St. Thomas More Edges Out Brébeuf in Thrilling Rivalry Game
By Larry Moko
The Maroon and Black Bowl was up for grabs again when the St. Jean de Brébeuf Braves visited the St. Thomas More Knights on Friday.
That trophy goes to the winner of the annual regular-season contest between More and Brébeuf in senior high school football.
"We started it back in 2010," Knights coach Claudio Silvestri said of the friendly competition which More won 15-7 this year.
"We're great cross-Mountain rivals. We're very pleased with the win."
Brébeuf’s lone Maroon and Black Bowl victory came in 2013.
The 2024 outcome boosted More's Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic league record to 4-1, while Brébeuf slipped to 2-3. In other action, the St. John Henry Newman Cardinals blanked the Bishop Ryan Celtics, 6-0, and the first-place Bishop Tonnos Titans topped the Cathedral Gaels, 34-10. The St. Mary Crusaders were idle.
"I thought our guys dug deep and it went right down to the wire," Brébeuf coach Phil Iannone said.
A solo tackle by Braves' Canada Cup- veteran middle linebacker Jack Cino forced a turnover on downs with 74 seconds remaining to give Brébeuf one last chance. Brébeuf quarterback Michael Caprio then proceeded to march his team down field. But on the final play of the game, a dangerous-looking pass-and-run over the middle to Omaree Francis came up about 15 yards short of the end zone.
"We tip our hats to SJB," Silvestri said. "It was a tough, clean game. They gave us fits."
More opened the scoring on a swing pass from quarterback Marcus Perri to running back Caleb Kowalchuk who raced 16 yards for the touchdown.
The Knights then took a 15-0 lead in the third quarter on a 38-yard carry into the end zone by Rogan Monaghan.
"It worked out really well," Monaghan said. "I had the edge and I knew I was gone. I saw an open field and blockers made their blocks."
Monaghan's brothers -- Ethan and Owen -- are More graduates who have played for the McMaster University Marauders.
"We missed some vital tackles on their two touchdowns," the Brébeuf coach said. "We had them wrapped in the backfield and we completely whiffed. Two long runs ... that's on the defence.
"Offensively, we had some good drives in the first half. Full credit to STM for pulling it out."
Brébeuf came to life in the fourth quarter when Jonah Glueheisan intercepted a pass and returned it about 55 yards to the Knights 2 yard-line. From there, Jackson Wilson plowed in for the major and Alex Lopes added the convert.
"We gave them a really short field on the (interception) or they would have had zero on the board this week," the More coach said. "Our defence has been outstanding all year."
In addition to scoring a touchdown, Kowalchuk excelled in other aspects of the game.
"Kowalchuk is a terrific player on both sides of the ball," Silvestri said, "and he's very impactful on special teams, too."
Kowalchuk's roles are that of kick returner, running back and corner.
"Carrying the ball is definitely the best thing in the world," he said, "but I'm comfortable on defence, too. Winning championships comes down to defence. I feel I need to be out there to hold that edge and make sure that we're keeping everything inside."
Kicker Adrian Klindzic-Dovial accounted for More's other points by way of two converts and a booming 55-yard punt single. Klindzic-Dovial also booted a 45-yard field goal in the final two minutes last week to give the Knights an 8-6 come-from-behind victory over Bishop Ryan.
Said Silvestri: "In three-down football when you have a punter like that it really gives you an advantage in those defensive struggles."
Photos by R.F. (Bob) Butrym, RFB Sport Photography
More photos on the HWCDSB Athletics Facebook page here
