for holding in the contest, and a tough defense, the redbirds were faced with a third and 26.  Doug Vines, the offensive workhorse this day, would scamper 68 yards to the St Stephens 10 before finally being hauled down. It was two carries for quarterback Mike Larrabee, then a three-yard blast off tackle and Vines had the Cardinals on the scoreboard. Larrabee’s PAT was wide left but Ireton had a 6-0 advantage.

The remainder of the second quarter was trench warfare, as the teams slugged it out exchanging punts.  Finally, Ireton found some offensive lift late in the period when Oliver Noon, in for Larrabee, found Vines down the sideline and the fleet-footed senior broke a tackle and scurried into the endzone.  Noon’s keeper on the PAT was stopped well short of the goal line, but the lead was pushed to 12-0. The ensuing kickoff resembled a golf wedge shot to the 30 yard line and the confused Saints seemed momentarily unsure of what to do next. Alertly, Ireton piled on the ball but a pass to senior Dom Puglise over the middle took Ireton only to the five as time expired in the first half.

St Stephens came out with new life in the third quarter on both sides of the ball and the field seemed to get shorter and shorter for the home squad.  As the cardinal and gold struggled to even gain a first down in the third period, the defense bent but never broke, with sacks from Patrick Borges and Conlin McCallister  and another costly fumble deep in Ireton territory blunting Saints’ drives.  Coach David Holm’s club continued to pound the Cards and finally with 7:39 to go in the contest Alex Edwards broke into the endzone from 5 yards out and the home team faithful found new life at 12-7.

Ireton came back with their best offensive effort of the second half, but a Vines 53-yard touchdown dash was wiped out by a holding call down field. Because the penalty was so far down field,  the Cardinals gained a rare second half first down, but a second major penalty on the same play, a dead ball unsportsmanlike penalty on the Ireton sideline, saddled the Cards with a hefty 1st and 25 situation back on the Ireton 45 with 6:21 to play.  The Cardinals were forced to punt and for the Ireton faithful the nailbiting began.

After the teams traded punts, the Saints would get one final shot with 2:19 left in the contest.  On third and long, Ireton’s Moses Webb stepped in front of a red-shirted receiver, intercepted the pass over the middle, and bolted up field. He cut left at the Saints 30 yard line toward the sideline, broke a tackle, gave a stiff arm, reversed field and broke another tackle at the 20, then raced back to midfield and into the endzone for Cardinals’ only points of the second half with a mere :43 seconds left on the clock; the game changing play of the game.

The Cardinals (3-1) return to more familiar surroundings this week as Bullis School visits Fannon Field for Ireton’s homecoming 2009, a 2pm kickoff on Saturday.  The Saints (2-1) look to bounce back when they head to Randolph Macon Academy for a noon kickoff in Front Royal.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 Sophomore Ciana Puglise scored a pair of goals in the first 10 minutes of the game and the Cardinals (5-4-1, 3-4-1) raced away to a 3-0 WCAC win over Elizabeth Seton Friday in Alexandria.  Katrina Guillou added the final tally with 29:04 left in the first half and Ireton cruised the rest of the contest to run their unbeaten streak to 6. 

“It’s a measure of how far we have come this season to beat Seton 3-0.” commented head coach Marianna Sullivan.  Ireton was blanked in the season opener in Bladensburg 2-0.

Puglise victimized freshman backup goalie, Jamie Abel, when she attempted to come out of the net to play a errant long pass. The fleet footed midfielder beat her to the ball and stroked the ball over Abel and 35 yards into the net as the young goalie watched helplessly.  Just over 8 minutes later the Lorton native struck again from inside the box and the tone was set.  On a penalty kick, Jackie Galdos’ kick pinballed in the offensive zone until Emma Baldwin jumped on the Nike sphere and quickly passed to Katrina Guillou who wasted little time in upping the lead to 3-0.

The Alexandrians controlled the contest throughout, with a stifling pressure in the midfield and, once again, exceptionally strong work from its defenders, including freshman Emily Gupton, and sophomores Hannah Thomas and Helena Barber.  The defense dominated the Roadrunners so completely that the first Seton shot on net did not come until less than 25 minutes remained in the contest. The Roadrunners would eventually put 5 shots on goal, but the best scoring opportunity occurred with only 3 minutes remaining and the outcome long settled.  Catherine Vasquez cleared a scramble on a Seton corner kick with smooth dribbling and a crisp pass; Ireton survived to help Joanna Falletti record her second shut out of the season.

