O’Fallon offense sputters in loss at Benet Academy

Another trip to the Chicago area resulted in a second loss for the O’Fallon Panthers, who fell 41-3 to the Benet Academy Redwings on Friday night.

Benet’s offense struggled for much of the first half against O’Fallon (0-2). But Benet’s young but talented defense took up the slack, even tallying the first nine points of the game all by itself.

The Redwings went ahead 2-0 in the first quarter when safety Alec McEachern tackled O’Fallon tailback Kentrail Moran in the Panthers’ end zone for a safety.

McEachern found himself in the same end zone less than two minutes later when linebacker Ryan Liszka stripped the ball from Moran and McEachern recovered the fumble for a defensive touchdown and a 9-0 lead.

Benet (2-0) limited O’Fallon to 63 first-half yards and two first downs, which gave its offense time to begin clicking in the second and third quarters.

Running back Marty Dosen broke loose for a 35-yard run, and quarterback Jack Sznajder rumbled for 44 yards on the next play from scrimmage to push Benet in front 16-0.

"This win was good for us because we have a loaded conference, and every win is important for getting into the playoffs again," Dosen said of the victory over the Panthers, who traveled north for a second week in a row after driving five hours to face Hinsdale Central on Aug. 28. "We didn’t play a perfect game, even though the score may not show it, but we just wore them down with our defense and stuck with it on offense after a slow start."

After trading field goals to end the half, the Redwings busted the game open in the third quarter behind a 1-yard TD run from Charlie Weidenbach for a 27-3 edge. Dosen crossed the goal line on a 1-yard run for a 34-3 lead, and backup quarterback Mike Dunn’s 64-yard touchdown pass to wideout C.J. Birck with 7 minutes remaining closed out the scoring.

O’Fallon’s young offense, which features a sophomore quarterback and four other sophomore starters, was particularly plagued by turnovers, committing three fumbles and an interception. "Any time you lose the turnover battle against a good team is tough to overcome," Panthers coach Brandon Joggerst said.

The Panthers (0-2) will try to rebound when they tackle Belleville West in their Southwestern Conference opener next Friday . The game marks the team’s third consecutive road game to start the season, including its back-to-back visits to West suburban schools. O’Fallon lost 41-14 to Hinsdale Central Aug. 28.

"This is the first time we’ve started with (three away games)," Joggerst said, "and it’s hopefully the last time."

This story was originally published September 5, 2015 at 12:15 AM with the headline "O’Fallon offense sputters in loss at Benet Academy."