H.S. Football: Elyria Catholic relies on Donovan Shumpert, defense to beat Padua

ELYRIA — The two D's — defense and Donovan Shumpert — propelled Elyria Catholic to victory Friday in its North Coast Conference opener against Padua. Shumpert scored both Elyria Catholic touchdowns on runs of 1 and 10 yards and the Panthers defense came up with five fourth-down stops inside the 25-yard line in a 14-7 win at Dan Reaser Stadium. "Our motto is 'bend but don't break,'" Elyria Catholic coach Chase Farris said. "We understand things are going to happen but we have to respond to adversity in a big way." The Panthers didn't face as much adversity as they had in previous games, with Shumpert scoring twice to give his team a 14-0 halftime lead, but Padua came alive to make the game interesting in the fourth quarter. The Bruins avoided the shutout with 3:20 remaining when sophomore quarterback Donavin Friscone tossed a screen pass to junior running back Maks Karasek, who eluded multiple Elyria Catholic defenders for a 44-yard touchdown that cut the lead to 14-7. Then the unlikeliest hero emerged for the Panthers. Freshman Mason Hans recovered the squib kick on Padua's ensuing kickoff and then, playing the first defensive snaps in his high school career, intercepted a Friscone pass with time running down to seal the win. "Coach put me in on a big play and I was just in the moment," Hans said. "It's crazy. As a freshman I never expected to be on varsity at all. I'm so blessed with my coaches that they trusted me. I love all of them." Shumpert excelled on both sides of the ball, running 15 times for 96 yards, catching three passes for 35 yards and coming up with big tackles and pass breakups all night long as well as a fourth-quarter interception. "The grit our defense showed today was really something," Shumpert said. "With every goal line stop we showed our grit and our energy. "We've had team meetings every Monday to keep our morale up and stay focused on the next game. We start every week like we're 0-0 and it's showing with our energy." After stopping Padua twice inside the 25 in the first half, Elyria Catholic's defense started the second half by stopping the Bruins on the 2-yard line after a nine-play drive and then on the 14 after a 13-play drive. "This win was huge for the program and huge for the morale of this team," Farris said. "This is a conference win and region win (both teams are in Division III, Region 10) so it's a two-for-one. Being able to see the continued growth of these guys from week-to-week is huge." Panthers junior quarterback Robbie Duray had a solid night, completing 13 of 18 passes for 123 yards. Elyria Catholic only turned the ball over once while forcing three turnovers. If the Panthers hope to keep their momentum rolling into October, they will need to take on the role of road warriors. Elyria Catholic plays its next three games away from home, beginning with a trip to Lake Catholic next Friday. Contact Todd Shapiro at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Elyria Catholic 14, Padua 7 Padua&emsp;0&emsp;0&emsp;0&emsp;7&emsp;—&emsp;7 Elyria Catholic&emsp;7&emsp;7&emsp;0&emsp;0&emsp;—&emsp;14 Scoring EC — Donovan Shumpert, 1 run (Max Murner kick) EC — Shumpert, 10 run (Murner kick) P — Max Karasek, 44 pass from Donavin Friscone (Aiden Relic kick)