The long home stand concludes and the girls take to the road for much of the second half of the season, beginning Tuesday when the Cardinals travel to the Academy of the Holy Cross in Kensington for a 4pm start.

In the nightcap, the JV girls blasted the young Roadrunners a second time in the season with a 4-0 win. Freshman Brenna Heaney tallied 3 times for the red and gold.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 After hitting the crossbar twice and peppering St Johns College High School with 17 shots to only four for the Cadets on Tuesday, Ireton unloaded on the second year school in Dumfries Wednesday.  The eight goals were the most by the Alexandria school in over 5 years.  Cardinal will find the going alittle tougher on Friday when they start the second half of the WCAC season at DeMatha.  The Cardinals carry a 5-game unbeaten string into the contest. DeMatha won the season opener at Ireton 5-0.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 In 2008, Ireton’s soccer team battled every opponent but never quite got into the win column. What a difference a year makes as the Cardinals upset defending WCAC champions, St Johns College High School, 2-1 at Fannon Field on Tuesday.

“The players knew if they were strong one-on-one and played our passing game we would be OK.  We played the way we practiced. St John’s has some of the best individual players in the league.” commented a pleased Marianna Sullivan, second year coach of the Cardinals.

The game was a contrast, as St Johns was strong in the first half controlling the play for much of the period. Ireton, playing without senior Lindsey Baumann, lost for the season to an ACL injury, bobbed and weaved, to borrow a boxing expression, but never gave the Johnnies a good look at the net.  Junior Joanna Falletti turned away the shots on goal in the first period, but her best saves would come in the second half.

Sophomore Hannah Thomas found classmate Katrina Guillou with a long pass just beyond midfield and the Ireton speedster was off to the races and no one would catch her in beating Kristen Glad to give the red and gold a 1-0 lead with 4:58 left in the opening half.

SJC stuck with their gameplan and were rewarded just 4 minutes into the second period when sophomore Ally Grossman tied the game at 1-1.  The DC school seemingly smothered the Ireton attack at midfield for most of the second half, with the Cardinals rarely getting a shot on net.  But seniors Stephanie Kapurch and Jackie Galdos led a tight Ireton defense that denied the Cadets again and again, while Falletti made two critical saves in the final half.

With St John’s crowding the field to press for the go ahead score, it was the Cardinals that exploited a Cadet miscue.  When Elynei Rodriguez grabbed possession of the ball at midfield, she deftly send a perfect pass ahead to the racing Guillou who again outran the defenders and beat Glad again left in a one-on-one situation with Ireton’s leading scorer with on 1:32 left in the game.

Ireton improved to 4-4-1 on the campaign, 2-4-1 in the WCAC while St  Johns falls to 1-4-2 on the year. 

Ireton’s girls JV team improved to 5-2-1 with a 5-1 pounding of the Cadet youngsters in the nightcap.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

For the third staight week Bishop Ireton faced a bigger, arguably more athletic opponent.  This time the Cardinals (2-1) moxy wasn’t enough in a 43-14 setback to Woodberry Forest (1-0) at Fannon Field.  “I watched film of Ireton for two weeks” said Tiger skipper, Clint Alexander. “I like how their linebackers get to the ball and they are a team that never quits.”  Indeed, for three quarters, Ireton gave the favored visitors all they could handle as the contest moved to the final period with Woodberry Forest clinging to a 21-14 lead.

“At halftime, I told our kids, ‘if you think these guys are going to come out and lay down for us, you’re wrong.’ Well, when we gathered at the start of the 4th quarter and the game at 21-14, I could sense my guys finally understood.” commented Alexander. In the Ireton locker room, Cardinal mentor Tony Verducci, pedalled a calm message. “I tried to convey the sense that the hardest steel is forged in the hottest fires, that we needed to go out in second half and just keep pounding that anvil in that fire.”

While a beautiful fall day for a good crowd of spectators, the Astroplay 2000 was heating up as the afternoon wore on and would take its physical toll on the home team. Woodberry Forest kept fresh legs in the game, while the Cardinals gamely played every series like it was the last one.

