DePaul Prep Handles St. Patrick 41-0

[Preview of this week’s Inside Booster article]

By Jack Lydon

The DePaul Prep Rams took apart the St. Patrick Shamrocks 41-0 at DePaul Prep on Friday evening. The Rams improved their 4-0, 2-0 in the CCL/ESCC Purple division. This game against the Shamrocks, 2-2, 1-1, also in the Purple, took on the added significance because it was a division game.

It was a busy evening on the west end of Roscoe Village. DePaul Prep hosted St. Patrick, the only other Catholic high school on the Northside. Lane hosted Whitney Young at Lane Stadium at the same time just a few hundred yards north of DePaul’s field. Parking was difficult to come by.

Before the game, the DePaul Prep fans, coaches and staff I talked to were tightlipped about what to expect.

“They’re good. And big,” a couple people told me.

Another observer told me, “DePaul 20-13.”

“They can run the football, but they haven’t played anyone that can pass the ball like we can,” one coach told me.

It didn’t take long for the Rams show exactly how well they can pass the ball. And score. Less than two minutes into the game, Rams senior quarterback Juju Rodriguez hit senior wideout Justin Sterner on a twenty-five-yard touchdown.

Not long thereafter, Rams’ senior running back Nick Martinez added another touchdown with a 37-yard for a touchdown. 14-0.

Rams’ senior wide receiver Braden Peevy scored a four-yard touchdown with 6:55 left in the second quarter to make the score 21-0. The Rams were rolling.

Then with nine seconds left in the half, Rodriguez connected with junior wide receiver Matthew Osterman on a 23-yard post route at the back of the north endzone for a fourth touchdown and a 27-0 half time lead.

To some extent, that was expected. The Rams and Juju, a three-year starter, can pass the ball and score. What was not expected was the way the Rams defense controlled the Shamrocks. St. Patrick’s strung together a couple first downs in the first quarter but never threated to score in the first half. The Rams defense held on every possession and forced punts. The Shamrocks offensive line is huge. The Rams defensive line stopped the run. The closest the Shamrocks go to scoring as a 52-yard field goal attempt late in the game that was on target but a came up few yards short.

It felt like the Rams were just taking-care-of-business. St. Patrick had a winning record. They are big and skilled. Yet the Rams handled them on offense and defense.

I remember interviewing Rams head coach Mike Passarella several years ago. He said something to me after a tough loss that stuck with me. “We haven’t learned how to win yet.”

The Rams have learned how to win.

“I think it started last year. It started with us losing a game against Providence [Catholic in New Lenox] by a couple points. Then we beat Fenwick in double overtime. We learned how to compete, how to stay in games and how to finish games. When I started here, it was a rough go in the beginning. Then every year it was a steady climb. We grew up last year,” Passarella said.

When one learn how to win, I guess it just feels like taking care-of-business. Check off another game on the schedule.

But the goal of the season is to get into to the playoffs. The Catholic school super football conference, a combination of the Chicago Catholic League and the East Suburban Catholic League, doesn’t make it easy to get to the playoffs. To be assured a playoff spot, the IHSA requires a 6-3 record. Getting six wins in the CCL/ESCC is tough for every team. You just don’t play teams at your level. You play teams from the higher divisions of the conference.

The Rams face Loyola next week from the Blue Division. Loyola has lost one game in the last three seasons. The Rams will play St. Francis (Wheaton) from the Green Division. The Rams will play Carmel Catholic from the White Division. Very good teams with winning programs. And then there are St. Viator and Benet Academy, historically successful programs and new rivals in the Purple Division. To make the playoffs, the Rams have to find two wins in those five games against teams from the upper levels of the Catholic League.

Asked what he is going to change to get ready for Loyola, Passarla said, “Honestly, nothing. Our practice is going to be the same during the week. The kids know that when we are on the road, it’s a business trip. This is the first group that has the ability to flip the switch and be engaged. They want it.”

They turned a corner. They learned how to win.

“Yup, this group is hungry. This senior class wants to be the first class to bring us back to the playoffs for the first time in a decade,” Passarella concluded.

DePaul Prep Wins Sectional Championship with 2-1 Victory over St. Pat’s

The DePaul Prep Rams defeated the St. Patrick Shamrocks 2-1 in a well-played exciting game fitting of the stage. The student defeated the teacher in the IHSA 3A Clemente Sectional championship game.

