Archbishop McCarthy rallies to upset American Heritage in crucial district clash

It all started for Archbishop McCarthy early in the week, during team meetings and daily practices.

Coach Jake Pew made his message loud and clear. The Mavericks expected and believed they’d pull off a major upset.

The results were delivered on Friday night.

Quarterback Robert Kerns’ 5-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter proved to be the difference as Archbishop McCarthy stunned American Heritage, 13-10, at home in a key District 15-4A showdown.

The victory may have sealed the district title for the Mavericks (6-2 overall, 2-1 in district).

“It was a team effort,” Pew said. “I said to the kids Monday, ‘Us winning tonight starts with the expectation and the belief we’re going to win.’ We’ve got a good football team.”

Running back Damien Grant opened the scoring with an 11-yard touchdown run, and unofficially rushed for 91 yards on 21 carries.

“We had a great week of practice,” Pew said. “We prepared all week. Tonight was just the last piece of the puzzle. We came out and executed. It took everybody – offense, defense, special teams.”

For American Heritage (4-4, 2-1), the loss denied the Patriots of a chance to win the district outright. Now, their postseason fate is based on tie-breaker scenarios.

The defending state champions have been hit hard by injuries, and were without defender Kymani Morales, receiver Brandon Bennett and running back Jonathan Bueno.

The Patriots struggled to move the ball on offense all night. In the first half alone, they amassed just 46 yards of total offense.

Still, Heritage had a chance to tie the score and send the game into overtime, but a 30-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right with 10 seconds remaining.

After the missed kick, Mavericks went into victory formation, with Kerns taking a knee to seal a huge win for the McCarthy program.

“It started with the belief in the locker room,” Kerns said. “Coach Pew preaches all the time. ‘You’ve got to believe in your head before you can ever do it.’ We believed all week. We had a great week of practice. We came out and did it.”

From the outset the game was a defensive struggle.

McCarthy was able to establish the run on its opening drive, marching 72 yards on 11 plays. Grant’s 11-yard touchdown run, and Michael Johnson’s extra point made it, 7-0.

After Heritage had a three-and-out on its first possession, McCarthy again moved consistently on the ground, with Jeremiah Alexandre getting a bulk of the carries. But the drive stalled on the Patriots’ 15, and the Mavericks missed a field goal on fourth down.

The Patriots gained some momentum on the first of two interceptions by Terrance Johnson. The turnover set up Kade Bailey’s 42-yard field goal.

That’s how the first half ended, with McCarthy up, 7-3.

In the third quarter, Heritage’s special teams set up its only touchdown.

Forced to punt from its 40, Heritage’s Jordan Rusinque recovered a fumble at the Mavericks’ 21. Leon Strawder connected with Robert Outler on an 18-yard pass to the 2-yard line.

Strawder scored on a 1-yard sneak, giving Heritage a 10-7 lead.

The lead was short-lived, as McCarthy went back on the attack.

“Every time something happens, no matter if it’s good or bad, it was just one play,” Kerns said. “It was next play. That’s all we were doing. That’s how we responded in the moment.”

McCarthy responded again on its next drive, driving 59 yards on 16 plays. On third down, Kerns dashed five yards for the go-ahead touchdown. The extra point attempt, however, was blocked.

McCarthy’s defense repeatedly stepped up, with Maikel Suarez recording an interception on a deflected pass.

“Another message I gave the kids at the team meeting was, ‘So what? Now what?’ “ Pew said. “You make a great play. So what? Now what? What are you going to do to help the team win?”

All night, McCarthy was able to come up with the key plays when necessary, including in the final seconds.

“You make a bad play. So what? Now what?” Pew said. “How are you going to make up for it? So, it’s a one-play at a time mentality. That’s what they did. They took the good with the bad; the bad with the good. And ended up winning.”