Woodberry took the game’s opening kickoff and moved smartly down the field to score the contest’s first touchdown on an 8-yard dive up the middle by fullback Hatcher Williams to take 7-0 lead. The teams traded defensive stands, though the Tigers tried to catch Ireton napping on their next possession, running an usuccessful fake punt near midfield. Ultimately, the trickery backfired. While the Cardinals drive into Tiger territory would stall, a pooch punt by senior Kevin Galloway was downed on the WFS one-yard line.  When the cautious visitors were forced to punt from their own end zone, dangerous Doug Vines had the opportunity he needed as he fielded the Tiger punt near midfield.  The speedy Vines bolted up the middle, cut to the north sideline and outran the white-shirted visitors into the end zone to knot the game at 7 in the first stanza.

After an exchange of punts with the Tigers pounding the Alexandrians’ defense with dives and passes, Woodberry culminated a second quarter drive with a nifty grab by senior David Dossett of Cleveland, MS, over the outstretched Cardinal hands  for a 14-7 advantage.  It would be a Cardinal turnover late in the period, after the Cardinals snared a Tiger fumble, that Woodberry would allow the visitors to up their lead to 21-7 just before the half.

The third quarter saw Ireton come out with renewed determination. The Cards took the half’s opening kickoff and engineered their best drive of the game to pull within 21-14 when Mike Larrabee scampered into the endzone. Though few realized it at the time, but the “good guys” had little left in their tank. 

Perhaps startled that a game that started so easily for the orange and black now found them back on their heels, Woodberry Forest came back with a fourth quarter drive that was vintage power football, running up the middle and off tackle on the Cardinals with fullbacks Williams and Ade Oyalowo then breaking outside on the speedy runs of Ed Reynolds, the final carry an 8-yard touchdown. When the Cardinals’ next drive stalled, punter Kevin Galloway was bowled over and his punt was ruled partially blocked. Regardless, the short punt was caught and returned for the fifth touchdown of the day and the rout was on. WFS would tack on a pair of field goals; the stubborn, never-say-die defense refused to quit, as Coach Alexander predicted, and a safety when an errant snap went over the head of Galloway. The alert Ireton punter kicked the ball out of the endzone to prevent a touchdown, yielding a 2-point score instead.

“There were way too many positives for our team in that game to hang our heads,” commented Verducci. “But we want to ‘flush’ that game now, and turn all our attention to St Stephens next Saturday. We are the guests at a homecoming game and we need to be at our best.”  For the cross town Saints, hungry for a win over the Cardinals after losing two straight years, it won’t get easier for the Cambridge Road crew.  Fans are advised to arrive early as the homecoming crowd will be standing room only by kickoff.  St Stephens week begins Thursday when the 1-2 JV gridders host the Saints at 4pm on Fannon Field.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 Led by all tournament first team selectees, senior Lauren Monroe and junior Margaret Coyle, the Cardinals rallied from the fifth seed in the championship bracket to win the Fredericksburg Christian Academy’s volleyball tournament held in Fredericksburg on Saturday.  After dropping their opening match to the Seton School of Manassas, Ireton rallied to win four straight, including a payback win over Seton in the semifinals.

“It was a total team effort, the girls really played some of their best volleyball so far.” commented head coach Kathy Gutmann.  After bouncing Model School following the loss to Seton, Ireton earned a 5th seed in the championship, squaring off with Portsmouth Christian.   Courtney Connaughton’s 4 aces, Allie Swiger’s 12 kills and 2 blocks led Ireton in the win. Monroe added 7 kills as the Alexandria school found its groove.  Alicia Sobral, a junior, delivered 3 aces and four kills, Coyle added a pair while Lauren Monroe contributed 9 big kills and Swiger five to carry the Cardinals past Seton in the rematch, sending the hot redbirds into the title game with Greenbrier Christian of Chesapeake, Virginia.

Allie Swiger was devastating with 6 aces in the championship contest as Monroe added 7 more kills and Connaughton 3 in the win. Margaret Coyle had a pair of blocks in the championship.  It was the first championship in more than two years for the Cardinals who have little time to savor the victory as they take to the road to visit the Academy of the Holy Cross in Kensington on Monday. JV, currently 6-0 on the season, open the action at 4pm and the varsity match will follow approximately 6pm.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

The WCAC is a tough league and every game is a grind, physically and mentally. Bishop McNamara, with a resurgent program that has tied the likes of Good Counsel and O’Connell earlier in the season, spotted Ireton a first half goal, roared back with two of their own in the second half, then survived a late Cardinal rally to escape Alexandria with a 2-2 draw Friday.