When Sammy Colon was an 8th grader, Chris Haas went to his grade school and played catch with him eventually getting him into Gordon Tech. Sammy, a four-year starter for Chris at Gordon, came back to work at DePaul Prep as an assistant athletic director and an assistant varsity baseball coach. Chris moved on to become an athletic director himself and Sammy graduated into being the Rams’ baseball head coach.

Shamrocks’ junior right-hander Elias Alvarado had the Rams well in hand for the first four innings. No runs, one hit, no walks and three strike-outs. The defense behind him was solid.

Rams’ senior lefty James MacMillan was rolling too. Despite giving up three well hit singles in the top of the second, MacMillon rallied to set done the Shamrocks only giving up one run.

“We knew [Alvarado] was running out of gas a little [after four innings]. We started taking it one inning at a time. We put some balls in play and none of them were falling. We just needed to keep working on him, riding out at-bats and we would get an opportunity,” Colon said.

I wasn’t far from Sammy who was coaching third base. I could hear what he was saying to the bench. In the bottom of the fifth, he was fired up. He knew it was now or never to make a move, score a couple runs and win the game. He was all business.

To open the frame, the Rams got a huge lead off infield hit of the pitcher’s glove from senior Carter Levine. It was the ember the Rams needed to spark the inning. Levine, who to that point had the Rams only hit off Alvardo, legged out the hit. Colon had alerted Rams’ Owen Rog before the at-bat that if Carter got on, Rog would run for him.

Rog scrambled out to first base in place of Levine who had done his part. Rams’ third baseman junior Charlie Pribyl was at the plate.

“I didn’t put the bunt down initially but then I went to it. That put a lot of different things in peoples’ heads. I think Haas thought for sure we were bunting there to get the one run. It’s funny that Rog was at first base. Typically, he is our starting center fielder. We had a bit of an injury with the arm but the legs still worked so I was confident in stealing the bag there,” said Colon.

On a 2-0 count, after Pribyl showed bunt, Rog bolted for second; a good throw was late. Rog was in at second.

With two on and no outs, senior left fielder Aiden Ball ball squared around to bunt and worked a walk to load the based. Four innings in, Alvarado seemed a little gassed, struggling to find the plate. Rams hitters were in no hurry to swing at pitches outside the zone.

With the bases loaded and no one out, sophomore Joey Sachetti worked a walk on a three and two count to bring home Rog from third and tie the game.

“Big walk by Joey Sachetti in the nine spot who typically does not start for us, a sophomore that we called up from JV. That was a big at bat for us,” Colon said.

Back to the top of the line up, with one out, Rams senior infielder Benny Espinosa hit a fly ball to right field scoring Pribyl from third.

Rams up 2-1.

“Benny Espinosa doing what he does best. He has been our rock all year long. He stepped up big,” said Colon.

“Ya, [Alvarado] got a little gassed. He got a little rattled when he hit [Pribyl] on the bunt attempt. He throw a one hitter. They got the two runs he had no hits. It was just one of those things. I thought we hit the ball. We had six or seven hits.” But just one run.

James MacMillon’s performance was just as impressive as Alvarado’s. Six and a third innings giving up just the one run despite giving up five hits and three walks. Timely strike-outs and solid defense on balls put in play was the recipe for success.

Shut down closer Gavin Glibowski closed the door on the Shamrocks in the top of the seventh.  

Sammy Colon was emotional after the game.

“There wasn’t much conversation [with Chris Haas] before the game. It’s emotional for this game. He means a lot to me. As a coaching mentor, as a friend. He found me in the rough in the high school team at Gordon. He means a lot to me. It’s very emotional to play him. We didn’t talk a lot before the game. I had to keep my mind on beating him. But afterwards, we will go hang out. We will talk about this game forever. So, it’s fun,” Sammy said after the game.

Chris Haas took over baseball coaching from legendary Gordon Tech skipper Red Miller in 2003.

“I get emotional too. I love him. It was hard [to talk before the game]. I went up to him. Those kids, Luke Oblen, Griff Horne, Klein, Latko; those are still my guys. It’s bittersweet. I love those kids,” Chris Haas said after the game.  

“I love Sammy to death. He was a four-year starter for me in high school. I went to his grammar school everyday for a week at lunch. I played catch with him and talked about coming to Gordon. I love him. I wish him the best of luck.”