It was too little, too late for the Benet Academy Redwings as they had the misfortune of facing the Marist Redhawks, who have been a juggernaut in Illinois high school football for years. Despite the odds being stacked against them, Benet was hoping to pull out with a win on Senior Night. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Although their second half performance was very good, it simply couldn’t make up for the large lead they allowed in the first half.

Marist entered the matchup as the heavy favorites. They were undefeated heading into the game, and they had several players with Division I scholarships. That talent showed up in a big way at Benedictine Stadium. Two first-half rushing touchdowns by Delonte Harrell and a 70-yard touchdown pass from Mike Markett to Jadon Thompson gave the Redhawks a 21-0 lead at halftime. Despite a few promising plays on defense – such as Connor Reid’s interception in the first quarter – the Redwings simply were unable to stop the run. Part of this was due to Markett’s ability to roll out of the pocket and gain some yards with his feet. The junior quarterback finished the game completing 20 of his 28 passing attempts for 210 yards and a touchdown. He also added 128 rushing yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.

Although the first half was a disaster for Benet, they showed up in a big way after halftime. In a play reminiscent of Chicago Bears punter Pat O’Donnell’s touchdown pass to Benny Cunningham against the Minnesota Vikings, the Redwings ran a fake punt for a pass on fourth down. Quarterback Colin Gillespie lined up at punter and, instead of punting the ball, threw it to gain a first down. That play shifted the momentum of the game ever so slightly. After a beautifully thrown deep ball from Gillespie to Jack Eschenbach, Benet finally got on the board with a 24-yard field goal by Victor Karan.

After giving up a rushing touchdown by Markett in the fourth quarter, the Redwings answered back with a touchdown of their own. Gillespie fumbled on a running play, but the ball was recovered in the end zone by offensive lineman Nick Arrowsmith. Marist scored on a jet sweep by Billy Skalitzky, but Gillespie responded with an eight-yard touchdown run. Linebacker Mike Wymer recovered a fumble for a 56-yard touchdown on the next possession.

In the end, though, Benet’s valiant effort proved to be no match for Marist’s early dominance. The Redwings lost their final home game by a score of 38-24. They ended up with a 2-2 record at home this season, which is a step down from their 5-1 record at home last year. However, Benet did well enough this season to make it to the IHSA playoffs, where they will face the Maine West Warriors in the first round.

Despite a tough loss for the football team, the band, Avions, cheerleaders, and colorguard all gave outstanding performances on what was also their Senior Night. Band and colorguard performed a medley from Rhapsody in Blue. The cheerleaders and Avions wore pink bows in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month.