Staff Report

Seven Catholic football-playing high schools from the Archdiocese of Cincinnati are continuing their gridiron campaigns this weekend in the first round of the OHSAA high school football playoffs. Here’s a glance at each game of week 11.

Badin (7-3) at Fenwick (10-0) Saturday
Bishop Fenwick wrapped up an undefeated regular season with a 35-7 victory over Carroll last week, setting up a playoff showdown with one of the few teams to challenge the Falcons this season.

Fenwick (10-0) will face GCL Co-Ed rival Badin (7-3) on Saturday in a Division IV playoff contest in Franklin. Badin, which shared the GCL Co-Ed Central Division championship with McNicholas, lost a tight 38-31 contest to Fenwick back in week 5 in Hamilton.

Reading (9-1) at Alter (9-1) Saturday 
GCL Co-Ed North runner-up Alter also made the playoffs, with the Knights securing a home game against the Reading Blue Devils (9-1). Reading’s only loss this season came at the hands of 10-0 Indian Hill in overtime last week. Last year Alter made it all the way to the state title game before falling to Benedictine.

In the GCL South, La Salle, Elder and St. Xavier all made the playoffs.

Butler (7-3) at La Salle (8-2) Friday
La Salle is the top seed in Division II, Region 6 and will face Butler (7-3) tonight (Friday) at home. Butler sports a prolific offense that scored 30 or more points five times this season. La Salle is the defending state champion and according to the GCL South website, has won 22 of its last 25 games.

Fairfield (8-2) at Elder (7-3) Saturday
Elder (7-3) plays Fairfield (8-2) Saturday at The Pit. Fairfield’s only losses this season came to Colerain (9-1) and Mason (8-2). Elder is in the post-season for the fourth consecutive year. Fairfield is in the playoffs for the first time since 2005

St. Xavier (6-4) at Gahanna-Lincoln (7-3) Saturday
St. Xavier ties Lehman Catholic as the local school with the most losses to still make the postseason. The Bombers will travel to Gahanna-Lincoln (7-3) Saturday. The Lions are a hard team to get a handle on, as only two of their seven wins came against a team with a winning record.

Lehman Catholic (6-4) at Covington (8-2) Friday
Among the three non-GCL schools, only Lehman Catholic is playing in week 11. The Cavaliers travel to Covington, Ohio to face the No. 2-seed Buccs. Speaking of Lehman Catholic and Covington, that brings us to this week’s FUN FACT.

Fun Fact: Lehman Catholic is the only school on our list with a first-round playoff rematch from last season. Last year Lehman Catholic entered the playoffs with a slightly better record at 8-2 and its first round opponent was none other than Covington. The Cavaliers trounced the Buccs 42-7 to kick off a deep playoff run.

Team                                  Week 10 Record                Week 11 opponent
GCL Co-Ed Standings
North
Fenwick*                                  10-0 (7-0)                   Badin (7-3) Saturday
Alter                                       9-1 (6-1)                   Reading (9-1) Saturday
Carroll                                     5-5 (3-4)                   —
Chaminade Julienne                 2-8 (2-5)                   —

Central
Badin*                                     7-3 (4-3)                        at Fenwick (10-0) Saturday
McNicholas*                            5-5 (4-3)                       —
Purcell Marian                        3-7 (2-5)                       —
Roger Bacon                           3-7 (0-7)                      —

GCL South
Elder*                                      7-3 (2-1)                      Fairfield (8-2) Saturday
St. Xavier*                               6-4 (2-1)                      at Gahanna Lincoln (7-3) Saturday
LaSalle                                   8-2 (1-2)                     Butler (7-3) Friday
Moeller                                   5-5 (1-2)                      —

Other Catholic Schools
Lehman Catholic                      6-4 (5-2 NCC)               at Covington (8-2) Friday
Catholic Central                       4-6 (2-5 OHC)                —
Summit  Country Day              4-6 (0-4 MVC)                 —

*- indicates league champion or co-champion.

Posted November 6, 2015