Holy Cross Crusaders vs Sullivan Heights Stars

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It's not how you start, it's how you finish. That old adage rings true in many aspects of life, including on the gridiron. The Holy Cross Crusaders have not had the start to their 2025 campaign that they likely imagined. Winless entering their matchup against a cross-town rival in the Sullivan Heights Stars, the Crusaders finally put it all together with a 13-0 victory that the team hopes can propel them in the right direction moving forward.

"After a 0-4 start, it feels good to get off the losing skid with a win over Sullivan Heights. It was a really intense physical game today, and the Sullivan team really pushed us to execute. They were very amped up for this game, and they came out intense and really pushed us," Crusaders head coach Conrad Deugau said post-game.

The Crusades were fueled by their ferocious defence. No matter what the Stars tried, there was no room to be had.

"Our defence was outstanding today. Sullivan struggled to get any real momentum on offence. Our DL was a huge factor in getting at least two sacks on the day. Rohith Fernando had a crucial interception early," said Deugau.

The Stars' defence kept things close until the final whistle. They forced turnovers in the red zone and stalled multiple promising Crusaders drives. Holy Cross had to rely on its field goal unit, which is never a given at the high school level.  

"Our offence had some struggles today, but we were able to move the ball into scoring position a number of times. Only 1 resulted in a rushing touchdown via Luke Tamis. Other possessions resulted in 2 field goals from kicker Michel Olychick," Deugau said. 

Thanks to Tamis and Olychick, those 13 points were enough to hold on for the Crusaders' first win of the year. Deugau knows his team needs to clean up those struggles in the red area, as well as a few other little things holding his team back. 

"We have a lot to work on. We took way too many penalties, which hurt multiple drives and scoring opportunities. We head into the bye week with a number of key things to improve on, but to also rest and get healthy."

The Crusaders will use their bye week to do just that. When they resume play the week after, they'll look to put the struggles of September behind them and get back to 500 by the end of October.