Benet’s Pat Pitello used all of his 145 pounds and needed every inch of his 5-foot-11 frame to fight off the defender and make the circus catch.
But junior wide receiver did it.
“I saw the ball in the air, and I had one job, and it was go up and get it,” Pitello said. “So that’s what I did. I went up and caught it.”
The 35-yard reception on the pass from quarterback Jake Hoeppel midway through the second quarter Friday night gave the Redwings a first down at Moline’s 8-yard line. It set up Daniel Flores’ 22-yard field goal that started a much-needed comeback.
The host Redwings scored 17 consecutive points and hung on to beat Moline 24-21 at Benedictine University.
Benet (1-1) was trailing 13-7 when Hoeppel lofted the ball up for Pitello, who already had a 9-yard touchdown reception. It was a jump ball that easily could have gone either way.
Pitello won the battle and came down on his back as the Benet fans roared.
“I caught it, I looked where I was and I was like, ‘Whoo!'” Pitello said. “All of a sudden we were gaining momentum, so I thought that was huge.”
He wasn’t the only one. Hoeppel immediately recognized the significance.
“That was a huge turning point,” Hoeppel said. “I throw it up to Pat, and Pat always comes down with it. He’s a great player.”
Pitello and receivers Andrew Manuel, Andrew Tyson and Rocky Rosanova aren’t nearly as well known as Benet star Pierce Walsh, the Minnesota recruit who led all players with six receptions for 65 yards.
But they are equally important to the Redwings’ success, combining for 12 catches for 150 yards. They stepped up when the Maroons (1-1) started keying on Walsh, and their production opened up the running game for Michael Lawler to rush 25 times for 156 yards and two touchdowns.
“We have Pierce and Mike Lawler, who are big-name offense guys,” Benet coach Pat New said. “Because teams really key on Pierce, we need other guys to step up, and they did. I was so happy to see that.”
So was Hoeppel, who overcame an early fumble that was returned for a touchdown by Moline. He completed 18 of 26 passes for 215 yards, including a 49-yarder that set up a 6-yard scoring run by Lawler which gave Benet a 24-13 cushion two plays into the fourth quarter.
“I have the most confidence in my receivers at all times,” Hoeppel said. “They’re doing the same thing at practice, and it’s showing in games. It’s great. I love those guys.”
Lawler, whose 59-yard scamper up the middle and down the right sideline put Benet ahead to stay, 17-13, at the 3:25 mark of the second quarter, carried the ball on the final three plays of the game. That ran out the clock after Benet’s defense stopped Moline at the 37-yard line in the final minute.
“It means a lot,” Tyson said of the win. “Our schedule is brutal. We have a lot of tough teams on our schedule. To beat these guys and stick it out and stay ahead, that’s huge to help us make the playoffs.”
The Redwings went 4-5 last season, falling one victory short of qualifying for the playoffs.
With home games coming up against Brother Rice and St. Rita, avoiding an 0-2 start was crucial.
“We’ve got to get better every week,” New said. “This was a must-win for us.”
One that has Hoeppel fired up.
“We have momentum going into next week,” Hoeppel said. “We know we can get it done against Brother Rice.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.