Elyena Rodriguez got Ireton on the board with some nifty footwork at the end of a beautiful play. Freshman Nicole Bond cleared a pass to the home sideline where Katrina Guillou pushed it quickly ahead to senior Jackie Galdos. Galdos drove the ball to Rodriguez who took the pass down the sideline, into the corner, then deftly dribbled out to the center, where she faked and then shot the ball in the net with 11:26 left in the first half.

A physical, back and forth struggle continued with few shots developing until sophomore Catherine Anderson jumped on a rebounded shot and drilled it past Ireton’s Joanna Falletti to tie the game in the 23rd minute play.  Senior Candace Chambers gave McNamara their first lead with 10:16 left when she outraced Bond and sophomore Hannah Thomas to score. 

A direct kick from the dangerous Galdos with 5:59 left went on net, but when it squirted loose for an instant from Mustang goal keeper Sara Cavanagh, Thomas banged home the tying tally.  The wild scramble left Cavanagh injured with a wrist bruise, requiring Anderson to move into the net for the Forestville squad.

Ireton smelled an opportunity and for nearly 4 minutes the pace was relentless as the teams battled, the Cardinals to test the backup goalie, McNamara to push the ball in the Ireton end. Suddenly at just over 3 minutes left, the game momentarily slowed to a series of long passes and back and forth, as both squads seemed exhausted by the furious action.  In a seconds, the pace resumed and Ireton pressed, without success, in netting a final score. 

“Our heads were down for just a moment when they took the lead, commented junior midfielder, Emma Baldwin. “But we are a team of fighters and we played hard the rest of the way, looking for that next goal.”

The JV tilt was a one-sided affair with the Cardinals swamping McNamara 8-0.   Katrina Azar scored 3 goals, Gabby Borowski a pair, and Sarah Bonano, Katherine Babiec, and Sarah Olson rounding out the scoring for Ireton.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

 In his sophomore season at Army, former Cardinal Andrew Rodriguez appears to be right at home as a starting linebacker for the Black Knights, currently 1-1 on the season. Andrew is also fortunate to be playing with his cousin, and another Ireton grad, Brian McSween, a senior at the Military Academy.

Ellerson commented yesterday in his weekly press conference on Andrew’s play so far, “Our whip linebacker Andrew Rodriguez has been remarkably productive. That’s a key position in our defense and he makes a lot of choices and decisions for the front, but he doesn’t necessarily have the kind of production that Andrew has had.”

The Army media guide says this about the 6’3″ 210 pound Rodriguez, “Impressive young newcomer to Black Knights’ starting cast … emerged as contender for significant playing time this spring … began session at “quick” defensive end spot … moved to whip position shortly thereafter … physical athlete with tremendous makeup … heady player with good understanding of surroundings … boasts necessary tools to be highly successful in head coach Rich Ellerson’s double-eagle flex defensive system … playmaker with nose for football … still adjusting to new scheme … plays game with great deal of enthusiasm … carries high level of energy into every snap … enters preseason camp listed as starter at whip position.

Three-time all-state linebacker selection at Bishop Ireton High … played for head coach Tony Verducci … four-year starter … split time between running back and linebacker positions … served as team captain each of final two seasons … saw additional playing time at fullback and wide receiver spots … led team in receiving and scoring as a senior … finished second on squad in rushing, interceptions, tackles for loss and yards per carry … helped team to state runner-up finish in Virginia Independent League … first-team selection on D.C. Examiner All-Area Team … member of Washington Post All-Metro Second Team … selected by Fairfax County Football Hall of Fame as the 2007 Player of the Year … finalist for Old Spice Red Zone Player of the Year in state of Virginia … earned three additional varsity letters in track and field, one each in basketball and lacrosse … served as team captain during final year on hardwood … specialized in sprint events on track … boasted 4.373 grade-point-average on a 4.0 scale … ranked as one of top 10 students in graduating class … National Honor Society member … Economics Club member … participated in Fellowship of Christian Athletes … student government officer … active in community … served as volunteer visiting injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center … named National Football Foundation’s East Region High School Scholar-Athlete of the Year following senior year … one of five regional winners honored at Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)