HAMILTON-WENTWORTH CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD
Bishop Ryan Celtics win inaugural Bishops' Bowl

By Larry Moko

Round 1 in the Battle of the Bishops went to the home team.

At the inaugural Bishops' Bowl - an annual junior high school football regular-season contest between the Bishop Ryan Celtics and the Bishop Tonnos Titans, the host Celtics scored a 27-7 victory Friday.

Next year's game will be held at Tonnos.

The purpose of the Bishops' Bowl is to fuel a rivalry between the two schools at the junior level and, at the same time, honour their name sakes in the diocese, Anthony F. Tonnos and Joseph Francis Ryan.

"I thought the organization was excellent," Tonnos coach Anthony Macaluso said after the trophy presentation. "Kudos to Bishop Ryan's staff and players. Our players were very excited about it (the game)."

With the victory, BR improved its record in the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic standings to 4-1 while fourth-place Tonnos dropped to 3-2.

The Celtics jumped out on top right off the bat when defensive halfback Jack Shedden intercepted a pass and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown.

Another interception -- in the end zone with 21 seconds left in the half by BRs Adrian Kupiec -- halted a long march downfield by the Titans.

The Celtics padded their lead to 27-0 on touchdown runs of three yards by Sean Underhill, nine yards by Anthony Ragonetti and 30 yards by Zackary Pereira. Michael Horvat added three conversions.

The visitors replied with a one-yard touchdown run by Isaiah Shields and a convert by Amar Feta.

"I was very happy with the effort," Celtics coach Jim Davies said. "The boys were prepared. We made a few mistakes at times but we were able to respond and pull together. Our defence bent but, in the end, it came up with some strong play."

One of the key contributors for the Celtics was Underhill who, on defence as a safety, also returned an interception 73 yards.

"Our defence made some good stops when needed," said Underhill, who claims "100 per cent" that he was in the end zone with touchdown catch that officials didn't allow. It was fourth and goal at the time and Bishop Ryan turned the ball over on downs as a result.

"I caught it inside the end zone and he tackled me outside the end zone," Underhill said.

Underhill's father, Rob, is the long-time head coach of the Hamilton Varsity Tiger-Cats. In addition, he currently coaches special teams and defensive backs for the McMaster University Marauders.

"Sean is an exceptional player," Davies said. "He's got a strong pedigree. He studies film and the playbook. He's always prepared. I expect he'll be a high-end senior player moving forward."
Macaluso, incidentally, is a veteran assistant coach of the provincial league Tiger-Cats. So he knows Sean Underhill well.

"He was our water boy when he was 5 or 6 years old," Macaluso said. "Now, it's pretty exciting to see him on the field. He's become a good player."

The Titans are a young team -- 10 of the 12 players on offence are in Grade 9. "We have a pretty balanced attack," Macaluso said. "We're able to run our throw. We put ourselves in a lot of great positions today but couldn't capitalize."

In other junior action, the first-place St. John Henry Newman Cardinals defeated the St. Mary Crusaders, 21-0, and the Cathedral Gaels topped the St. Jean de Brebeuf Braves, 44-12.

The senior Celtics also won - 36-26 - in the second half of the doubleheader against the Titans.

Bishop Ryan finished third in the standings and will play the second-place St. John Henry Newman Cardinals in a Tier 1 semifinal. The first-place St. Thomas More Knights will face the fourth-place Cathedral Gaels in Friday's other semifinal.