Our football boys have had some major ups and downs this season, but have fought their way through it all together.

The team began this season with 21 spots to fill, 19 of them starting positions. The coaches didn’t have to worry though; the boys stepped up to create a dynamic team that has accomplished some amazing things this season.

Fighting their way through the regular season was tough, especially after starting quarterback Gabe Serri suffered a devastating, season-ending injury. Having to rebuild a season’s worth of hard work by switching positions was tough, and losing their best running back, Tyler Mersnick to take over the task of quarterback was risky.

“We had to be cautious of the fact that we are moving leading rusher to quarterback, and we don’t want to lose our best running back and lose our running game at the same time just to try and move a player over to quarterback, so we did some things as a team strategically that were really really different and really unique,” Coach Blake Markway said.

However, the boys were not daunted by this unforeseen setback and have tackled every obstacle thrown their way.

Now, with a four game winning streak under their belt, the team is prepared to go the distance. Beating Marshall 38-14, on the 1 was the perfect start to the playoffs. With a game against Hannibal approaching quickly on Friday, the whole team is putting in the work. But the hype the boys gained from last week’s game isn’t the only thing motivating and preparing them.

“We were able to get six films on Marshall and six on Hannibal. They play a lot of the same teams because they’re in the same conference, so you get a little better feel for Hannibal and what they are. Now that you’ve played against a team that they’ve played against, you’ve seen a ton of teams versus both of them,” Markway said.

The boys are ready to lay it all out on the line on Friday, but as the season comes to a close, the coaches want the boys to take away one thing,

“I want for every young man that comes through our program to handle adversity and show mental toughness, that they don’t let adversity change their goals, that they still find a way to achieve those goals and overcome adversity. I’m really proud of the team in that sense. And for the players that we’ve lost to injury, it’s the same thing for them, that they got big goals that they want to come back and achieve next year and little setbacks and injuries aren’t gonna get in the way of those,” Markway said.

The coaches, as well as the whole St. Dominic community, are so proud of what the team has accomplished, and we can’t wait to see how it ends. We wish the boys luck on the rest of their season and are cheering them on till the very end.