For the first time this season, no diocesan team suffered a loss in weekly football action. O'Connell defeated St. Alban’s 16-7; Paul VI defeated Carroll 26-7; and Ireton’s game against Bullis was canceled due to the inclement weather.

The O'Connell Knights, coached by Steve Trimble, traveled to Washington, D.C., Sept. 13 to play St. Alban’s, which was ranked #12 in the entire metro area by the Washington Post prior to the contest.

The "Royal Blue and Silver" scored all the points they needed in the second quarter. Senior quarterback Bush Hamdan connected with senior running back Jeremy Trimble for a seven-yard score and then connected with junior wide receiver Andrew Stockel for a 51-yard score.

"I ran a post route. Bush threw it real well. I broke about three tackles to get to the end zone," said Stockel.

In addition, senior wide receiver Noah Rogers and Trimble each hauled in two-point conversion passes from Hamdan following the Knights two touchdowns. Rogers, also a basketball standout, caught the decisive points of the game, which propelled the Knights to an 8-7 advantage.

"It felt good to catch that conversion pass," said Rogers, who caught four other passes for 47 yards. Senior tight end Ernie Lomax caught four balls for 50 yards and Trimble hauled in three other receptions for 20 yards. Lomax leads the Knights with 14 receptions this season.

Hamdan, who had two costly second half interceptions in last week’s loss to McNamara, finished the St. Alban’s contest completing 13 of 25 for nearly 200 yards.

"I've worked hard for three years," he said. "Walking off this field knowing that we beat a team that one week earlier defeated Gonzaga is just a great feeling. Good things happen when we really believe."

The O'Connell defense was suffocating all game long. (Steve Trimble, a former All-Atlantic Coast defensive back for the Maryland Terrapins in the Jerry Claiborne era, also doubles as the Knights defensive coordinator).

O'Connell kept St. Alban’s out of the end zone during the final 40 minutes of Saturdays contest. Knights that stepped up defensively included senior defensive ends Steve Smith and Lomax, senior defensive tackle Ryan Molina, junior defensive tackle Oscar Puza and senior linebackers Brian Griffin, Matt Mallory and Peter Glaws. Mallory was credited with two caused fumbles.

"We knew we really had to stay with the defensive game plan all game long. Coach Trimble really gets us motivated and pumped up," said Smith.

"We didn't stop. We kept going full speed. We knew that if we took one play off, the outcome of the game could have changed," said Puza.

"On offense in the first half, we controlled the ball and Bush passed well. In the second half on defense, we did not allow them the big play and we kept them off balance. Give a lot of credit to Matt Mallory for forcing those two fumbles - one was recovered by Ernie Lomax and the other one by junior defensive back Mike Ireland," said Coach Trimble.

O'Connell improved to 2-1 overall and will visit Stonebridge H.S. (Loudoun Co.) Sept. 19.

Kyle Scores Three Times to Lead PVI

The Paul VI Panthers, coached by Pat McGroarty won their first WCAC contest since the fall of 2001 with its 26-7 victory. It was a breakout victory for the "Black and Gold," who won only one game last fall.

Sophomore running back Keone Kyle put the Panthers on the scoreboard first, with a 10-yard first quarter scoring run.

Carroll tied the contest 7-7 late in the first quarter but the Lions did not find the end zone for the remainder of the contest.

PVI forced Carroll to punt late in the second quarter and then embarked on the decisive drive of the game.

The "Black and Gold" moved 52 yards on 10 plays and scored when senior quarterback/punter Mike Geraghty connected with senior wide receiver/defensive back Drew Bonk on an 18-yard scoring strike. The kick was no good but PVI led 13-7 at intermission and never looked back.

Kyle ripped off scoring runs of 18 and six yards in the second half to account for the final margin.

Many players stepped up defensively for the Panthers including: senior defensive end Joe Gannon, junior defensive ends Art Dabney and Calvin Salter, sophomore defensive end Keone Kyle, senior nose guard Tim Coogan, senior defensive tackles Jeff Marcey and Doug Gadell, senior outside linebackers Dan Cinalli and Darryl Proctor and senior inside linebackers Dan Margoupis and Pat Zanelotti.

"Everyone stayed strong. We hit our (defensive) holes consistently. This is just the beginning. We should win a number of more games this season," said Cinalli.

"We really wanted this win badly. It was the home opener. After halftime, we went out there and kept the intensity high. We are happy with the season so far, but we are not satisfied. As the rest of the year progresses, we're going to get better," said Margoupis.

Paul VI improved to 2-1 overall. The Panthers will not see action again until Sept. 26 when they host Ireton.